'Star Trek 4' to Reportedly Begin Production in Early 2019

After a long period languishing in development limbo, the Star Trek film franchise may soon begin filming its next installment.

According to a report from That Hashtag Show, Star Trek 4 expected to begin production in early 2019.

According to the report, Clarkson's Star Trek film is now in the casting phase and looking for two actresses between the ages of 45 and 60, one to play the film's villain and the other to play a hero. Black Panther and The Walking Dead star Danai Gurira is reportedly being eyed to fill one of those roles, although which is unclear.

Star Trek 4 will reunite the cast that includes Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho, and Simon Pegg. The film is also expected to see Chris Hemsworth reprise his role as George Kirk, Captain James Kirk's father, who died in the opening scene of 2009's Star Trek when he rammed the USS Kelvin into the time-displaced Romulan vessel the Narada.

The Clarkson-directed feature will be the fourth film in what has come to be known as Star Trek's "Kelvin timeline," the alternate timeline caused by the Narada's trip backward in time as seen in 2009's Star Trek. That film was followed by Star Trek Into Darkness in 2013 and then Star Trek Beyond in 2016.

The fourth Star Trek film was announced shortly before Star Trek Beyond opened in theaters. However, Paramount went silent on the film for over a year after Star Trek Beyond underperformed at the box office. Paramount saw some leadership changes at the executive level and reconsidered its box office strategy and now Star Trek 4 is back on track.

Another Star Trek film is also in development, this one based on a pitch made by iconic cult film director Quentin Tarantino, who is hoping to direct the movie himself. While no details about the film have been revealed as of yet, it is expected to follow Star Trek 4 and to feature the same Kelvin timeline cast.

Are you excited for Star Trek 4 to begin production? Who do you think the new characters will be? What role will George Kirk play? Let us know what you think in the comments!

The first three Kelvin timeline Star Trek movies - Star Trek, Star Trek Into Darkness, and Star Trek Beyond - are all available now on home media. Star Trek 4 still does not have a production start or release date.