On the red carpets of Star Trek Beyond, JJ Abrams confirmed that a fourth Star Trek movie from the Kelvin Timeline crew was in the works. Following a critically acclaimed, but underperforming run for Beyond that fourth film seemed to be shelved.
After five long years and several false starts, Paramount has finally offered a beacon of hope by committing to giving us the next instalment of the film franchise, announcing a release date of June 9th 2023. But what film we’ll see is still open to interpretation…
The news came soon after Kalinda Vasquez was hired to write a fresh script based on an original ideas she’s pitched. Vasquez joined the Star Trek world with the Short Ask Not, focusing on a young cadet forced into a tense situation against Captain Pike before moving into the writers room at Discovery as a consulting producer, credited with writing Terra Firma’s second half.
Her previous credits include Prison Break, Nikita, Once Upon a Time, Fear the Walking Dead and Runaways which h is more than enough background to know her talents, but with Bad Robot being a ridiculously secretive company, there’s no indication of what her script could be about.
So far there’s not even a solid guarantee that the Untitle Star Trek Production is even based on Vasquez’s script.
Paramount has been balancing several ideas thrown around with it’s president, Emma Watts, noting that since taking over the role she’s been keeping their options open to find just the right script that will both ensure a higher return and be fitting for the Star Trek brand.
Up until last year, that perfect script was thought to be from Fargo and Legion creator Noah Hawley. In an interview with the Observer back in September, Hawley noted that he was puling away from action and wanted to get back to “this idea of humanity justifying it’s existence.” He’d also noted that his story was about challenging the Federations ideals and bring in a whole new cast of original characters.
Unfortunately, despite his involvement bringing excitement, Watts put the project on hold.
“I think when Emma came in, she took a look at the franchise and wanted to go in a different direction with it.” Hawley told Deadline in November, noting that they were far along in pre-production and had even began hiring designers and artists to conceptualise the look of the film, “But you know, life is long, we were very close to production but in this business that doesn’t mean much. You got to get out of the gate to be in the race if you know what I mean.”
Other contenders have seen Quentin Tarantino pitch an R rated Trek rumoured to be based on original series episode A Piece of the Action, and the original script JJ Abrams had announced that would have seen James Kirk meet his father George thanks to some timey wimey shenanigans that would give the conflicted Captain closure following his sombre birthday in Beyond.
Unfortunately that story fell to the wayside over contract negotiations with both Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth, the latter of which had hinted that the story needing work before he’d sign on. This also unfortunately meant the loss of Life on Mars director SJ Clarkson at the helm who moved on to other projects – mainly working for HBO to work on the Game of Thrones prequel – once the idea was put on ice.
Since Beyond hit our screens, the world of Star Trek has changed dramatically. The JJ Abrams led series has helped bring Star Trek home to TV where the brand has been flourishing. From the adventure of Discovery, to the more introspective Picard, to the comedy of Lower Decks and more on the way, there’s a variety to suit everyone.
With the output being “big” in both visual style and over-reaching arcs, a big screen production has to be something truly special. The void that was once there between TV and Movies is breaking down, especially with shifts in audience perception which has advanced rapidly the past year.
Assuming Vasquez’s pitch is the one that made Paramount set a date, there are still a lot of open questions. Will the next film see a continuation of the Cxhris Pine led Kelvin universe? Will it follow the current trends of TV Trek? Is this another universe or reimagining? Or will this be a completely new idea?
We know the cast of the 2009 reboot are ready to jump back on board if they get the call with Quinto, Pegg and Pine – among others including The Boys star Karl Urban – noting their eagerness to return. We also know that the Trek TV world has expanded the universe in quite interesting ways and that there’s a lot of closure to be had.
Will we see Pine’s Kirk back on screen? Will we see a new Kirk in the chair? Or will Trek follow suit with the Marvel-inspired logic of an expanded universe beyond everything we’ve seen before?
SFCQ2 Members can let us know their views in Starbase Europa!Our latest issue of Comms talks in depth – and we mean in depth! – about Discovery’s Third Season with episodic reviews, an overall season analysis and special featuring including a look at the 32nd century tech, the Crossfield Class, Tilly’s Journey, Georgiou’s exit and more! Comms is available as part of SFCQ2’s free membership! To find out more visit our Comms preview or Enlist Today!
About the author
Mark Mitchell; 1969-2026
It's with great sadness we report that our Director of Operations, Mark Mitchell, has sadly passed away suddenly earlier this week. Mark was one of our longest serving members and a huge part of what helped shape what SFCQ2 is today. Having served in leadership as a CO, throughout fleet support and originating the role of Director of Administration, Mark's unyielding dedication to the club and his multiple contributions over the decades undoubtedly make him worthy of his Legend handle. From writing the entire base for our modern Academy to being vital in the fleet restructure, to offering support and advice to countless members to support leadership and direction, Mark's efforts serve, and will likely continue to serve, as the backbone of everything that makes Q2 with his primary goal always being to offer the best of everything and push […]
Gamma Quarter 2403 Promotions & Citations
Throughout it’s entire existence SFC has grown, evolved and thrived due tot he commitment and passion of our officers and crew. Keen members can make a huge difference within their unit or the fleet as a whole, and we like to ensure members are rewarded and recognised for all they bring to the organisation. Starting this quarter, we're opening every new period within the fleet celebrating those who have made an impact and engaged in being a positive influence in their unit or in Q2 overall. The most obvious form of rewards comes from our naval-based rank structure. Utilising the same base rank structure seen on screen, SFC takes members through their journey as a Starfleet officer by giving members a chance to rise throughout the ranks from Ensign to Captain. Having had an active and exciting year, Lt Commander […]
A Fistful of ‘Spirk’
We've been spoiled with Spock in the past few years with Discovery introducing a younger iteration of the character long before he became the refined man of logic that made him famous, and continued that story through Strange New Worlds and his time under Captain Pike's command. As Strange New Worlds continues, giving more history to the original series line up and the early meetings of Spock and Kirk as it makes way for the beginning of the Kirk era, we thought we'd look back at some moments that made the partnership one of the most popular combinations in science fiction. JOURNEY TO BABEL TOS Season 2 Spock's got a bit of an issue with sharing. Secret brother who was shunned. Secret sister who's fate was classified. And despite trusting the Enterprise crew with his life, it was clearly only […]
Site & Service Updates July 2026
It's been a strange year as we adapt to then changing landscape of the Star Trek franchise with recent corporate shenanigans in the media industry, as well as adjusting to and anticipating new regulation sin our home base of the UK which has taken up more brain power than we'd expected!Still, despite distractions, we've been working away in the background with a revised Admin schedule to ensure at the very least every Sunday we can check off some items on the to do list and keep everyone updated on the changes whether minor, major or a bit pointless! On Screen Additions After being placed on the low priority list for a while, the On Screen Mission Log section has begun taking shape. Previously the On Screen section had it's own section per show since the launch of Discovery, however with […]
New Unit Application Guide
Account Academy Database Fleet Updates Calendar Latest Entries Explore Database Index Starfleet Academy Help & Support ⯇ DATABASE INDEX ACCOUNT HUB NEw Unit Application Guide Clarification This section is both for information and for making formal applications for creating or importing a new unit into SFCQ2. Applications can also be made directly to Fleet Administration. All applications are considered for review. × JOIN THE CAPTAINS TABLE Every Star Trek fans dreams of being the captain of their own Starship. Although running an SFC Quadrant 2 Unit is (probably) easier than commanding a starship, both roles require commitment and dedication.Unit’s are, and always will be, the core of SFC. It is within them that members can indulge in their shared interests for Star Trek and science fiction while enjoying the company of fellow fans and like minded people. At their best, […]
[Q2&A] Membership Handbook: Revised & Updated for 2026
With over fifty years (and counting) of history, joining SFC can sometimes be a whirlwind and while we're always focused on a more casual experience, tit can sometimes be overwhelming knowing where to start. While we offer our Academy as an induction tour of Quadrant 2's organisation and structure, and are always open to expanding more information in the Fleet Database, our Officers Pack gives you a one stop resource to highlight our core policies, membership information and more; The Membership Handbook/ Membership within Q2 is fairly laid back. But since it's inception - both overall as Starfleet Command as well as the administrative split for Quadrant 2 - out handbook has outlined who we are, how we operate and as a resource for members to be able to understand what membership entails from our core mission statement, to our […]
Related
Across The Universe…. into the Holodeck…?
As the Star Trek Online world is celebrating it's annual Summer event on Risa, the wider gaming world is adding some new dimensions to the gamers of the fandom as we see even more games announced within the Star Trek Universe following some already surprise additions in the past year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YK_Fw4_kLk OUTPOSTS UNKNOWN Set in the 23rd Century era of Strange New Worlds, Outposts Unknown comes from Magic Fuel Games, made up of former developers of various simulations including The Sims and Sim City and delivers exactly what you'd expect from them! The player takes command of the USS Resonant as the core of a new outpost building game where you lead a crew across a newly found system and build your perfect colonies with a mysterious force building up in the background... Sim City meets Strange New Worlds is […]
Starfleet Academy to end with with Season 2
Announced first by Variety, it's been announced that Starfleet Academy will end with Season 2. Having just launches in January with the first season finale receiving positive reactions, and it's second season now in post-production following the completion of filming, the announcement comes at an unsurprising time with Paramount undergoing new ownership under Skydance and more business shenanigans with further consolidation in the works with plans to absorb Warner Brothers into the mix. Set in the 32nd century and using Discovery's season 3 'Burn' storyline as a reset point, Starfleet Academy was focused on new original characters who had signed up to be the new stewards of Starfleet's future to rebuild the strength and vision of the Federation. Opening strong, Academy improved throughout it's first season and used it's setting to help strengthen the hopeful vision of the future and […]
New Cast Welcomes Aboard for Season 5 of Strange New Worlds
As the media hype is starting to ramp up for Academy's debut, Strange New Worlds is adding the finishing touches and along with cast such as Anson Mount saying goodbye to their Enterprise, we have some new names announced to have joined for the final season. Acting as a prequel to the original series, Strange New Worlds has helped to expand legacy characters having brought over Ethan Peck's younger and less refined version of Spock, the first career steps of Nyota Uhura, a completely revamped Christine Chapel and smaller parts – such as Dr M'BEnga, Samuel Kirk and T'Pring among others – being revived for the new era. Since then we've also spent some time with a young Jim Kirk, even seeing his first time in command last season, and Scotty's joined the lower decks of Engineering. As the show […]
Across The Universe This November!
As the year comes to an end, the new cycles are spinning up as Star Trek looks ahead towards new frontiers... UNDER CONSTRUCTION.... AGAIN... It's safe to say the biggest news of December had all eyes back on the film side of the Star Trek franchise again as Paramount seems to have found a new plan to revive Trek on the big screen. Which, sure, comes with a lot of scepticism. We've already had the Tarantino plan, the Kelvin revival announcement, the Hawley film that went into pre production before another announcement and probably more that we've forgotten about. But this one comes from the all new Paramount under Skydance, so lets be cautiously hopeful! According to Deadline the new pitch is coming from Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley who will write and direct a completely new take on […]
Revisiting the Past and Rebuilding The Future: Across the Universe this August
As Strange New Worlds races through it's third season, Star Trek looks ahead to new frontiers with it's home studio under new management and new games on the horizon. Meanwhile a little drop of Trek history gets a huge expansion. New Owners, New Changes The biggest news for the month came not just across the Star Trek Universe, but the media industry as after a long tussle with some odd political turns, Paramount is finally under new ownership. Merging with the media giant Skydance, the new Paramount means many things. For tus, it basically just means we might have some movement on Trek news going forward after a massive pause in business operations while all the legalities were ironed out. A new Paramount means a new executive line up under the command of Skydance boss David Ellison who is not […]
Relay Recap: July 2024
All Features Universe Categories Fleet Alert Comms GORN GIRL recap; july 2025 Picking up on the Season 2 cliff-hanger, Strange New Worlds returned to our screens this month to find Captain Pike and his crew on the edge of war with the Gorn as Season 3 was finally released!Exploring new worlds and new problems, the Enterprise crew are back in action on Paramount Plus and we're keeping ourselves up to date with weekly episode discussion threads on our FB Continuing Mission Group & Weekly episode reviews from Admin ! Explore... Episode Reviews Spoilers Group ACROSS THE UNIVERSE As we look back on Pike's adventures on the Enterprise in the prequel series, Paramount also gave us a look at whats to come next as Entertainment Weekly and SDCC's Star Trek Universe panel gave us a sneak peek at the reopening of […]
