Anyone who has seen this rock formation will probably have rediscovered it in various other productions. They should know trekkies in particular.
If you shop via these links, we will receive a commission that supports our editorial work. The price for you remains unchanged. These affiliate links are through a Symbol marked. Learn more.
About 45 minutes by car from Hollywood is a place in the north of Los Angeles County that has inspired the imagination of filmmakers and spectators alike for decades: the Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park.
With its slanted, sharp-edged rock formations, the rock acts like from another planet-and that is why they became one of the most iconic locations in the sci-fi history. The park was named to Tiburcio Vásquez, a notorious Mexican bandits of the 19th century, which was hidden here from the police.
Vasquez Rocks was special for them “Star Trek” series A central location. The rocks appeared several times in the original series: as a planet of the metrons subsequently “completely new dimensions”, on which Captain Kirk (William Shatner) fights against a reptile -like being called Gorn. This scene is so well known that a rock has been called “Kirk’s Rock” by fans since then.
There were further missions in the original series on “Landeurlaub”, “On Messers cutting edge” and “in the name of the young Tiru”. In later series such as “The Next Generation”,, “Voyager” and “Enterprise” As well as in several cinema films – including the reboot from 2009 and its continuation – the Vasquez Rocks were used again, sometimes even as a home planet of the volcano. In “Star Trek: Picard” The park was all of him for the first time: the figure Raffi lives there in a trailer.
Do you want to expand your trekkie knowledge with a few more curious facts? In our video we deliver exciting “Star Trek” trivia:
Further missions by the Vasquez Rocks
Not only “Star Trek” made the place famous – many other films and series took up the unmistakable landscape as a homage. So Bill and Ted plunged into “Bill & Ted’s crazy journey into the future” There in death after a scene from “completely new dimensions” was previously shown.
Also in “Free Enterprise” and “Jay & Silent Bob beat back” the location was staged in a wink. Series like “The Big Bang Theory” and “Monk” The site also used for scenes with a sci-fi cover.
The cinematic use of the park goes far back: already in 1931 scenes for the death of Brownings “Dracula” Rotated here and in the 1930s and 1950s the backdrop served as Himalaya in “Werewolf of London” or as a desert in Demilles “The ten commandments”.
But above all the sci-fi genre burned the rocks firmly into the collective memory. Whether in B-movies such as “Metalstorm”, “Forbidden World” or “Hell Comes to Frogtown”-the rock formations were used as planets, post-apocalyptic wasteland and alien landing places.
In addition, numerous television series found their extraterrestrial setting: from classics such as “The Twilight Zone”,, “The Outer Limits”“Buck Rogers”, “Westworld” up to “Buffy”“Zorro” or “Lassie”. Even in the “Borderlands” video game adaptation published in 2024, the place can be seen again – another chapter in the long career of this unirdish -looking backdrop.
If you have fancy “Star Trek”, you will find all the productions in Offer from Paramount+.
