The Star Trek franchise is a beloved piece of pop culture, making up some of the best sci-fi movies of all time. While the franchise continues to expand on the small screen for those with a Paramount+ subscription, fans have been wondering about its future on the big screen after the ending of Star Trek Beyond back in 2016. And lead actor Chris Pine recently shared his honest (and confused) response to Star Trek 4‘s latest update.
Back in March it was revealed that Star Trek 4 was back in development with new screenwriter Steve Yockey. While this was exciting for fans who want to see some of the best Star Trek characters return, it seems to have caught the current cast off guard. While speaking with Business Insider, Pine expressed some confusion, offering:
I honestly don’t know. There was something in the news of a new writer coming on board. I thought there was already a script, but I guess I was wrong, or they decided to pivot. As it’s always been with Trek, I just wait and see.
There you have it. Despite being Kirk himself, it seems like even Chris Pine doesn’t know what the studio is cooking up with Star Trek 4. He thought there was a script, but it seems they’re changing course for the upcoming sci-fi movie. Hopefully more information is released to the public soon (as well as the cast).
Pine’s comments show how quickly things change in the entertainment industry, including in giant tentpole blockbusters. Things are constantly in flux, and it seems like Paramount is taking special care with exactly how they bring the reboot cast back for another blockbuster.
Known colloquially as the Kelvin timeline, The Enterprise was brought back to theaters starting with J.J. Abrams’ 2009 Star Trek. That movie and its first sequel were wild successes, although the threequel Beyond had a more lukewarm reception upon its release. And since its release in 2016 fans have not-so-patiently been waiting for the beloved crew to suit up for another mission across the stars.
If/when another Star Trek movie ends up filming, it’s no doubt going to be a very different experience for the cast. Namely because back in 2016 actor Anton Yelchin died suddenly when his car rolled back onto him in his driveway. The cast went through the marketing process for Star Trek Beyond while mourning, and it would no doubt be emotional to be back on set without the beloved Chekov actor with them.
Only time will tell when Star Trek 4 finally starts shooting a new movie, all these years after Beyond was released. The cast isn’t getting any younger, so time is seemingly of the essence. For his part Chris Pine seems down to return. In the meantime, check the 2024 movie release dates.