Playmates on What's Next For Its Star Trek Toy Line (Exclusive)
Early in 2021, Playmates toys announced that it had entered into an agreement with Paramount Consumer Products to produce new toys based on the Star Trek Universe, including classic shows and movies and the new series streaming on Paramount+. Playmates previously produced Star Trek toys during the height of the franchise's popularity in the 1990s, including toys based on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager. While the new line may be a burst of nostalgia for longtime fans, especially with figures celebrating the anniversary of Next Generation and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Playmates also released its first action figures based on Star Trek: Discovery and has a Star Trek: Prodigy set on the way that's sure to entice new and younger fans.
ComicBook.com had the chance to email some questions to Playmates VP of Marketing John Stelmzer about what's to come from Playmates' continuing foray back into the Star Trek franchise. Here's what he had to say, along with some photos of the samples of the first wave of Star Trek toys, which Playmates sent over for us to check out:
I'm sure that all decisions about your business are ultimately business decisions, but is there something sentimental about Playmates making Star Trek toys again? Something special given the company's history with the property?
First, Star Trek is a perennial entertainment franchise and Playmates Toys is always honored to be part of it. We are all fans of Star Trek here at Playmates. There is so much to the Star Trek Universe, both the Classic and the new, that now is really the time to re-introduce the fans to what Playmates can bring from our unique history with Star Trek and our commitment to detail, while still providing the best value.
Star Trek has a wealth of characters and iconic moments from its classic shows and movies to draw on, as well as plenty of new shows and new characters currently found on Paramount+. Your first wave of figures has a mix of the two. What's your approach/strategy/philosophy when it comes to balancing the company's focus between the old and the new?
One of the great things about Star Trek is the depth of great characters. Nothing is off the table in terms of what figures we may do in the future. We're excited to really start exploring all of the great new entertainment content, but also want to re-introduce some of the all-time classic characters from the TV shows and movies. This year is the 40th Anniversary for Wrath of Khan and the 35th Anniversary for Next Generation so it was important to offer those figures right out of the gate. We also have 2 figures from the new hit show Discovery. For future waves, we hope to continue to build on a good mix of classic and new.
I love the attention to detail in the figures, especially the accessory choices. The book that comes with Michael Burnham is an especially nice touch. Can you tell us anything about the process of selecting/designing/choosing accessories for figures, and what the big-picture goals that guide those choices look like?
For the Classic figures, we are recreating the accessories that we used in the 90s. We have had to resculpt these retro accessories since none of the old tooling still exists. Our goal with Classic was to keep everything very retro looking, except for the improved detail in the figure sculpting, articulation, and deco. For figures based on new shows, we of course wanted to have standard Starfleet issue accessories but wanted each of them to have a personal accessory that is so important to who those characters are.
What are the company's plans when it comes to something like the 1701 line from the old days? Are limited releases, or even just convention-exclusive releases, on the table?
This time around we won't be offering any limited releases outside of a few potential convention or comic con exclusives.
The character-based action figures are obviously going to feel like the backbone of the line, but the Enterprise model is very cool, and my kid and I have been having fun playing with the phaser. How significant will the ship models and roleplay toys be in the larger Star Trek line? Should we expect models of the Enterprise-D and Voyager or even Deep Space 9 down the line?
Ships and other vehicles will be a large part of our Star Trek offering. It is important too that we not only get the model right but incorporate authentic lights and sounds. We are looking at other Classic and new ships, including other versions of the Enterprise and other ships to add to our line as we speak. In the Star Trek Universe, ships are so important that they are really like other characters, so they will always be important to us and to fans.
For roleplay, there are key iconic weapons and other accessories that we plan to develop. Phasers, Communicators, Tricorders, etc.
With your Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line, we've seen lots of crossovers with other properties, like Cobra Kai, Street Fighter, and Stranger Things. Is there crossover potential for the Star Trek line? Could we see something like the old TMNT x Star Trek toys either reprinted or updated?
We aren't planning collaborations right now, but you never know where both franchises can take us in the future.
Finally, we've already seen previews of the Star Trek: Prodigy toys. Any update on when we can expect to see those in stores? And can you say anything about what shows will be represented in the next batch of releases?
Prodigy action figures are arriving this Spring in time for Easter. The first 4 figures will be Dal w/Murf, Gwyn, Jankom Pog, and Zero. They will be available on all retail ecomm sites only in March to start.
The first wave of Playmates' new Star Trek toys is on sale now. You can find many of them here at Entertainment Earth.
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