A Star Trek Film Inspired The Dave Franco & Alison Brie Body Horror Movie Together [Exclusive]

Neon has been making big waves in recent years. Not only is the company home to several recent Oscar Best Picture winners, including "Parasite" and "Anora," but the indie studio has also become quite the haven for original horror, such as last year's breakout hit "Longlegs." The company's latest foray into the genre is "Together," a twisted bit of body/horror from director Michael Shanks. It turns out, he took some inspiration from an unexpected place: "Star Trek."

"Together" stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, respectively. Years into their relationship, the couple is at a crossroads, having moved to the country with them being the only familiar thing in one another's lives. As tensions rise, an encounter with a mysterious force forces them to bond, so to speak.

/Film's BJ Colangelo spoke with Shanks in honor of the film's release in theaters. In discussing his inspirations for his latest feature, the filmmaker revealed that 1996's "Star Trek: First Contact" was an influence. That's because it is, from a certain point of view, a body horror film. As Shanks explained: 

"I was reflecting on one of my favorite movies of all time as a kid — and I should probably stop talking about this, because it's not very interesting — was 'Star Trek: First Contact,' directed by Jonathan Frakes. I love that movie. I rewatched it recently, and I was like, 'Oh, this is a body horror movie.' Maybe that's why it's been ruminating in my head for so long. That's a film that begins with Captain Picard being injected, a needle into his eyeball and a spider crawls out of his face and they're grafting human skin onto Data in this erotic way. I'm like, 'Why did I watch this so much as a kid?' So yeah, thanks to the Frakes-man for the inspiration."

For those who may not be familiar, "Star Trek: First Contact" sees the Enterprise crew battling the Borg under the leadership of Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart). They ultimately follow the aliens back into the 21st century to prevent them from corrupting Earth's timeline and preventing mankind's first contact with alien life. They must battle the dreaded Borg Queen before she assimilates all of humanity.

The Borg are one of the greatest classic "Star Trek" villains. They're also one of the more horrific, given that the whole point is literal assimilation, which is where the body horror of it all comes in. While it's absolutely a sci-fi movie first, anyone who has seen "First Contact" can likely see where Shanks is coming from with the comparison. Alice Krige is incredibly menacing as the Borg Queen, and her interactions with Picard are indeed the stuff of horror. 

There is a good reason why "First Contact" has been named as Stewart's favorite "Star Trek" movie. The franchise has thrived on television for decades, but the movies have always been a hit and miss proposition. This was absolutely one of the hits, and one that time has been kind to. And it turns out that this particular hit, years later, helped inspire one of 2025's most acclaimed horror movies. Perhaps Shanks should reconsider his position about this not being an interesting anecdote.

"Together" is in theaters now.