UPN Cancels 'Star Trek: Enterprise'

Star Trek: Enterprise will come to an end following the airing of an as yet untitled series finale on May the 13th, 2005.

UPN and Paramount today jointly announced the show's cancellation. "Star Trek has been an important part of UPN's history, and Enterprise has carried on the tradition of its predecessors with great distinction," UPN Entertainment president Dawn Ostroff said. "We'd like to thank Rick Berman, Brannon Braga and an incredibly talented cast for creating an engaging, new dimension to the Star Trek universe on UPN, and we look forward to working with them, and our partners at Paramount Network Television, on a send-off that salutes its contributions to The Network and satisfies its loyal viewers."

Paramount Network Television president David Stapf added, "The creators, stars and crew of Star Trek: Enterprise ambitiously and proudly upheld the fine traditions of the Star Trek franchise. We are grateful for their contributions to the legacy of Trek and commend them on completing nearly 100 exciting, dramatic and visually stunning episodes. All of us at Paramount warmly bid goodbye to Enterprise, and we all look forward to a new chapter of this enduring franchise in the future."

TrekToday sources report that CBS president Les Moonves himself yesterday reached the decision to pull the plug on Enterprise. Most Enterprise crew members only found out about their show's cancellation this morning.

Enterprise only barely qualified for renewal a year ago, but was given a final chance by UPN to prove itself after Paramount agreed to drastically cut the show's license fee. The show underwent several major changes this year, including a move from Wednesday night to Friday and the appointment of new showrunner Manny Coto, but the most important thing didn't change - the show's low ratings. Last week, "Babel One" set a new series low for Enterprise, attracting just over 2.5 million viewers.

No official details have yet been released for the final episode of the series, beyond the fact it will be written by Enterprise creators Rick Berman and Brannon Braga. Recently, Paramount was rumoured to be in negotiations with Jonathan Frakes (William T. Riker) and Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi) for a guest appearance on the final episode (story), although Sirtis has since denied this (story).

Although UPN has now officially decided to not bring back Enterprise for a fifth season, two fan campaigns are still working to try and change the network's mind. SaveEnterprise.com and the Enterprise Project have combined to form EnterpriseFans.com, an organisation trying to raise money to promote Enterprise with an ad in USA Today.

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