When starship USS Enterprise members Captain Kirk and Sulu embarked on their first-ever mission in 1966, few would have guessed that 50 years later fans would still be flocking by the thousands to see its stars.

But with a brand new series in the franchise rolling out in January, original series members William Shatner and George Takei delighted a convention centre full of fans at the pop-culture event Fan Expo in Toronto on Saturday.

"This is an absolutely undreamed of phenomenon," George Takei told CBC News.

Takei joked that he'll have to write a second autobiography to update the one he wrote 20 years ago. The first was To The Stars. "The next one is going to be called Down to Earth."

David Hillyer, a fan, said he started watching the series back in 1966 for a change from westerns. "All of a sudden you had science fiction and I thought, 'Hey, this is different.' I didn't know it was going to take off like this."

Original series member George Takei joked that Star Trek's unanticipated success means he'll have to write a second autobiography to update the one he wrote 20 years ago. "[That was] To The Stars and the next one is going to be called Down to Earth." (CBC)

Hillyer grew into such a fan that he named his daughter Kaylar after K'Ehleyr, the spouse of The Next Generation series favourite Worf.

David Hillyer who started watching Star Trek in 1966 for something to break up all the westerns on television at the time grew into such a fan that he named his daughter Kaylar after The Next Generation series character Worf's wife, Kaylar. (CBC)

"I've grown up with it, so it would be a crime if I didn't like it," Kaylar said.

Sydney Cremasco, also a fan, hasn't seen the original series but says she admires how it has continued to attract fans across generations.

"I know the new movies have the same characters like Kirk and Spock," Cremasco said.

Kaylar Hillyer is named after a character on Star Trek's The Next Generation series. "I've grown up with it, so it would be a crime if I didn't like it," she said. (CBC)

William Shatner says the series imaginative sci-fi theme is the reason for its staying power.

"It's just an explanation, an attempt at explaining the mysterious awesome things that we don't know anything about," he told CBC News.

William Shatner credits the series imaginative sci-fi theme as being the reason for its staying power. (CBC)

For pop culture critic Jesse Wente, part of Star Trek's appeal is that it gives audiences a vision of the future for which to reach.

He said Star Trek predicted "not so much what would come to be" but showed humans how things could be done.

"Think of when Jean-Luc Picard used to go into his office and ask his computer to play Mozart. That's iTunes… What is virtual reality except besides trying to recreate the holodeck?"