Now that Paramount’s merger with Skydance Media is complete, the studio is looking to bring Star Trek back to the big screen in a massive way. A new report in Deadline provides an overview of Paramount’s plans for its film slate, and there are multiple Star Trek films currently in development. One movie, set to be directed by Toby Haynes (Star Wars: Andor) and written by Seth Grahame Smith, would follow a cast of “brand new characters.” The other project said to be in the works is all about familiar franchise faces of Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise crew. Steve Yockey is writing that film.
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It’s unknown when (or if) either of these films will begin production. No release dates have been set. The only other extra bit of information in the Deadline report is that Star Trek is a “high priority” for Paramount moving forward.
Details about these new Star Trek films come on the heels of claims the franchise is “the immediate priority” for Skydance and Paramount as they try to figure out their tentpole blockbuster slate. There hasn’t been a new Star Trek movie since 2016’s Star Trek Beyond, which coincided with the property’s 50th anniversary. Despite earning positive reviews, Beyond underwhelmed at the box office, earning $343.3 million worldwide against an $185 million production budget. It was the lowest-grossing installment of the Kelvin Timeline series that started with J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek.
Over the past several years, there’s been no shortage of Star Trek films in development, but nothing came to fruition. A fourth installment starring the Kelvin Timeline crew has cycled through multiple writers and directors. At one point, Quentin Tarantino was considering directing a standalone Star Trek film. Noah Hawley’s planned movie was cancelled during the casting process in part because Paramount felt uneasy moving forward with a film that had a plot centering around a pandemic.
Hawley’s film was set to star an all-new crew of characters, so it’s a pleasant surprise to see Skydance hasn’t completely abandoned that angle. Haynes’ film is different from the one Hawley had in mind, but it’s still great to see the studio is interested in it. In the era of legacy sequels and nostalgia, it’s easy to keep things focused on the familiar, bringing back classic characters audiences know and love. But Star Trek is a franchise renowned for its ability to create entirely new ensembles for viewers to fall in love with (see: The Next Generation). It’s important for Haynes’ film to take this direction since it’s how Star Trek can remain viable for years to come. Properties can’t be afraid to innovate and push forward. Constantly replaying the hits with Spock and Kirk will get old.
This isn’t to say it’s bad Paramount is also developing another Kirk/Spock film. The Kelvin Timeline cast is a highlight of those films, and most people would agree they deserve to headline at least one more movie. Assuming those actors do return for Yockey’s project, there’ll be a great deal of excitement surrounding it. It’ll be interesting to see which one emerges as a higher priority. Moving forward with Haynes’ film could be a great way to give the series a proper, fresh new start for moviegoers. But there’s also an appeal to giving the fan-favorite Kelvin cast a last hurrah before they symbolically pass the torch to a new crew. Perhaps both will see the light of day.
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