Monday, June 29

• Sky's the Limit for Star Trek Sequel

  With Star Trek on track to become one of the most successful movies of 2009, if not the most successful, talk of a sequel has already begun.

  Director J.J. Abrams thinks that the next Trek movie has no limitations and told SciFiWire that the sequel could either be entirely new or a remake of past adventures:

  The great thing is we're all open to anything. I think the fun of where we are with Trek is that it can and should just be fully explored. So I think to limit ourselves to only new adventures would be a mistake. But I also think we want to take advantage of this moment and figure out what's the most exciting version for the new audience as well.

  Trek screenwriter Roberto Orci concurs:

  As you can imagine every kind of opinion has been expressed in relation to the movie, so there have been both red lights, green lights, yellow lights, the gamut. What they have done is very quickly identified the fork in the road, which is to do a completely original story or to harmonize with canon the way we did in the first movie, where some of the events overlapped with the original universe and were the same even if time travel hadn’t happened and some of the harmonies were reversed, like Spock with Uhura instead of Kirk.

  So if the sequel can cover previous material does that mean fans will get to see Khan in the Trek sequel?

  50/50? Is that a boring answer?

  Most Trekkies would say, "No." Especially if Javier Bardem plays the role.

  
  

  Posted 06/29/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Javier Bardem | Roberto Orci | J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Thursday, June 11

• Mission: Impossible 4 On the Way

  Both Tom Cruise and Mission: Impossible III director J. J. Abrams will return for the fourth entry in the series. At this point, though, Abrams is only signed to produce. He told TV Guide:

  I am incredibly honored that Tom has invited me back as a producer on Mission: Impossible 4. Tom and I have come up with a really cool idea we are pursuing.

  Abrams may still sign on to direct M:I 4 or he may choose to direct the sequel to his summer hit, Star Trek.

  
  

  Posted 06/11/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Tom Cruise | J.J. Abrams | Mission: Impossible 4 | Mission: Impossible III | Star Trek

Thursday, May 7

• Burger King's Star Trek Promotion Goes Where None Have Gone Before

  With Star Trek opening tonight, promotions have reached a fever pitch. Despite all the weird gimmicks deployed by others, Burger King really does stand out in its willingness to go where no one had really ever considered going before.

  The fast food giant has put out a tie-in ad in which a woman dressed as a "Kingon," does a "dance of seduction" for a hapless red-shirted imitation of a Star Fleet officer in order to snatch away his drink. Yikes. The justification for the ad, I kid you not, is that the female Kingons want to get the dilithium crystals imbedded in Burger King's promotional glasses. "First they take your dignity, then they take your glass." Dignity? Really?

  To top it all off, there are no Klingons, let alone "Kingons," in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek.

  
  

  Posted 05/07/2009 by Bill

  Related: J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Thursday, April 30

• Hunting for Easter Eggs in Star Trek

  Easter Eggs, those fleeting allusions to the world outside a movie that are embedded with in it, have been found scattered throughout J.J. Abrams' Star Trek by people who got an early look at the movie. Sci-Fi Wire has started to pull together a list of the ones that have been discovered so far. Some are pointers to the wider Star Trek universe, while others reference the Abrams universe beyond.

  Among the nods to the wider world of Star Trek are brief glimpses of a cooing Tribble, a portentous flagon of Saurian brandy and the registration code for the Enterprise from Star Trek: the Next Generation. From Abrams earlier productions, there are a couple of allusions to Slusho, the imaginary drink launched in Alias which played a prominent role in the viral marketing for Cloverfield. Uhura (Zoe Saldana) orders a Slusho mix at the Shipyard Bar and the blurry logo of the nefarious Tagruato corporation, manufacturers of Slusho in Cloverfield, also makes a brief appearance.

  And the hunt goes on.

  
  

  Posted 04/30/2009 by Bill

  Related: J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Tuesday, April 28

• Deleted Scenes and New Clips from Star Trek

  Trek Movie has a good rundown of scenes that have been deleted from the final cut of J.J. Abrams' Star Trek. One scene, which actually made it onto a trailer but not the big screen version of the movie, shows Amanda (Winona Ryder) and Sarek (Ben Cross) holding baby Spock. Another involves Kirk's alcoholic, abusive uncle. The most interesting and longest cut, though, was a whole subplot showing how Nero managed to escape the Klingon prison planet Rura Penthe. Bits of this one made it onto one of the trailers as well. To see these scenes in full, we'll have to wait for the DVD.

  Meanwhile, another collection of clips that did make the final cut has been released, including some extended versions of scenes available earlier and some new footage of the Romulans.

  
  

  Posted 04/28/2009 by Bill

  Related: Winona Ryder | J.J. Abrams | Ben Cross | Star Trek

Monday, April 27

• Newsweek Plays Up the Spock-Obama Connection

  Is Obama a Vulcan? Newsweek isn't prepared to go quite that far. But it is willing to entertain the notion that there might be some real similarities between Mr. Spock and the new president. There are the prominent ears and the racially mixed background. And like his Vulcan counterpart, Obama seems at times almost inhumanly calm and logical. To top it off, Obama himself admitted during the campaign that he grew up on Star Trek and believes in the final frontier.

  All in all, the newsweekly suggests it's an uncanny match and may prove one factor in making the new Star Trek reboot surprisingly cool and timely -- timely enough to make the May 4th cover of Newsweek, in any case. And it doesn't stop there. In addition to pondering how well the Vulcan connection positions Trek in the zeitgeist, this week's issue also reviews the status of the franchise, and the promise of rejuvenation that J.J. Abrams' new vision offers.

  
  

  Posted 04/27/2009 by Bill

  Related: J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

• Nimoy Needed Direction to Play Spock in Star Trek

  

  You would think that Leonard Nimory would know the intricacies of playing Spock like the back of his hand, considering he's been portraying the character for nearly forty years. But Nimoy wasn't afraid to go to director J.J. Abrams for advice. Nimoy told Entertainment Weekly:

  It was clear [Abrams] was nervous, and I'm glad he got over it. Look, I had been away from the character for a long time. His input was important to me.

  It's still a mystery just exactly how the elder Spock will fit into the Starfleet Academy-set reboot, but with Eric Bana portraying a time-travelling Romulan with a grudge against Chris Pine's James T. Kirk, it's possible Nimoy's Spock may actually meet young Spock, portrayed by Zachary Quinto.

  
  
  

  Star Trek - Teaser

  J.J. Abrams Directs - Releasing May 8, 2009

  Posted 04/27/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Chris Pine | Leonard Nimoy | J.J. Abrams | Zachary Quinto | Star Trek

Sunday, April 26

• William Shatner Optimistic About Star Trek

  

  When you think of Star Trek, it's hard not to think of William Shatner as James T. Kirk, Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. Shatner portrayed the character on television and in film for more than 30 years and even voiced the character in a short-lived animated series.

  However, with J.J. Abrams' relaunch of the franchise just around the corner, a whole new generation of fans are going to experience Star Trek with newcomer Chris Pine in the captain's chair.

  Though he won't be appearing in the film, Shatner has high hopes that the film will be successful, opening up the door for the original Kirk to live again. In a recent interview, Shatner said:

  When they were thinking about doing the movie, they talked to me a couple of times, I don't know what it really was all about, and then they stopped talking to me and went their way. But you just know it's going to be wonderful because J.J. Abrams is such a good moviemaker. I just regret that I'm not a part of it. But if it's successful, then maybe there will be a call.

  
  
  Next Showing: Star Trek opens May 8
  

  Star Trek - Teaser

  J.J. Abrams Directs - Releasing May 8, 2009

  Posted 04/26/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Chris Pine | William Shatner | J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Monday, April 20

• Star Trek's Enterprise: From Starship to Hot Rod and Beyond

  The original directive J.J. Abrams gave to designers of the new U.S.S. Enterprise was to make it more of a "hot-rod type of vehicle." So the designers at Industrial Light & Magic explain to SCI FI Wire how they gave it an overall more sweeping line, added motion to some of the devices on the outer hull, and gave it a new paint job using a substance they call "interference paint." This has very tiny mica prisms in it, creating an iridescent effect that changes color depending on the angle it' viewed from. Sounds like a pretty cool rod.

  But just in case it still ended up looking a little too much like daddy's ride, the official movie website is displaying what a number of artists came up with when they weren't given any such limiting directives. The gallery includes some very imaginative organic designs, including what looks to be a flying roller skate, and even a Slusho variation.

  
  

  Posted 04/20/2009 by Bill

  Related: J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Tuesday, April 7

• Leonard Nimoy Introduces Surprise Screening of Star Trek

  It was just supposed to be a 10-minute clip following a replay of The Wrath of Khan. Some apparent technical difficulties ensue, and then Leonard Nimoy takes the stage and calls for a vote on who wants to see a full version of J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek. All a total surprise to most of the audience at the Alamo Draft House in Austin, Texas. The outcome of the vote was, of course, never in doubt and these lucky fans got to go where none have gone before. Even before the movie's official world premiere in Sydney.

  So what did they think?

  AICN, which helped organize the event, is overflowing with fan reviews. Regular AICN contributer Quint relates his own first-hand experience and gives the film a strong thumbs up: "I think Abrams pulled it off. Star Trek isn't just a successful reboot, but a genuinely fun and exciting science fiction action adventure."

  
  
  Next Showing: Other U.S. fans will have to wait until May 8 to see Star Trek

  Posted 04/07/2009 by Bill

  Related: Leonard Nimoy | J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Thursday, March 19

• Brett Ratner May Never Get a Comic Book Franchise

  X-Men: The Last Stand director Brett Ratner wants to keep working with comic book adaptations, but may never get his chance. Ratner told MTV:

  I was so upset when I left Superman [Bryan] Singer has his X-Men, [Christopher] Nolan has Batman -- there's nothing left. Hulk has been exploited already. There's nothing left for me.

  Ratner originally left the Superman adaptation because he could not find a suitable actor to play the Man of Steel. Ratner's Superman script, written by J.J. Abrams, "took place on Krypton for about half of the movie," and was "darker, because there was a civil war on Krypton," according to Ratner. He then turned to the highly criticized X-Men: The Last Stand, which Singer had ironically left to direct Superman Returns.

  Is there a franchise Ratner wouldn't have touched? Yes, Iron Man. "I wouldn't have been interested in Iron Man. I have a lot of respect for [Jon Favreau] because, to me, it was a B-character.... But look what he did."

  Ratner still has a chance for a comic book franchise, just not a traditional, super hero one. The director, hard at work possibly killing off another franchise with Beverly Hills Cop 4, is close to officially signing on to direct a Conan reboot.

  
  

  Posted 03/19/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Brett Ratner | Bryan Singer | Jon Favreau | Christopher Nolan | J.J. Abrams | Iron Man | Superman Returns | X-Men: The Last Stand | Beverly Hills Cop IV

Monday, March 2

• Trek Director Reassures Fans, Offers Sneak Preview

  "We are making this movie for you," Star Trek director J.J. Abrams assured the crowd of die-hard Star Trek fans at Wondercon. He had raised some eyebrows recently with statements to the press suggesting that the movie is "not for Trekkies." This is all just part of an attempt to broaden the audience, he explained, promising that the new movie will remain true to the spirit of the original. Better than words though was the sneak peak he offered of the new trailer that will be bundled with Friday's Watchmen debut. Among the highlights are Kirk taking the captain's chair for the first time; Spock assuring Starfleet cadets, "You will experience fear, fear of certain death"; and an imploding planet that might be Vulcan.

  
  
  Next Showing:  Star Trek beams into theaters May 8

  Posted 03/02/2009 by Bill

  Related: J.J. Abrams | Star Trek

Wednesday, February 25

• New Star Trek Featurette

  The latest featurette for Star Trek revealed by MTV shows a few behind-the-scenes shots and short interviews from the cast that really show the love to director J.J. Abrams. If the cast's fawning over Abrams doesn't get you excited, how about this from Abrams himself:

  When they asked me to be involved with 'Star Trek,' I realized it was an opportunity to do everything I love in one movie.

  So, Star Trek's filled with giant monsters, time traveling islands, and Tom Cruise? Check out the featurette below to find out:

  
  

  Posted 02/25/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Tom Cruise | J.J. Abrams | Star Trek