Deadline Hollywood reports that Paramount Pictures is in advanced negotiations with director Noah Hawley (“Lucy in the Sky”) to write and direct the untitled “Star Trek 4.” Hawley will produce the film through his production company, 26 Keys productions, alongside previous “Star Trek” director J.J. Abrams and his Bad Robot production company. Hawley is best known for writing and directing the FX award-winning series, “Fargo”, and the X-Men spinoff, “Legion”, which also airs on FX.
The cast from the previous “Star Trek” films are expected to return which include Chris Pine (“Outlaw King”), Zoe Saldana (“Avengers: Endgame”), Karl Urban (“The Boys”), Simon Pegg (“Ready Player One”), and John Cho (“Searching”). Actor Anton Yelchin (“Green Room”), who played navigator Pavel Chekov in the last three films, tragically passed away in a vehicle accident in 2016.
The news of Chris Pines involvement shows a sign of relief that “Star Trek 4” is moving forward. Earlier this year, Paramount Pictures were at odds with negotiating with Chris Pine and “Avengers” star Chris Hemsworth who were both demanding a higher salary to appear in “Star Trek 4” when the previous director S.J. Clarkson was still attached. The new report does not mention Chris Hemsworth’s involvement in “Star Trek 4” as the actor played Captain Kirk’s father in the first “Star Trek” film, which was directed by J.J. Abrams.
Paramount Pictures have made three “Star Trek” films in the rebooted franchise which include “Star Trek” (2009) and “Star Trek Into Darkness” (2013), which were directed by J.J. Abrams. The third film, “Star Trek Beyond” (2016), was directed by Justin Lin, who helmed a majority of the “Fast and the Furious” films.