Editing Romulan (section)

===Reboot: 2009–present===
[[File:Nero from Star Trek.jpg|thumb|right|For the 2009 ''[[Star Trek 2009|Star Trek]]'' reboot film, the design of the Romulans was significantly altered; although keeping the pointed ears, the V-shaped forehead ridges were removed and various [[tattoo]]s were added.]]
After ''Star Trek: Nemesis'' proved a financial failure and ''Star Trek: Enterprise'' was cancelled, the franchise's executive producer [[Rick Berman]] and screenwriter [[Erik Jendresen]] began developing a new film entitled ''Star Trek: The Beginning'', which was to be set during the 22nd century Earth–Romulan War. The project never materialised.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hughes |first1=David |title=The Greatest Sci-Fi Movies Never Made |edition=Revised |date=July 15, 2008 |publisher=[[Titan Books]] |isbn=978-1-84576-755-6 |pages=35, 37, 44–46}}</ref> Instead, the decision was made to reboot the series by creating a film using the characters of the original ''Star Trek'' series but played by new actors. Putting together a script for the new film, the director [[J. J. Abrams]] stated that he wanted Romulans to be the antagonists because they had featured less than the Klingons in the original ''Star Trek'' series.<ref>{{cite news |first=Helen |last=O'Hara |title=Klingon Subplot Revealed |work=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |date=November 14, 2008 |url=http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=23656 |access-date=November 14, 2008}}</ref> The film's writers, [[Roberto Orci]] and [[Alex Kurtzman]], thought that it would feel backward to demonize the Klingons as villains again after they had been presented heroically in later ''Star Trek'' series; they also wanted to use Spock as a central character in the film and believed that the Romulan presence would continue Spock's story from his last chronological appearance in "[[Unification (Star Trek: The Next Generation)|Unification]]".<ref name="OKGeekMonthly">{{cite news |first=Anthony |last=Pascale |title=Star Trek Writers Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci |publisher=TrekMovie.com |date=April 30, 2009 |url=http://trekmovie.com/2009/04/30/interview-roberto-orci-alex-kurtzman |access-date=May 1, 2009}}</ref>

In the 2009 Abrams reboot film, titled ''[[Star Trek (2009 film)|Star Trek]]'', the planet Romulus is destroyed by a [[supernova]] in the year 2387. A Romulan mining ship, the ''Narada'', survives and travels back in time to the 23rd century; its commander, [[Nero (Star Trek)|Nero]] ([[Eric Bana]]), is committed to destroying the planet Vulcan to punish [[Spock]] for failing to save Romulus. The actors playing Romulans in this film wore three prosthetics applied to their ears and foreheads, while Bana had a fourth prosthetic for the bitemark on his ear that extends to the back of his character's head.<ref name="MakeUp">{{cite web |first=Joe |last=Nazzaro |title=FX artists create new aesthetic for 'Star Trek' franchise |work=Makeup Mag |date=April 6, 2009 |url=http://makeupmag.com/news/newsID/426 |access-date=April 6, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090412173309/http://makeupmag.com/news/newsID/426/ |archive-date=April 12, 2009 }}</ref> The film's Romulans lacked the V-shaped ridges on the foreheads, which had been present in all of their depictions outside the original series. [[Neville Page]] wanted to honor that by having Nero's crew ritually scar themselves too, forming [[keloid]]s reminiscent of the "V"-ridges. It was abandoned as they did not pursue the idea enough.<ref name="PageDesowitz">{{cite news |first=Bill |last=Desowitz |title=Creature Designer Neville Page Talks Star Trek |work=[[Animation World Network]] |date=May 15, 2009 |url=http://www.awn.com/articles/people/creature-designer-neville-page-talks-istar-treki|access-date=May 17, 2009}}</ref>

[[Jean-Luc Picard|Picard's]] reaction to the destruction of Romulus is the backstory and central premise of ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]''. The series begins with Picard in self-imposed exile at his French vineyard following his resignation in protest to Starfleet's handling of Romulans and androids. Picard has two live-in Romulans at his estate.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/star-trek-patrick-stewarts-picard-series-reveals-new-details-1174452 |title='Star Trek' Boss: Picard Leads "Radically Altered" Life in CBS All Access Series |last1=Couch |first1=Aaron |last2=Goldberg |first2=Lesley |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=January 8, 2019 |access-date=March 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109034808/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/star-trek-patrick-stewarts-picard-series-reveals-new-details-1174452 |archive-date=January 9, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> At least two groups of Romulans survived: one group formed the Romulan Free State, while the other group was evacuated to the planet of Vashti.

In the ''[[Star Trek: Discovery]]'' episode "Unification III", Ambassador Spock's dream of Vulcan/Romulan reunification has been achieved. The Romulans have returned to their ancestral homeworld (since renamed '''Ni'Var''') and reunified with their Vulcan cousins. When the Vulcans decided to pull out of the Federation due to the apocalyptic event known as the Burn, it was actually the Romulans who wished to remain, according to Starfleet Admiral Vance. In the episode "All Is Possible", Ni'Var rejoins the Federation.