With a real release date finally set (May 17, 2013) and production ready to get started, J.J. Abrams's long-anticipated Star Trek 2 is finally filling out a cast beyond the mainstays from the first film, who will all be returning. The rumors about Benicio del Toro playing Khan may not be true, but would you be willing to swap for for an entirely different sci-fi icon like, say, Robocop?
As odd as that sounds, Variety reports that Abrams indeed is bringing in Peter Weller, who played the cop-turned-robot in Paul Verhoeven's film, for an unspecified role in Star Trek 2. He joins Alice Eve as the only confirmed new cast member for the film, and while it's logical to guess both of them will be playing villains, the Abrams brain trust of course won't divulge anything.
As hardcore Trek fans already know, Weller has experience with the franchise, having popped up on two episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise in 2005 as the character John Frederick Paxton. That series served as a prequel to the original 60s series, also set aboard the Enterprise and featuring the familiar cast of characters-- Kirk, Spock, Uhura etc.-- whom Abrams has revived in his films. Given that the 2009 Star Trek established a completely alternate timeline, though, it seems unlikely Weller's casting will at all reference his previous Trek role. More likely Abrams is just like you-- a Robocop fan who wanted Weller on his team.
With production on Trek 2 starting early next year, we'll likely get a flurry of casting announcements in the coming weeks, some big and some tiny. But it's hard to deny that the presence of Weller, in however small a role, is going to be welcome, even if we have no idea who he'll be playing.
