J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek Totally Changed Where USS Enterprise Was Built Because Of Kirk

By Daniel Bibby

Published Mar 30, 2025

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2009's Chris Pine's James T. Kirk commanded an iteration of the starship that was built elsewhere from William Shatner's Prime Universe counterpart. The reason for this change all comes down to the differences between the Kirks.

JJ Abrams' alternate Star Trek timeline was set in motion by the destruction of the USS Kelvin in the 23rd century. After that, events started to diverge from the franchise's Prime Universe but remained part of the larger multiversal canon. One of the biggest impacts of the Kelvin's destruction was on the course of Kirk's life in the Kelvin Timeline. Although Abrams kept most of the movie's changes very organic, one was included pretty much entirely for narrative reasons. Regardless, it still worked well.

Kirk Was The Reason Why J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek 2009 Changed Where Enterprise Was Built

Chris Pine's James T. Kirk had an alternate path to Starfleet

Kirk sits on his motorbike looking at the USS Enterprise being built

Pine's Kirk had a different path to Starfleet when compared to Shatner's. The Kelvin Timeline version of the character had to be coerced into ing after a self-destructive attitude had started to take him away from his original destiny. So, because he was still living on Earth, Abrams had to bring Starfleet to him, rather than the other way around. He did this by having the Enterprise built in Iowa, where Kirk could see the vessel in all its glory and have the epiphany moment that led him to enlist in Starfleet.

Custom Star Trek image of Leonard Nimoy as Spock, Chris Pine as Kirk, and Zachary Quinto as Spock

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This change is an example of Abrams having to make certain compromises for his altered version of the story to work. Shatner's Kirk never had to be convinced all that much to Starfleet, so he saw the Enterprise more organically when the time was right. The major turning point here is that Shatner's Kirk grew up with his father's service to Starfleet inspiring him to serve. Inversely, the Kelvin George Kirk (Chris Hemsworth) died in service before Pine's character got the chance to meet him. Therefore, the Kelvin version of James T. Kirk initially resented the organization.

Where USS Enterprise Was Built In Star Trek’s Prime Timeline

Shatner's ship was constructed in Earth orbit

The version of the USS Enterprise as seen in Star Trek: The Original Series only had certain components constructed on Earth. Primarily, it was assembled in Earth's orbit at a facility known as the San Francisco Fleet Yards. There were many other Starfleet ships built and/or launched from here, including (but not limited to) the USS Discovery - as established in Star Trek: Discovery season 5. It's a setting that's often shown, revisited, or mentioned throughout the Star Trek franchise.