Abrams Commits to Directing Star Trek 2 (Updated)

Vulture is reporting that J.J. Abrams has decided to direct Star Trek 2. Their sources indicate that pre-production has started and the script is expected by the end of the month. Star Trek 2's extended delay due to various film projects from Abrams (Super 8), Roberto Orci (Cowboys vs. Aliens) and Alex Kurtzman (Welcome to People) is the primary reasons why the film was forced to abandon its intended June 2012 release date. A new date has not been scheduled but I would not be surprised if it’s not bumped to May 2013 even though I think Thanksgiving 2012 is a better release time. Keep in mind that Abrams choosing the direct the film and Paramount agreeing to meet his price are two separate things but I would be surprised if things don't get worked out after the studio delayed the film in hopes of getting him back as director. (via TrekMovie)

Update: Entertainment Weekly has independently confirmed Vulture's story saying "EW has confirmed that the insatiable media multi-hyphenate has signed on to direct the sequel to his 2009 hit Star Trek."

Abrams Interview on Super 8 and Other Projects

In an interview with Collider, J.J. Abrams discusses many of the projects he is currently working on. He is about the wrap up promoting his latest movie Super 8, move into possibly directing Star Trek and executive produce new shows Alcatraz and Person of Interest. In the interview he discusses each of these projects. Below are a few highlights about each with the full interview here.

Super 8

Was that part of the connection you had with Steven Spielberg, who also began by making 8mm movies?
ABRAMS: When I had this thought to go back and do a movie about that period of time, the first thing I did was call him because I knew that he had made movies as well, at that time. Luckily, he said yes.
A lot of your projects have had a monster element or plot to them, and you said you experimented with monster movies when you were a kid. What do you like about the monster factor, and tweaking it for a modern audience?
ABRAMS: It depends on what it is. There are situations where it’s great for a scene or sequence, but not the whole movie. And then, there are times when it’s a fun idea and that’s the premise. In this case, the idea of a creature was cool for me, but just because the idea was that it would be a way to externalize and make physical this thing that this kid was going through internally – the idea of the loss of his mother. This creature represented the thing that was the most frightening to him, which was the idea of never getting past the loss of this person to him. To me, I’m more interested in the idea of why there’s something there. What does it represent? What does it mean for a character?

JJ Abrams Edits Wired Magazine

As part of the return of Star Trek, Wired Magazine turned over editing duties for a month to J.J. Abrams. First is the description, after that is Star Trek and other links of interest from the issue.

Every two years, WIRED creates an issue with the help of a special guest editor. This year the job goes to Hollywood visionary J.J. Abrams, creator of Alias, co-creator of LOST and Fringe, and director of the new Star Trek film, which hits theaters May 8. At first glance, Abrams’ credits may not seem related to core WIRED story topics like tech, business and science. But, says editor in chief Chris Anderson, “What is science but a never-ending detective story? The guest editor’s job is to take our readers to a place they’ve never been before. We learned that mystery is at the center of J.J.’s world, and it’s and a major part of the WIRED world, too.”

More than a year in the making, the May WIRED features a one-issue redesign, mind-boggling puzzles on almost every page and hidden features “that are not apparent at first or second glance," says Abrams. WIRED challenges readers to test their skills with pages of clues, spoilers, games, card tricks and layer upon layer of mystery. Abrams, who says he is a “huge fan of WIRED,” saw his guest editor duties as an opportunity to give mystery a new meaning. “Mystery demands that you stop and consider -- or, at the very least, slow down and discover. It’s a challenge to get there yourself, on its terms, not yours.”

From the world’s leading origami artist to the top puzzle masters, WIRED recruited top talents in a variety of fields for this issue. Contributors include renowned comic book artist Paul Pope, who illustrates an exclusive comic strip featuring a lost chapter of the Star Trek saga. Star Trek concept designer Neville Page gives readers a first look at a new monster, Big Red, a lobster-hued snow-planet scourge that attacks Capt. James T. Kirk.

The details on the issue and online extras can be found here or on newsstands now.

On to the links:
Spock Bio - The full six pages that summarizes the life and times of Spock.
Star Trek's Big Red - 7 pictures of concept art for "Big Red", the large creature that attacks Kirk on the ice planet Delta Vega. It was created by Neville Page who also designed the creature used in Cloverfield.
JJ Abrams on the Magic of Mystery - Abrams discusses love of mystery and putting the issue together. It also helps you understand why it’s just hard to get information about his projects (which makes blogging about them difficult).

Star Trek Sequel Gets The Greenlight

Variety is reporting that in a huge sign of confidence on the success of the upcoming movie, Paramount Pictures has decided to move forward on the sequel.

The writing pair of Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman (Star Trek, Transformers I and II) will be joined by longtime Abrams' coworker Damon Lindelof in penning the sequel. The trio will also get producing credit while Abrams stays on as executive producer. Whether JJ Abrams will return as director has not yet been decided. The goal is to have a script ready by Christmas so can have the sequel ready for theatres for a summer 2011 release.

"There's obviously a lot of hubris involved in signing on to write a sequel of a movie that hasn't even come out yet," said Lindelof, co-creator with Abrams of ABC's "Lost" who produced the upcoming "Trek" but did not contribute to Orci and Kurtzman's screenplay. "But we're so excited about the first one that we wanted to proceed."

"Obviously we discussed ideas, but we are waiting to see how audiences respond next month," he said. "With a franchise rebirth, the first movie has to be about origin. But with a second, you have the opportunity to explore incredibly exciting things. We'll be ambitious about what we'll do."

New Star Trek Stills, Info

New information about Star Trek has come out in the form of movie stills, EW articles and multiple interviews. For me, the best information is official confirmation that the first trailer is coming out on November 14th with Quantum of Solace. The info is on my main Star Trek XI blog.

Movie images
EW article
Trek writers comment on images
Trek producer comment on images