‘Star Trek 4’ Taps S.J. Clarkson As Franchise’s First Female Director

It looks like Star Trek is about to boldly go in a brand-new direction. According to Variety, Paramount Pictures has brought on S.J. Clarkson to direct Star Trek 4 and marking the franchise’s first female director.

So far, there are few details out about Star Trek 4, but fans do know a bit. The film is expected to star Chris Hemsworth as the actor played Captain James T. Kirk’s father in the original 2009 reboot. Zachary Quinto is also slated to return, but there is no word on the rest of the cast at this point.

Fans may be confused about Clarkson’s addition due to recent reports regarding Quentin Tarantino, but those Star Trek projects are two separate ones. Paramount Pictures is also developing a film with the director along with J.J. Abrams that may get an R-rating. Sources currently say the film is being written and would not debut until after Star Trek 4.

When it comes to Star Trek 4, only the vaguest plot details are available. Variety reports the film will involve a time-travel story that introduces Kirk (Chris Pine) to his father. J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay are the writers behind the film’s script. Lindsey Weber will produce alongside Abrams through Bad Robot Productions. David Ellison and Dana Goldberg will executive produce.

If you are not familiar with Clarkson, you will surely know some of her works. She is known best for working on TV series such as Dexter, Bates Motel, Jessica Jones, and Orange is the New Black. Clarkson also oversaw a slew of episodes for The Defenders, adding to her impressive Netflix resume.

This announcement comes not long after Paramount Pictures confirmed it was working on new Star Trek projects. The studio held a panel at Cinema Con where ComicBook’s Brandon Davis was present. It was there Paramount told press it was developing “several” Star Trek films, so it looks like its plans for Star Trek 4 are moving right along.

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