Star Trek 4 Saved From Development Limbo?
According to Collider, Star Trek 4 appears to still be in development at Paramount, despite some slowdowns and obstacles. At one point, the film was announced to be going into production in late 2022, however, that prognostication turned out to be premature as it eventually lost both its writer and its director to other projects. Lindsay Anderson Beer, who was writing the new installment of the franchise, left the film to write and direct the forthcoming prequel Pet Sematary: Bloodlines.
Lindsay Anderson Beer, the writer of Star Trek 4, explained in an interview that the film is still on track.
However, it is Anderson Beer who has given the most recent indication that Star Trek 4 is still alive at Paramount, calling the project “still on track” in a recent interview. Anderson Beer expressed her love for the project and her enthusiasm for those involved but did not indicate whether she would return to do further script work. Of course, even though the WGA strike appears to be nearing an end, it is still ongoing, meaning no work on her part can move forward until that situation is resolved.
Matt Shakman, who had been attached to direct Star Trek 4, also left the project when he was given the opportunity to direct the upcoming Fantastic Four movie. Shakman had previously expressed similar sentiments, saying he believed the current version of Star Trek 4 in the works at Paramount was the version to which he had been attached. Again, though, it is unclear whether he will return to direct the film once it goes into production.
Interest in Star Trek 4 has only risen in recent years as there has been a renaissance in Star Trek television, with five new series released in the franchise since 2017.
All of this talk about Star Trek 4 is not the first time the film has risen in the popular consciousness. Shortly following the release of Star Trek Beyond in 2016, Simon Pegg and Doug Jung announced that they were at work on the follow-up project, but that version of the film never came to fruition. In the years since, multiple possibilities have been rumored, including a Star Trek film directed by Quentin Tarantino, but the most recent version, with Anderson Beer’s script and Shakman directing, seems to be the most promising version of the film yet.
When and whether this current version of Star Trek 4 moves forward, like everything else in Hollywood, it still depends on the resolution of the WGS and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
Interest in Star Trek 4 has only risen in recent years as there has been a renaissance in Star Trek television, with five new series released in the franchise since 2017. If one considers Short Treks a separate series, that number rises to six. And no, we’re not going to consider counting the non-canon Very Short Treks that are currently both amusing and disgusting to the fandom.
When and whether this current version of Star Trek 4 moves forward, like everything else in Hollywood, it still depends on the resolution of the WGS and SAG-AFTRA strikes. After those are both resolved, it seems that interest in Star Trek is high enough right now to warrant the pursuit of a new movie, much to the delight of fans of the Kelvin timeline films, the number of which has seemed to grow since the initial controversial launch of the new film series.
Though it certainly hit a bump in the road with Star Trek Into Darkness, the first and third films in the series have hit all the right notes, and we are hoping the Kelvin films can avoid developing an “even number curse.”
To the degree to which these reports can be seen as definitive, it would appear that the curse may be lifting for Star Trek 4. Whenever it finally does see the light of day, we’re sure to be boldly going to the theater.
