Star Trek XI - spoilers!

[Geekyfanboy]

One of the most respected names in the world of Star Trek other than that of the late ‘Great Bird’ himself Gene Roddenberry is Robert H. Justman. Justman during an impressive career played a crucial role in helping get Star Trek: The Original series and Star Trek: The Next Generation off of the ground.

However due to stress related illness the producer retired back in 1987 after having helped launch the Next Generation. Since that time he has continued to support Star Trek and in a new interview for Star Trek Magazine he gave Star Trek Movie producer J.J. Abrams a message of encouragement.

Though the new movie is likely to be a reboot with a younger Captain Kirk. Justman remains open minded.

“I don’t know much about the new film, so I don’t see why I should write it off in advance,” Justman explains. “ I remember how some people tried to write â€" off Star Trek: The Next Generation before they saw the show. So all I’ll say at this point is that if J.J. Abrams can make a good movie that sheds more light on what has already happened and adds more creativity to the mix, that sounds great to me.”

“I’m looking foreword to hearing what he has planned for Star Trek and I’d be pleased if Mr Abrams contacted me and asked me some questions. I’d be happy to talk to him about Star Trek.”

Although there is presently no new Star Trek on Television or any new series in production right now. Justman is among the many who feel that the series and its themes will never really die.

“I think Star Trek’s appeal is largely down to the fact that it’s essentially a morality play,” he notes. “It’s about issues and people that we can recognize and it has a message: that life should be lived morally. Young people feel when you’re young â€" it’s only when you’re older that you realize you sometimes have to compromise you ideals a bit.

“I think Star Trek is probably going to be around â€" in some form or other â€" forever,” he declares. “It’s really become part of our culture now.”

You can read much more of what Bob Justman shared with David Bassom for Star Trek Magazine in the new issue which is out now.

[iceman]

The problems with a lot of the star trek movies has always been a bad script, all we need to do is look at the last film for this.

I hope they realize that they are on a very dangerousquest to alter startrek history. I do not know how many more bad movies this franchise can take before fans will just stop going to badly made movies.

Every bad movie just makes it harder to revive the series, all we have to do is look at the bad computer games recently released as an example of this.

Unfortunately the movie studios, producers and directors continue to disappoint fans because they dont listen to them and continue to move away from Gene Roddenburys vision.

[bigtmac68]

The problem is that fans dont determine how well the film does, its the general public who decide if a trek film will be a success or not.  I mean every person who was still watching enterprise could see the film with a friend and it would still be considered a flop.

JJ knows this and has outright said it, that the fans are not the key to true film success.

look at the prequels for star wars, the fans hated them, but they made tons of money worldwide so lucas did not care. He alienated his fanbase but was rewarded with big box office, and thats the model that CBS is looking at I think.

Not to go all negative, I mean we can still get an amazingly good film from abrahms and his track record is very good so far. MI III was an excellent film that suffered from Tom Cruises bad press and still did over 150mil domestic. And Both Lost and Alias started off as amazingly fresh tv. ( although both seemed to not be able to hold the magic )

I guess the key point im trying to make is that its not Us that he is trying to make the movie for. If he is sucessful in bringing in the mainstream audience neither he nor CBS will care if he did it over the horrfied screams of protest from every trek fan as he runs roughshod over our beloved continuity.

I hope he wont make a mess trek history, I really do, but its not our hopes Abrahms is concerned with.

[Rico]

bigt - some very good points there.  The thing that I think though is you can have both.  I think you can make a great TREK movie, pull in the general audience and please the fans - all at the same time.  "The Voyage Home" movie is probably the best example of this in the Trek movies.  I still think JJ will do a good job, but I do think he has to keep the fans in mind at least a little bit.

[iceman]

Sometimes I think The studios dont care at all about the fans, which is dissapointing, because if they made the fans happy they would ultamately make a lot more money then if they just made a movie to to make money. Also a good movie would keep the franchise going for years.

And perhaps one of the most important things They need a good script not just one that that is filled with special effects and no substance.

[jedijeff]

With the Trek films, after the First few, I always found that Paramount was treating them as money makers. I think they knew going in to making them, how much they would probably make off of the movies, so there was no reason for them to budget the movie past a certain point. A lot of the Trek movies I found the special effects to be lacking compared to other movies of their time. Actually in some cases the Movies (Star Trek 5) were not as good as what was on the TNG Television show at the time. The TNG movies I always felt the Special Effects were not any better then the series. As well a few of the movies felt very episodic, and any two part TNG episode had a better script then Insurrection. I always felt that the strength of Star Trek came from the series, and not the movies.
I am very hopeful that JJ Abrams will do a good job. He might change a few things around, but I think on the whole, the core of the movie will stay true to what is Star Trek. James Bond is a good example of making changes to a franchise, and coming out with a great movie.

[Geekyfanboy]

All I have to say is that FANS made Star Trek what it is. You don't turn a blinds eye to the core fanbase. A good writer can create a script that is loyal for the core base and bring in new fans. This is what I hope for with JJ at the helm.

BTW I really enjoyed the Star Wars Prequels, and I'm an original core fan of Star Wars...  :r2d2line

[wso32]

Maybe Im behind on ST news lately but as I read this recent interview w/ Shatner on IGN, it sounds like Shatner is planning on being on screen in ST XI?  Is this how everyone else is reading this or I am reading into it too much?

"IGN: With the JJ Abrams movie, is it exciting for you to think about playing Kirk on screen again?

Shatner: Yeah. You know, the visual, as you get older, of the contrast between what you were like when you were younger and when you're older is a bit of a shock, for me, let alone to you. So that's something you've got to deal with."

Here is the full interview:
http://tv.ign.com/articles/753/753148p1.html

Any thoughts?

[Rico]

Nothing is in stone yet.  The general rumor is Kirk/Shatner and maybe even Spock/Nimoy may have cameos that will then create the flashback to their younger, Academy days.  If done right, it could be good.  Have to wait and see how it turns out.

[jedijeff]

I read the article, and got the impression that he will be in the New Trek Movie as well. Sounds like they are trying to fit the Older Kirk and Spock into the film some way. Interesting article, though some of Shatners responses did not make much sense to me.

[Geekyfanboy]

William Shatner revealed to SCI FI Wire that the upcoming 11th Star Trek movie will indeed, as rumored, deal with the early years of Capt. James T. Kirk and Spockâ€"and that he will definitely appear in the movie if director J.J. Abrams can find a place to use him. Shatner, who originated the role of Kirk in the original Trek series and several subsequent films, said in an interview that he was invited to meet with Abrams (Mission: Impossible III), who is also co-writing the movie.

"I met with J.J., and they told me they would like me to be part of their film, but they have to write the role," Shatner said in an interview promoting his new SCI FI Channel film, Alien Fire.

As for the many rumors concerning the sequel's story, Shatner said that Abrams will explore Kirk and Spock during their Starfleet Academy years. "Yes, we know the story is based on young Kirk," Shatner said. Up until now, everyone connected with the film has maintained strict silence about the storyline, though rumors have run rampant that they concern Kirk and Spock's first missions.

As for Shatner's place in that storyline? "They need to figure out how to put the dead captain in with the young captain," he said. "It's a very complex, technical problem of how to write the character in, and I'm not sure how they will solve it." It sounds as if Shatner may play an older version of Kirk.

Coincidentally, the Starfleet storyline is one Shatner is already working on for his latest Trek-based novels. "I'm writing with Gar and Judy Reeves-Stevens two books on the academy, with the young Kirk and the young Spock," Shatner revealed. "We've submitted the first book to the publishers, and I think it will be out in the beginning of 2008. It's got a working title of The Academy, but I don't think that will stick."

Meanwhile, Abrams told Entertainment Weekly that a draft of the Trek XI script is done and will be trimmed sometime soon. The sequel will be targeted, "on the one hand, for people who love Star Trek, the fix that they will get will be really satisfying," Abrams told the magazine. "For people who've never seen it or know it vaguely, I think they will enjoy it equally, because the movie does not require you to know anything about Star Trek. I would actually prefer [that] people don't know the series, because I feel like they will come to it with an open mind."

[Bryancd]

All of that sounds fine....except that last sentence. Sounds like JJ needs to be reminded that the majority of his target audience is more than intimately familiar with the material and he should please them first, otherwise no box office for you!

[Rico]

Darth Hideous clued me in on this story....interesting stuff....

Captain Christopher Pike And Scotty To Appear in Star Trek XI       PDF        Print        E-mail
Written by Robert Sanchez   
Thursday, 11 January 2007

Regardless how much JJ Abrams and gang are trying to keep Star Trek XI under wraps, there are still a few leaks. There have been a few this week and the IESB too, has heard some storyline ramblings.

ImageA close source to the film revealed to me the first few pages of the script. Yeah, I know, a few pages isn’t jack shit when you think of a script as a whole, but when certain characters are mentioned your mind goes wild trying to figure out how they will all fit into the story.

Here’s what I know, yes the script was turned in three weeks ago and it is currently being “polished up.” I’ve been told there are plenty of big name actors and complete unknowns that have been coming in and out of meetings regarding casting.

So while it’s old news that the new storyline will involve a young Kirk and Spock, we have been told to expect to see Captain Christopher Pike and our favorite Scottish, miracle-working engineer Montgomery Scott, or as he is best known, Scotty originally portrayed by James Doohan.

For those of you who do not know who Captain Pike is exactly, well, shame on you, he was the first Captain of the starship Enterprise NCC-1701 (unless you count the reference to Captain Robert April in the animated series) and starred in the pilot episode of The Original Series entitled, The Cage. He was portrayed in TOS by two actors, Jeffrey Hunter and Sean Kenney (as an older version of Pike).

ImageAlso, the feature film’s storyline is non-linear, there are different timeframes addressed. This goes along with the rumors of William Shatner and Leonard Nemoy’s involvement. The character of Christopher Pike’s involvement in the Star Trek XI storyline makes sense because Mr. Spock served under Pike on the Enterprise for at least 10 years before Kirk became Captain and Pike was promoted to Fleet Captain.

Well kiddies, as Kirk said, “Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its 5-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.”

Unfortunately, due to the context chosen by Abrams for this installment, it looks like we will be going where all these men have gone before, oh and guess what? SPOILER WARNING!! Do not read any further if you don’t want to know…Kirk, Mr. Spock, Scotty and Pike all  survive to the end! Amazing isn’t it? Who knew!

Time will only tell what the new Star Trek feature film will hold for us…for now we can only wait...

Article here:
http://iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1575&Itemid=99

[moyer777]

Here is another article I read on Trek Today about the new film... hmmmm

By Michelle
January 23, 2007 - 8:39 PM
Casting rumours for Star Trek XI have been swirling for months, with names like Tom Cruise and Matt Damon being dropped as potential Captain Kirks. Now Scottish actor James McAvoy is said to have the inside track for a role for which he has the perfect accent.

The UK's Sunday Mail reported that McAvoy, who played Mr. Tumnus in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and earned good reviews as Dr. Garrigan in The Last King of Scotland, is keen to play Montgomery Scott in the film. "I have a passion for sci-fi. Films, books, memorabilia, art - I'm an addict," the actor reportedly said, explaining that he grew up reading The Lord of the Rings and watching Star Trek.

The article claims that an insider said the producers think "the 28-year-old is perfect for the iconic role", though it also states as fact that Damon has been cast as Kirk - something repeatedly denied by both Damon's publicist and the studio, which refused to comment on casting.

"The producers are keen to have a Scottish Scotty and James is the No.1 choice," stated the unnamed insider. "He's Scottish and has box office appeal so he fulfils both criteria." Scotty was played on the television show by the late James Doohan.

The original article is http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/news/feed/tm_method=full%26objectid=18508310%26siteid=64736-name_page.html

[Geekyfanboy]

From Mind-Reading to Mind-Melding

TrekMovie is reporting that Greg Grunberg (Heroes), the very close friend to producer/director J.J. Abrams, and the only semi-confirmed cast member for “Star Trek: XI,” has decided what kind of alien he would like to play in his best friend’s new Trek feature.

“I’d love to be a Vulcan, it’d be great. That would be incredible,” Grunberg said in a Rotten Tomatoes interview.

In even more important Trek XI news, Greg says that the script for new Trek film is almost complete, saying, “He (JJ Abrams) is finalizing the script right now so I just talked to him today and he said, ‘I’ll send it to you as soon as it’s done’ so hopefully it’ll be very soon.”

Backlot sources are claiming that Paramount has set aside a number of stages for Trek XI to occupy in the near future.

With the script near finalization, stages set aside and sets being built, it shouldn’t be too much longer before we begin learning a little more about the actual storyline and which actors will be coming onboard for pivatol roles. I get the strong feeling that what ‘Wrath of Khan’ did to ignite renewed love for the franchise back in 1982, this new Abrams effort will do the same for a whole new generation of fans in the 21st Century.