Star Trek: Discovery Bans The Word 'God'

Some may think that the restrictions on what can and can't be said in a television series developed for streaming services would be less stringent than those created for broadcast. It turns out that's not the case when it comes to Star Trek: Discovery, at least not in one very specific example.

The word "god" is banned from use on Star Trek: Discovery, adhering to the part of Gene Roddenberry's original vision for Star Trek that involved humanity progressing past the need for religion.

The rule was noted during the filming of a scene that was observed by Entertainment Weekly. The scene finds the USS Discovery under attack by Klingon starships:

"Lock on the Bird of Prey!" Lorca barks. "Basic pattern Beta 9. Hard to port! Fire at something, for God's sakes!"

Too late.

The Klingons blast the Discovery. Lorca and his shipmates lurch hard to one side. The high-tech set's thousands of lights flicker anxiously, conveying the ship's wounds.

The director halts the action and Lorca, played by British actor Jason Isaacs of Harry Potter fame, steps off the stage. The episode's writer, Kirsten Beyer, approaches to give a correction on his "for God's sakes" ad lib.

The recounting goes on to describe Isaacs' confusion on the matter, where he at believes this to be a censorship issue. "Wait, I can't say 'God'?" Isaacs asked. "I thought I could say 'God' or 'damn' but not 'goddamn.'"

When writer Kirsten Beyer explains to Isaacs that it's not a standards and practices issue but a matter of sticking to Roddenberry's vision of the future, Issacs quips to her, "How about 'for f**k's sake'? Can I say that?"

"You can say that before you can say 'God,'" Beyer replied.

It is interesting that Star Trek: Discovery is choosing to adhere so strictly to this particular part of Roddenberry's original Star Trek vision when it has made a point of abandoning another, the rule that there would be no conflict between core cast members.

In truth, both rules had been abandoned in later years. More conflict between members of the crew of the Enterprise-D began to occur on Star Trek: The Next Generation shortly after Roddenberry's death in 1991 (to the show's betterment, most fans would agree). Religion was one of the major themes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, albeit alien religion, with Captain Benjamin Sisko serving as the actual, literal chosen one (the Emissary of the Prophets) of the beings worshiped by the Bajoran people.

Star Trek: Discovery will premiere on CBS and CBS All Access on Sept. 24, 2017.

More Star Trek News: Star Trek Timelines Comes To Steam / Gucci Launches Star Trek Themed Campaign / Fargo And Legion Composer To Score Star Trek: Discovery / Star Trek Comics Coming In October