Entertainment
The Beloved Star Trek Race Secretly Inspired By A Horrifying Sci-Fi Classic
By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated
You wouldn’t normally associate Star Trek with Ridley Scott’s Alien. After all, Trek is all about the joys of exploring strange new worlds, and the 1979 film focuses on how terrifying life on other planets can truly be. Furthermore, the creepy Xenomorph is like nothing that can be found in Gene Roddenberry’s famous franchise.
Well, almost nothing: in one of its stranger retcons, Strange New Worlds transformed the lizard-like Gorn into characters that would have felt right at home chasing down Ellen Ripley. However, decades before that show warped into existence, Star Trek’s best show modeled one of its most iconic races after Ridley Scott’s infamous cinematic creation. We’re talking about the Trill symbiont, whose portrayal in the Deep Space Nine episode “Invasive Procedures” was inspired by Alien.
For The Trill Of It
In case you lost your Star Trek Encyclopedia (did you check behind the helm console?), here’s a quick primer on the Trill. These aliens generally look human, with many of them (most famously, Jadzia Dax) having a row of spots going down each side of their bodies. What really makes the Trill special, though, is that a handful of them become hosts to a special symbiont that can later be passed to another Trill when their host dies. These symbionts retain the memories of previous hosts, which is how (for example) Jadzia Dax had all the memories of Captain Sisko’s previous mentor, Kurzon Dax.
Most Trills never apply to be hosts, and less than a third of those who apply ever get to receive a symbiont. In the Deep Space Nine episode “Invasive Procedures,” the station (which has been mostly evacuated because of a plasma storm) is invaded by a group of thugs. Their leader is someone who previously applied to be a host and was rejected, and now he wants to take Jadzia Dax’s symbiont by force.
Is There A Doctor In The House?
What does all this have to do with Alien? In the episode, Dax’s symbiont is transferred out of her body into the other Trill and, before the credits roll, transferred back. This resulted in Star Trek giving us our first really good look at the symbiont’s new design (it looked significantly different from what we saw in The Next Generation), which presented a special challenge to the show’s special effects gurus.
Afterward (as reported in Captains’ Logs Supplemental–The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages), Deep Space Nine producer David Livingston admitted that everyone working on the episode was worried that the symbiont would “look cheesy” onscreen. Eventually, they adopted the approach pioneered by Ridley Scott in his most famous film, stating, “It’s that whole idea of Alien; you don’t really want to see it too much because the audience is either going to be repulsed by it or say it’s too hokey.”
For context, Scott was famously minimalistic in his portrayal of the Xenomorph in Alien, primarily showing us small glimpses of the creature right before it kills another victim. It’s the same approach that worked for Steven Spielberg in Jaws, a movie made so much more terrifying because of how little we actually see the shark. Scott and Spielberg brought us two of the best horror movies ever made, and they each learned a quintessential lesson along the way: less is always more.
An Iconic Horror Movie Inspires The Ultimate Sci-Fi Show
While Star Trek wasn’t trying to scare us with the Trill symbiont, the producers of “Invasive Procedures” faced the same dilemma. If they showed us too much, half the audience would think the symbiont was too fake, and the other half would think it was too gross-looking. Fortunately, they struck the perfect balance, and the symbiont became one of the most iconic aliens in all of Star Trek, one whose influence has continued into the NuTrek era with both Discovery and Starfleet Academy.
There you have it, space cadets: the tale of how a forgotten Star Trek episode was influenced by one of the greatest sci-fi films ever made. If not for Ridley Scott’s Alien, Trek’s most fascinating aliens might have appeared as a total joke to audiences. Instead, “Invasive Procedures” helped fans take the symbiont seriously, helping Deep Space Nine establish the gravitas it needed to become the best show in the entire franchise.
Entertainment
Stay prepared for anything with the Growatt Helios power station — now $400 off at Amazon
SAVE $400: As of March 12, get the Growatt Helios portable power station for just $1,199. That’s $400 off the power station’s $1,599 list price.
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Portable power stations are essential devices whether you spend most of your time indoors or outside. Not only can it serve as a back-up power source in the case of an emergency power outage, but it can also accompany you on all your adventures. If you’re headed out on a camping or RV trip this summer, a power station might just be the companion you need for keeping your devices charged.
If you’re looking for a great power station, let us steer you in the direction of the Growatt Helios portable power station. As of March 12, it’s on sale at Amazon, saving you $400 on its $1,599 list price. That brings it down to $1,199 for 25% off. It’s not quite the power station’s lowest-ever price of $1,099, but it’s close.
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The Growatt Helios portable power station with 3,600W output and 3.6kWh. Let us translate that. It can power heavy duty devices including air conditioners and refrigerators. When fully charged, the Growatt Helios generator can power your fridge for 24 to 72 hours. It supports USB, DC, and AC power so you can charge multiple devices at once. Plus, you can power it up fast with solar.
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Get the Growatt Helios Portable Power Station at Amazon for $1,199.
Entertainment
Stephen King's Forgotten R-Rated 80s Hit Led By Star Trek's Most Evil Seductress
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
There’s been a lot of Stephen King adaptations over the years. In the early 90s, King decided to write a story as a screenplay first, and the result was the insane Sleepwalkers, about a mother and son pair of vampiric werecats terrorizing a small town in Indiana.
It’s one of those films that has to be seen to be believed, especially for a pre-Borg Queen performance by Star Trek: First Contact’s Alice Krige as one of the sleepwalkers. The 1992 horror film recently arrived on Netflix, making it even easier to play “spot the famous horror director” from among the many cameos jammed into the brisk, 89-minute runtime.
Don’t Think Too Hard About Sleepwalkers
Stephen King has been very upfront about the copious amounts of drugs he consumed during the 70s and 80s, particularly cocaine, which helps explain Sleepwalkers’ plot. Alice Krige is Mary, the mother of Charles (Charmed’s Brian Krause), and the two happen to be energy-draining werecats who feed off the energy of female virgins. Tanya (Twin Peak’s Madchen Amick) is targeted by the two after Charles fakes his way into the local high school, but the elaborate plan, which consists of make out in a cemetery, is thwarted when Tanya fights back using a corkscrew.
The two sleepwalkers may be powerful night creatures, but they have one weakness, and it just so happens that Tanya’s bonded with one of the beings who can easily kill them in a fight: Clovis the housecat. Sleepwalkers is very simple in its storytelling, and absolutely insane with its bizarre face-morphing CGI (at the time, it was cutting edge), cats flying in off the side of the screen, cars blowing up with a single bullet, and an “interesting” mother-son relationship.
Sleepwalkers Was A Surprise Box Office Hit
Alice Krige manages to again be off-putting, terrifying, and charming at the same time, similar to her later performance as the Borg Queen, the original “hear me out” meme of the 90s. Her performance helped propel the off-kilter feature to top the box office the weekend it debuted on the way to earning $30 million, unadjusted for inflation, that still tops the 2025 box office for horror films Him and The Woman In The Yard.
One of the fun parts of Sleepwalkers comes from director Mick Garris’ mission to include as many horror directors as possible, leading to cameos from Stephen King himself, John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), Tobe Hooper (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Clive Barker (Hellraiser, Scream), and Joe Dante (Gremlins). Mark Hamill and Ron Perlman also pop in for brief appearances.
Sleepwalkers was savaged by critics and still only has a 29 percent rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an equally low audience rating of 32 percent. Those people clearly don’t know how to have fun. King’s story may have, allegedly, been drug-induced, but it’s so weird and off the wall that the film is a blast. While it’s special effects aged like milk, Krause and Krig managed to create some great scares, and in an era of bloated runtimes, 89 minutes makes it feel like it’s ending as soon as it gets going.
Sleepwalkers is now available to stream on Netflix, and we suggest you sit down with your cat to watch it.
Entertainment
Ben & Jerrys Free Cone Day is back for 2026 — everything you need to know
TL;DR: On April 14, visit your nearest Scoop Shop and grab a free cup or cone of your favorite Ben & Jerry’s flavor.
It’s that special time of year when free ice cream becomes the norm. Hot on the heels of Dairy Queen announcing the date of its Free Cone Day, Ben & Jerry’s has done the same.
Ben & Jerry’s celebrates Free Cone Day around the globe every year, sharing the love with free cups and cones of your favorite flavors. There’s no catch. Simply visit your nearest Scoop Shop and grab a scoop for free. Ben & Jerry’s is giving away free ice cream at a host of locations between 12-8 p.m. on April 14. You can check participating locations here.
Mashable Trend Report
Lego is giving away an exclusive Steering Wheel for free. Here’s how to get yours on March 9.
Ben & Jerry’s is aiming to spread more joy than ever before. They served up 1 million scoops in 2023, but they’re targeting more in 2026. And you can help out with that ambitious target, because unlike a lot of these free giveaways, there’s no limit on the number of times you can score a free cone. Can’t decide what flavor to order? Don’t worry — try them all.
Mark your calendars: Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry’s takes place on April 14.
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Stay prepared for anything with the Growatt Helios power station — now $400 off at Amazon
