Screenwriters Steve Meerson and Peter Krikes were given the task of crafting a role for Murphy, envisioning him as a quirky English professor at Berkeley. Meerson shared with Woman’s World that Murphy would portray a character reminiscent of eccentric professors from the ’60s or ’70s, who not only taught English but also believed in extraterrestrial life. The concept involved the Enterprise intercepting whale sounds played by Murphy’s character during his lectures, leading to an eventual encounter. This idea was pared down after the initial draft, though the essence remained—Murphy’s character would witness aliens beaming into his classroom, compelling him to convince others of their existence.

While the idea had its charm, it risked veering into absurdity. “Star Trek” is celebrated for its ability to blend humor with heartfelt science fiction, and Murphy’s professor could have upset that balance. The plot seemed more fitting for a zany sci-fi series like “My Favorite Martian” or “Mork & Mindy” than a “Star Trek” installment.

Producer Harve Bennett, who joined the “Star Trek” team with 1982’s “The Wrath of Khan,” recounted his initial meeting with Murphy as somewhat unconventional. In an interview with Woman’s World, Bennett recalled Murphy arriving with his entourage dressed entirely in black leather. After hearing the story proposal, Murphy expressed tentative interest, requesting a script before leaving. The possibility of having Murphy in the film was both thrilling and daunting for the team.

After Murphy’s departure, Bennett and Nicholas Meyer revised the script, transferring some attributes of the professor character to Catherine Hicks’ Dr. Gillian Taylor. “The Voyage Home” received critical acclaim and thrived commercially, earning $133 million globally from a $24 million budget. In contrast, “The Golden Child” grossed nearly $80 million but faced critical backlash, reflected in its 22% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Behind the scenes, the studio was starting to get cold feet. However, at this point, it was pretty much out of their hands. “Eddie had a certain amount of clout and he said that he hadn’t decided whether he wanted to do it or not and so much of the development of the story was with the very distinct possibility that Eddie Murphy was in it,” Bennett explained. Luckily for them — and for “Star Trek” fans everywhere – Murphy ended up rejecting the part in favor of “The Golden Child,” which came out the same year.

With Eddie Murphy out, the script for “The Voyage Home” was rewritten by Bennett and Nicholas Meyer, with some of the professor character’s qualities given to Catherine Hicks’ Dr. Gillian Taylor. The film was lauded by critics and it did well at the box office, raking in $133 million worldwide from a budget of $24 million. “The Golden Child” wasn’t quite as successful, making just shy of $80 million from a similar budget. The majority of critics panned the dark fantasy action comedy — it has a 22% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Eddie Murphy, who is a self-described Trekkie, would later lament turning down the chance to appear in a “Star Trek” movie. Speaking to veteran entertainment journalist Ed Gross in 2023, he admitted that opting to appear in “The Golden Child” instead of “The Voyage Home” was a mistake. “In retrospect, I think I might have been better off doing ‘Star Trek IV,’” he said. So why did Murphy opt to make “The Golden Child” instead? Well, it apparently came down to his character being human — and a familiar human, at that.

During the promotion of his 2008 sci-fi comedy film “Meet Dave,” Murphy brought up the fact that he almost appeared in “The Voyage Home.” He stated that the character the screenwriters came up with was too similar to Axel Foley from “Beverly Hills Cop,” which ultimately pushed him toward “The Golden Child.” During a 2023 appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Murphy said: “I was going to be the one that they met when they got to San Francisco, and I was like, ‘No, I want to go and beam up and be on the ship,’ so I didn’t do it,” Murphy said. He then added, “They had me like talking jive to Spock.”

Murphy apparently had his heart set on playing a Vulcan, which came as news to Leonard Nimoy. When TrekMovie told the Spock actor this during a 2008 interview, he said that they only ever envisioned Murphy playing the professor character. “I guess he was right in that it was a character that he had played before in some way,” Nimoy said. “I had no idea that he was looking to play an entirely different kind of alien or Vulcan. We still admire Eddie Murphy and I hope he still admires us.”