Summary
Star Trekis one of the longest running science fiction franchises to date, having first debuted nearly sixty years ago. The franchise, which focuses on travel throughout interstellar space, initially premiered as a television series, but eventually found success on the big screen, too. So, it wasn’t surprising when Paramount sought to rejuvenate the franchise with 2009’sStar Trekstarring Chris Pine from director and writer, J.J. Abrams.
The film was mildly successful, having earned $385.6 million at the worldwide box office, and went on to spawn two sequels:Star Trek Into DarknessandStar Trek Beyond. The former earned $467.3 million, surpassing its predecessor, while the latter stumbled with $343.4 million worldwide. Despite this, Paramount sought to make a fourth installment, but that project has yet to come to fruition. So, what’s taking so long?
Paramount’s Success with Star Trek on the Small Screen
While Paramount has struggled to find success withStar Trekin the movies, the studio has successfully revived the franchise on its streaming service. In 2017, Paramount+ launchedStar Trek Discovery, which takes place roughly five years before the events ofStar Trek: The Original Series. The series quickly became a hit for the streaming service and has gone on to have a five-season run on the small screen. The success of the series actually led Paramount to continue to expand itsStar Trekuniverse on the small screen, featuring new live-action shows and animated series, including one meant to attract younger audiences.Star Trek: Picardbrought back from fan-favorites from the critically acclaimedStar Trek: The Next Generation, whileStar Trek: Strange New Worldsis meant to serve as a prequel to the originalStar Trekseries. On the animated side, the studio has launchedStar Trek: Lower Decks, an animated adult series set within the franchise, andStar Trek: Prodigyon Nickelodeon.
Paramount is clearly happy with how the franchise is performing on the small screen as it entered production onStar Trek: Section 31back in January. The project was in the works for a long time, having been announced years before it actually entered production. This marks the firstStar Trekmovie being produced for Paramount+, and it will see Michelle Yeoh return as Emperor Philippa Georgiou. The movie will see her join a secret division of Starfleet, where she’s both forced to deal with the sins of her past while also doing her best to protect the United Federation of Planets. As the franchise continues to grow on television, there’s no denying the studio has managed to give fans what they want - albeit on a smaller scale. Unfortunately, though, the same can’t be said for the franchise on the film side.
Paramount’s Troubles with Star Trek on the Big Screen
Paramount+ has successfully revivedStar Trek, and now it’s about time Paramount manages to do so in theaters. Following less than stellar box office returns on the first threeStar Trekmovies, the studio has been eager to bring the franchise back to the big screen. There weremultiple points in timewhenStar Trek 4looked like it was ready to enter production. In fact, the studio had even begun to confirm some of the cast, including the return of Chris Hemsworth, who only had a minor role as Captain Kirk in 2009’sStar Trek. However, the star later exited the project with reports saying it was either due to a bad script or a pay dispute. Franchise star Chris Pine would laterexperience his own issues with the film, with talks eventually breaking down between the actor and the studio. Despite the behind-the-scenes problems, Paramount continued to seek out directors for the project having hired directors like S.J. Clarkson (Madame Web) and Matt Shakman (Fantastic Four) to help bring the project to fruition. As it stands, though, no director is currently attached to a fourthStar Trekfilm.
The studio has also explored other options altogether, having spoken to director Quentin Taratino about his own idea for a newStar Trekmovie. That project, however, quickly broke down. In March of this year, it was announced that Steve Yockey would write a new screenplay for what is being described asthe final chapterin the rebooted franchise. Along with the reboot, Paramount is still developing two otherStar Trekmovies with writer Seth Grahame-Smith and director Toby Haynes and screenwriter Kalinda Vazquez. Given the troubles the studio has experienced with the reboot franchise, one can only hope ittakes inspiration from its successful television reboot. There’s plenty to explore with theStar Trekfranchise on the big screen, but Paramount is going to need to truly focus on getting the franchise right if it hopes to achieve the success it has on the small screen, but it’s also going to need to move quickly, too. It’s going to be hard to keep audiences interested in the films if the studio continues to drag its feet.
