Star Trek is bigger than it’s ever been right now. Between Discovery, Picard, Below Decks, Prodigy, and the critically acclaimed Strange New Worlds, it’s never been a better time to be a Star Trek fan. But while the venerable sci-fi franchise is going from strength to strength on TV, the big screen adventures appear to be trapped in limbo.
In 2016, Star Trek Beyond hit theaters to middling reviews and disappointing box office, grossing a worldwide total of $343.5 million and losing an estimated $50m for Paramount. Despite that, Star Trek 4 was quickly confirmed, though plans have stalled time and time again, with the film going through a number of screenwriters and protracted salary negotiations with the cast.
Now Roddenberry Entertainment executive Trevor Roth has given an update on how the production is going and, as you’d expect, it doesn’t actually say much. Speaking with ScreenRant, he said:
“We’re very excited for Star Trek to return to the big screen. I know that a lot is being worked on over at Paramount in regard to that. Unfortunately, the details of which I’m not able to divulge, but I can say that it is definitely something that a lot of energy; a lot of focus is being brought to. And we’re very, very excited to continue to see what can happen when you’re talking about those large audiences in theaters when it comes to Star Trek. Because I think it deserves it, and that people enjoy it that way.”
Current plans are for Star Trek 4 to be directed by WandaVision‘s Matt Shakman, with J.J. Abrams producing and a script by Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson-Dworet (though it seems this is being rewritten once more by Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires).
The principal cast all seem interested in returning to the Enterprise, with Variety reporting just last week that negotiations for Chris Pine’s return had finally concluded and he’d be taking home a $13 million payday to play James T. Kirk.
Paramount are sticking to their plans for Star Trek 4 to release on December 13, 2023, so we expect to see some movement and an official unveiling soon. Let’s hope it’s worth the wait.