President Donald Trump has shared on social media a "next generation" Space Force uniform whose stated inspiration comes from Starship Troopers, a science-fiction film read as a satire of fascism and militarism. The uniform graphic, which Trump posted to the Truth Social platform on Sunday, depicts a fitted, dark-gray jacket and matching trousers, worn with a peaked cap, black belt and tall, black boots. Space Force’s Delta emblem appears in several places, including the collar, cap, belt buckle and sleeve patch.
Labels on the graphic describe a color palette of "space gray," "midnight black," "silver gray" and "satin black." It was unclear from the post whether the graphic represents a formal proposal that the administration intends to pursue, or if Trump had simply shared a social media graphic. Newsweek reached out to the White House and Space Force for comment via email on Monday and is awaiting responses. Text accompanying the design says it was "inspired by the discipline and functionality of the Starship Trooper uniform" and had been modernized for Space Force personnel, who are known as Guardians.
The reference is to Starship Troopers, director Paul Verhoeven’s 1997 movie about young soldiers fighting giant alien creatures in a future society governed by the United Citizen Federation. The service formally introduced its current design in January 2026 after previously using a modified Air Force uniform. Space Force said feedback from Guardians had helped shape its design and fit.
Verhoeven has described Starship Troopers as a criticism of fascism and militarism. In an interview with Empire, the director said the filmmakers were "fighting with the fascism, the ultra-militarism" throughout the movie and wanted viewers to question whether its characters were "crazy." He also described Robert A. Heinlein’s novel, on which the film was based, as "a very right-wing book." Verhoeven has also said that he and screenwriter Ed Neumeier sought to move away from Heinlein’s original novel because they regarded it as militaristic and fascistic, according to IndieWire.
He described the movie as an adventure story that also showed its characters moving toward fascism without recognizing it. Speaking at a 2016 Film Society of Lincoln Center event, he contrasted the surface-level story of heroic soldiers with a second message: "by the way, they’re fascists," according to Player.One. Verhoeven also said the film’s approach differed from the philosophy of Heinlein’s novel, which he characterized as militaristic and fascist.
Trump did not add a written comment of his own to the Truth Social post. The president has, however, repeatedly emphasized the identity of the military branch he established in December 2019. At the presentation of the Space Force flag in May 2020, he called it a "very special moment" and noted that it was the first new branch of the U.S. military in more than 72 years.
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