And a companion piece, How Paramount Failed To Turn ‘Star Trek’ Into A Blockbuster FranchiseEXCLUSIVE: Looks like Paramount’s plan to next make the Star Trek movie that Noah Hawley wrote and plans to direct has been put on pause for a moment. New film chief Emma Watts, who managed many a franchise at Fox, is in the process of figuring out which way to go.
The pause on the Hawley project, which had been in soft prep, prompted rumors this week that the filmmaker might exit, but that has not happened yet, sources said. Deadline revealed in 2019 that Hawley made a deal on Trek — the Fargo and Legion EP was driven by his love for the original series, just like JJ Abrams when he directed the first installment. The other two possibilities are the one that The Revenant’s Mark L. Smith wrote for Quentin Tarantino to direct (Deadline broke that one late 2017), and another that was going to bring back the original cast — at one time with talk that Chris Hemsworth would return and play Chris Pine’s father in a time travel narrative. S. J. Clarkson was attached to direct but exited for Game of Thrones.
What we’re hearing is that both the Hawley pic — which calls for a new cast and might be about a deadly virus which might feel awkward given current circumstance — and the Smith version — Tarantino dropped out as director, but the project is still viable based on an episode of the classic Star Trek series that takes place largely earthbound in a 30s gangster setting — might serve the franchise best as Logan-like spinoffs when the core franchise has been revitalized. The other one But that the other one might have the cleanest path toward a relaunch, with an emphasis on boosting overseas gross numbers which have never been the franchise’s strong suit. These decisions will take place over the next few weeks.
It has been just over four years since Star Trek Beyond bombed in global theatrical release, earning solid reviews and decent buzz but just $158 million domestic and $338 million worldwide on a $185 million budget. Since then, we’ve seen stops and starts, false alarms, and related developments concerning where the franchise might go next. But, as we find out that new Paramount PGRE +1.9% film chief Emma Watts (who left Fox after the Disney DIS +0.1% sale) is attempting to figure out where to go from here, it’s time to admit that, in the broad scheme of things, Paramount’s attempts to make Star Trek into a blockbuster movie franchise was a failure. What was feared in 2008 and was confirmed in 2013 remains even truer in 2020 and beyond. Star Trek is never going to be a top-tier global box office powerhouse.