‘Star Trek 3’ Delayed: More Reason The Movies Should End
Star Trek 3 has been delayed, according to a new report from Variety, posted online at Christian Post, and we think that’s just more reason why it’s time for the film series to end.
Before you get up in arms about that statement, Trekkers, let us preface it by saying that the new series has been fun, and that we love the original crew as much as anybody.
But this new info is somewhat disturbing. From the online report:
“Roberto Orci, writer and producer of the last two ‘Star Trek’ installments who is now reported to take over J.J. Abram’s directorial reign, revealed that there still isn’t word about the sequel from the film studio itself.
“‘Well, I don’t want to count my chickens before they hatch… The studio has yet to even read the script. I’m in the middle of writing it, with the talented team of [John D.] Payne and [Patrick] McKay. They are true ‘Star Trek’ fans, as well. So, I can’t even think anything about the future until I give them a script and they greenlight it. Until that happens, everything else is just a rumor.’
“Setting aside the release date rumors, fans may already have an idea as to the forthcoming movie’s plot.
“‘In this movie, they are closer than they are to the original series characters that you have ever seen. They have set off on their five-year mission. So their adventure is going to be in deep space,’ the 41-year-old producer said.”
Okay, why is this disturbing? Well, the film was supposedly coming our way sometime in 2015, alleges CP. It’s difficult to see how that will happen — or even a 2016 release date — when a script hasn’t been approved or even looked at.
And while we’ll stack Star Trek up against Star Wars any day of the week when it comes to space-faring awesomeness, the idea of competing with the new post-Jedi films isn’t a very good one.
Besides, film has always been Star Wars’ domain, while Star Trek has always worked better on the small screen. Yes, many of the old movies were fun — particularly II, IV, and VI — but movies have been far too limiting for the Star Trek Universe.
The original series, as started by Gene Roddenberry and expanded by a host of talented filmmakers, actors, authors, etc., was able to move beyond the basic good guys-bad guys trap of the big screen and tell some genuinely thought-provoking and philosophical sci-fi tales.
That freedom has been lacking in the new series.
While the new Star Trek films are fun, they are, at their core, action films, and action was only a sliver of what Star Trek was all about.
While Orci promises a film that is more Star Trek than anything we’ve seen so far, movie audiences generally don’t have the patience for that.
That’s why we’d love to see the original crew make a comeback on the small screen. Someone, please hand this off to Netflix. If you can get the film crew back, fine. If not, re-cast.
One great way of making it work with the current crew — all of whom are active on the big screen — is to film the entire season at once, working around their schedules.
Then, if you need to, follow another Starfleet ship for the following season, or until you can get the Enterprise crew back.
Otherwise, just sign a new cast to binding long-term contracts, and follow them season-after-season.
One thing is for sure: Star Trek movies need to stop, at least for now, and the franchise’s full TV potential must be priority moving forward.
What do you think, readers? More Star Trek movies, or is it time to make the TV switch?
