J.J. Abrams surprised everyone when he announced back in February that Paramount was at work on a fourth Star Trek movie starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldaña and the rest of the “Kelvin” cast. The last Trek movie this lot were in together was 2016’s Star Trek Beyond. After that, there had been numerous attempts to make another movie, but nothing ever quite came together.
And when I say that the announcement surprised everyone, I mean everyone. “When the announcement was made at the shareholders’ thing, I didn’t know that they were doing that,” Pine recently told IndieWire. “I don’t think anybody did.”
So that’s a little weird: shouldn’t you have told your stars they’re going to be in a new movie before you announce it? Paramount was trying to generate some hype for the project and may have jumped the gun a bit.
Game of Thrones veteran Matt Shakman will direct Chris Pine in Star Trek 4
Still, there’s no hard feelings on Pine’s end. “I met Matt Shakman, the director,” Pine said. “He’s a super-cool guy, very smart, I like him a great deal.”
"I know there’s a script out there somewhere and I’m waiting to see it. Looking forward to reading it. I love the group. I love the team. I love the world. Happy to go to work."
Shakman, for reference, made a splash as the director of WandaVision. He also directed the Game of Thrones episode “The Spoils of War,” when Daenerys Targaryen decimates the Lannister army. As for the script, it’s being written by Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires, based on an earlier version by Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson.
Paramount also unveiled the release date for Star Trek 4 before getting a script to any of the actors: December 22, 2023. Let’s hope it comes together.
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