Having steered the Fast & Furious franchise to new critical heights and financial success over the years, director Justin Lin will next helm the third installment in Paramount's Star Trek series next year. He steps into JJ Abrams' shoes, whose commitment to Star Wars: The Force Awakens prevented him from directing the sci-fi sequel. While speaking to Deadline, Lin explained how his predecessor encouraged him to sign on for the project in the first place:
“I was in the last week shooting True Detective when JJ Abrams called last December. He asked me, do you like Star Trek? If you do, you should take this, be bold, and just go for it. I thought about how much a part of my life Star Trek was... All my friends were Star Wars kids but I didn’t go to the movies, so I was the Star Trek kid. Thinking about this, it became a very personal and very emotional decision.”
While Lin expressed his admiration for Abrams, he also claimed that his take on the beloved franchise would still differ from JJ's movies in several different ways:
“As great as JJ’s films were, there’s still a lot to be mined from these characters. They haven’t really gone on their five-year mission, so what we experienced in the TV show hasn’t been touched on yet. That sets up an opportunity for exploration and the deeper you go, the more you are examining humanity. Those are the things that I absorbed as a kid and hope to tap into and embrace and celebrate.”
According to Deadline, Lin remained tight-lipped about the script (co-written by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung), but did promise the plot wouldn't be borrowed from classic Trek episodes the way Star Trek Into Darkness was. "It's all new and fresh", Lin maintained, "The Klingons, Romulans and other species are great, but it’s time to go further. It has been fun to focus on creating whole new worlds and species.”
What are your thoughts on this new direction? Are you excited to see fresh Star Trek stories and characters on the big screen, or would you rather the movies pay homage to what came before them. Star Trek 3 (rumored to be titled 'Star Trek Beyond') will boldly go where no one has gone before on 8 July, 2016. Are you excited?