While the Star Trek franchise is once again thriving in the television realm thanks to CBS All Access shows like Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard, the film side of things has been dormant since the release of Star Trek Beyond in 2016. Over the last year, it’s looked like the Star Trek movie from the mind of Fargo showrunner Noah Hawley might get Star Trek’s cinematic journey back on track, but now word’s come in that Paramount Pictures is setting that project to the side… for now.
According to Deadline, there are three different Star Trek movies in development, and Paramount is figuring out which one should get the green light to move forward. Along with Noah Hawley’s movie, which the outlet says would boast a brand-new cast, there’s the movie that The Revenant’s Mark L. Smith wrote based off an idea from Quentin Tarantino, as well as Star Trek 4, i.e. another movie starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana and the other actors who play the Kelvin timeline versions of The Original Series characters, which once had S.J. Clarkson attached to direct.
Noah Hawley was announced to be writing and directing a Star Trek movie last November, although at the time, it was believed that his tale would feature the main characters from the Star Trek reboot movies. Fast-forward to now, it’s important to clarify that Hawley’s Star Trek movie hasn’t been permanently shelved, but it does sound like its ultimate fate could be decided in the coming weeks as Paramount figures out what the next chapter for the Star Trek film series will be.
As for what Noah Hawley’s Star Trek movie would be about, supposedly it involves a deadly virus. So given the current health crisis, it might be deemed not a good fit for today’s audiences. Furthermore, along with still being busy with Fargo, Hawley is also working on a book, so he’s not lacking for things to keep himself busy.
Apparently Paramount sees both Noah Hawley’s Star Trek movie and the Quentin Tarantino Star Trek movie as ways to deliver “Logan-like spinoffs” now that the core franchise has been revitalized. One of the sticking points for moving ahead with Star Trek 4 is the high price the main cast members fetch, particularly Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth, the latter of whom at one time was expected to reprise George Kirk in a time travel adventure where James T. Kirk would come face to face with his father.
That said, Deadline added that the Quentin Tarantino Star Trek movie might have better luck with pulling in larger numbers overseas. Again, for now, it’s unclear what path the Star Trek film series will end up going down, but if all goes according to plan, we’ll know what’s coming next in the near future.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all the latest and greatest Star Trek-related news. Keep track of movies that are set to come out later this year with our 2020 release schedule. Star Trek TV fans can check out the first episode of the animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks on CBS All Access now, while Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 will premiere on the streaming service October 15.
