In the 23rd century, James T. Kirk is a brash and headstrong young man from Iowa who has been living in the shadow of his late father's heroic legacy. Kirk's father, George, sacrificed himself to save his crew when his starship, the USS Kelvin, was destroyed by a Romulan mining vessel from the future, commanded by the vengeful Nero. Propelled by a dare to do better, Kirk enrolls in Starfleet Academy, where he quickly establishes himself as a talented, yet rebellious, cadet.

Kirk's destiny becomes entwined with that of Spock, a half-human, half-Vulcan, who is also a Starfleet cadet, struggling to accept his dual heritage and the emotions that he inherited from his human mother. The two young men are initially at odds with one another, but they are thrust together when Nero's return sparks a crisis that threatens the United Federation of Planets. Kirk and Spock must find a way to work as a team aboard the USS Enterprise, under the command of Captain Christopher Pike, along with a diverse crew including Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, communications officer Uhura, helmsman Sulu, navigator Chekov, and engineer Scotty. Together, they set out to stop Nero from unleashing a catastrophic revenge plan that endangers the very existence of Earth and the galaxy's future.