Now that the Paramount/Skydance merger is complete, the studio is focusing on ironing out its film slate under the new management. In addition to cultivating relationships with acclaimed directors like James Mangold (who has signed a deal with Paramount to produce and direct feature films), the studio is also keen on developing new franchise installments; as a result, Star Trek has emerged as a top priority for executives. For nearly 60 years, Star Trek has been one of the defining sci-fi properties in pop culture, so it’s unsurprising to hear Paramount wants to get a new movie off the ground. The biggest question now is which version of a new Star Trek movie comes to fruition.
No release dates have been set, but there are multiple Star Trek films in development. Kelvin Timeline star Zachary Quinto is even actively campaigning to get the long-awaited Star Trek 4 made. It remains to be seen which direction Paramount will take, but there’s a Star Trek film on the table that would be worth reviving: Years ago, Quentin Tarantino was developing a Star Trek movie that was written by Mark L. Smith, and as Paramount looks to give its prized franchise a fresh start, the higher-ups should take another look at that Tarantino script.
Star Trek Is in Need of Reinvention
Star Trek has had plenty of success on the small screen over the past several years through Paramount+, but the film series has been in a state of flux for almost a decade. The Kelvin Timeline got off to a strong start with Star Trek (2009), which earned widely positive reviews and grossed $385.6 million at the worldwide box office. However, J.J. Abrams’ franchise struggled to maintain that momentum. After the divisive Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), Star Trek Beyond (2016) underwhelmed commercially, earning just $343.4 million globally (lowest of the trilogy) against a production budget of $185 million. In the heyday of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Star Wars resurgence, Star Trek fell behind because there wasn’t a blockbuster void to fill.
Ideas for Star Trek 4 were being discussed around the time Star Trek Beyond was coming out. At one point, the plan called for Chris Hemsworth to return as George Kirk and go on an adventure with Chris Pine’s Jim Kirk. That film never came to fruition, and Star Trek 4 has lingered in development hell ever since. The project has cycled through multiple filmmakers (including The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman), and nothing has stuck. Though there’s interest from the cast in returning, Paramount has seemed hesitant to pull the trigger on a new Kelvin Timeline film.
Perhaps the studio’s new leadership will feel differently, but a case can be made that it’s time to turn the page. Though the Kelvin Timeline cast routinely gave strong performances that captured the spirit of their classic characters, those movies were polarizing due to creative decisions and their approach. Star Trek Beyond was seen as a step in the right direction, but its weak box office performance put the franchise on hold. It’s been so long now since there was a new Star Trek movie that it would arguably be for the best to wipe the slate clean and give the Enterprise a fresh start, rather than attempt a legacy sequel that may or may not land with general audiences.
If Star Trek is a top priority for Paramount, it means the studio wants to keep the franchise active for the foreseeable future, not just a one-off that would give the Kelvin Timeline crew the send-off they never received. Unless that cast is going to come back for multiple sequels, it doesn’t make much sense to bring the Kelvin ensemble back for one movie and then reboot Star Trek again right after. Now is the time to pursue a new direction with a fresh, exciting angle that can help breathe new life into the franchise.
Quentin Tarantino’s Movie Could Be The Fresh Start Star Trek Needs
Tarantino’s Star Trek never got past the writing stage, but some details have been revealed. The film would have been heavily influenced by “A Piece of the Action”, an episode of the original series that saw Kirk and Spock travel to a 1920s-esque gangster planet. Smith compared it to Thor: Ragnarok and Guardians of the Galaxy, describing how it could have broken the mold for what a “Star Trek movie” could be. Of course, since Tarantino was involved, the intention was for it to be R-rated, taking cues from Pulp Fiction (particularly the violence).
The elevator pitch of “Star Trek meets gangster films” has the potential to be a lot of fun. It would be a change of pace from the traditional space adventures of the Kelvin Timeline, where the Enterprise crew went head-to-head against various villains. Tarantino’s film would have been an opportunity to do something new with the franchise, injecting a fresh style into the movies. Regardless of who was playing Kirk and Spock, it’d be entertaining to see them thrust into a situation where they have to make sense of a drastically different environment and adapt to a new setting. It’s easy to imagine scenes that riff on classic gangster movie tropes as the heroes come to blows with a crime boss. As Star Trek looks to boldly re-introduce itself to the moviegoing public, mixing things up to this degree could make it stand out, just as Ragnarok and Guardians of the Galaxy did.
If successful, this concept could be used as a springboard for a series of films that tackles a different genre with each outing — akin to Tarantino’s own filmography. All of Tarantino’s works feature many of his calling cards as an auteur, but throughout his career, he’s done more than just make some great gangster movies. He’s put his spin on war dramas, action films, and Westerns. Follow-ups to his Star Trek movie could follow a similar playbook, ensuring the franchise wouldn’t get stale. It would create a sense of excitement around the films, as fans would be fascinated to see how each outing blended sci-fi with elements of another film genre. An approach like this could even help Star Trek get a leg up on Star Wars and Marvel by rewriting the rule book so drastically.
There are some hurdles Tarantino’s Star Trek would have to clear. For starters, Tarantino himself said “it’s never going to happen,” so someone at Paramount would have to start a dialogue with the Oscar-winner and try to convince him otherwise. Tarantino is set on retiring after he directs his 10th feature, and he didn’t want his swan song to be a franchise installment. But as we’ve seen with David Fincher’s The Adventures of Cliff Booth, Tarantino can be okay with another filmmaker directing one of his scripts (after all, it’s how he got started in the industry, scripting films like True Romance); perhaps he can pass the baton to someone else who’s eager to bring Star Trek back.
Paramount might also want to find a way to make the film PG-13 so they can sell it to the widest audience possible. Violence is a hallmark of Tarantino productions, but there could be a way to tone it down and push the boundaries of what’s acceptable with the rating – especially if it’s Star Trek. If the studio is still struggling to find the right Star Trek idea, revisiting Tarantino’s pitch could be the way forward.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Source link