Star Trek 3 is getting a rocky liftoff from the launch pad.
First, novice director Roberto Orci, co-writer of the first two Trek films helmed by J.J. Abrams, was removed from the center seat due to "creative differences," only to be replaced by veteran Fast and Furious franchise director Justin Lin. Orci was also working on ST3's script with new writers Patrick McKay and J.D. Payne.
Now, word came down that neu-Scotty himself, Simon Pegg, will be co-writing Trek Tres with Doug Jung (writer of Confidence). We don't yet know if they are re-writing the Orci & company script or starting from scratch.
Pegg is a big fan of sci fi in general, and Star Trek in particular, so this hopefully is a step in the right direction. He did some fine work co-writing Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz with Edgar Wright (I wasn't too crazy about their capper to their Cornetto Trilogy, World's End). Pegg also co-created with Jennifer Stevenson the British cult series Spaced.
This just might be the bumpiest ride that a Star Trek film has taken to the big screen since all the sturm und drang of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. That film was rushed into production with an unfinished and constantly changing script. It made a ton of money at the box office and launched the film franchise, but it is not looked at fondly by the general public, or even most Trek fans. It's the only Trek film I own on DVD, so I'm in the minority that loves this movie, warts and all.
We'll find out how this all plays out in summer of 2016. This is the 50th Anniversary of the franchise - for Gorn's sake I hope they don't screw it up.
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