Abrams: Wait for the Opportune Moment for Star Trek

[Vic 17]

Executive producer believes there is life left in the franchise but it requires the right presentation.

 

By Michelle

July 18, 2006 - 11:38 PM

J.J. Abrams confessed to being a fan of Leonard Nimoy and said he thought the Star Trek franchise should be revived for the right story, not based on any specific schedule.

 

In an interview at Cinefantastique (via TrekWeb), Abrams talked about working on the next Star Trek film and about Mission: Impossible III, which he also directed for Paramount. "I'm a real fan of Star Trek and I think there is without question life left in that series," he said. "I think that the fact that they ran so many series for so long, including an after-the-film series, is sort of remarkable, and I think that this downtime is only good for it."

 

Abrams added that he would "happily be involved" with any franchise that at one time featured Nimoy, which includes both Star Trek and Mission: Impossible, which filmed side by side at Paramount in the late 1960s. Nimoy moved to Mission: Impossible after Star Trek's cancellation when original series star Martin Landau left.

 

Star Trek "should exist because it's the right story, not because it's the right time to exploit an intellectual property", added Abrams, who thinks that the series has not returned yet because the moment wasn't right. "I think the good news is that it hasn't seen the light of day again yet because it shouldn't, but I am convinced it will soon and it's something that without question has a very bright future and done right could be as compelling as anything," he said. "You can't tell the story in a cheap or pandering way otherwise it just doesn't hold water."

 

The full article is in the new issue of Cinefantastique. Thanks to TrekWeb for the excerpts.

 

 

http://www.trektoday.com/news/180706_02.shtml

[gul_nodrog 2]

It sounds good, but I'll have to wait and see what he and his minions come up with for the next movie.

 

As a fan, I'm hoping for three things ...

 

1. No Prequel to any of the series.

 

2. No "mirror universe" story.

 

3. That they not ignore Deep Space Nine (or Voyager for that matter) when they are coming up with the story. I don't care if the new movie doesn't include any DS9 characters or storylines, but I will be monumentally pissed off if they go about writing a screenplay that disregards and "eliminates" what occured on the Deep Space Nine series.

 

At least he's a fan of the original series and movies, but I'll need more from him than that to make me happy. There's been a lot of Trek put out there since Kirk and the gang made peace with the Klingons in TUC... let's hope he takes the time to watch all of that before he puts a movie out there.

[DrWho42 13]

Personally, I'm hoping it shall be a film that will break the certain conventions in Star Trek. Simply something to set it apart from the rest of the films, and in the good way.

To be frank, I don't really care whether or not the by-product is a re-imagining, so long as it isn't a reboot (for the most part, since that would disregard a great sum of a legacy.. Though, I wouldn't mind if it's surprisingly excellent)..

 

Personally, I'm very tired of stuff set in the 24th century... There's already been three series and four films set therein and I feel it's time for something compleatly different. (Actually, I'd rather enjoy something set in the 2260s or some alternative timeline, but I'd doubt they'd go along with that idea..) That's the reason why Berman and Braga decided to set course for the 22nd century, although I really wouldn't consider it a great example due to the controversial nature of it in the fandom (plus, I would have made things more retro or more akin to a vintage submarine venture into space.. And wouldn't have went with the Akiraprise design...)

..And something politicky wouldn't hold as much favour with me as would something centred about a science-centred science-fiction. If they'd remove the cliche of having sound-in-space, I would be overjoyed.. or they simply include it in "aesthetically" like they do in the new Battlestar Galactica.

Edited July 20, 2006 by DrWho42

[gul_nodrog 2]

What about this: A movie set 100 years beyond the events of DS9, Voyager and TNG. They could mention any or all of our favorite characters, refer to events that we saw unfold on the television series, and show where things are and what occured as a result of Picard's actions, Sisko's actions, etc. etc. Romulans and Klingons patching things up because of their alliance in the Dominion War. Delta Quadrant folks joining the Federation. Bajor joining the Federation. A descendant of Picard assuming command of the Enterprise. Any of that would interest me.

 

I think that might be the best thing to do ... Prequel haters will be happy. Prequel likers or lovers don't seem to be as passionately "against" a future setting as the haters are against a past setting, so they'll be happy.

 

Everybody's happy! And we get more Trek.

[DrWho42 13]

What about this: A movie set 100 years beyond the events of DS9, Voyager and TNG. They could mention any or all of our favorite characters, refer to events that we saw unfold on the television series, and show where things are and what occured as a result of Picard's actions, Sisko's actions, etc. etc. Romulans and Klingons patching things up because of their alliance in the Dominion War. Delta Quadrant folks joining the Federation. Bajor joining the Federation. A descendant of Picard assuming command of the Enterprise. Any of that would interest me.

 

I think that might be the best thing to do ... Prequel haters will be happy. Prequel likers or lovers don't seem to be as passionately "against" a future setting as the haters are against a past setting, so they'll be happy.

 

Everybody's happy! And we get more Trek.

Mmmmm, yes, you've got a good idea going there... Although, I'd rather there be some interstellar/-galactic cataclysm sometime during those hundred years or some-such.. Or something. There definately seems to be a trend to have olde enemies joining the Federation, so seeing them secede should be interesting for a new storeyline (perhaps..). If you've been around for the reign of HRH The King, he's got a plusgood concept in how the future of Star Trek should be*.

 

However, if they do go with a prequel, it should be treated like one of those great historicals or war pictures.. I remember hearing about this idea for it to be a Romulan/Earth war with the help of a certain somebody who helped out in/did Band of Brothers, and from what I saw of that I really enjoyed it.

Something with gritty realism would definately help offset some of the cliches brought on by the franchise as, say: Particle/Monster/Disease/Holodeck malfunction-of-the-week.. Being more critical these days in pretty much everything, they should opt for either hard science-fiction or the naturalistic sort (the original Wikipedia article got deleted, but they defined it as being character-driven with a hard-SF background).

 

*If anyone's got the thread depicting this, feel free to re-post it... Definately was interesting reading.