By Dominic Messier, Founder, Editor and TV Writer
Fifty two years into its history as one of the pioneer sci-fi staples of popular culture, Star Trek has seen six TV series, thirteen feature films, one (AHEM) questionable animated cartoon and countless spoofs.
Now, with the rising popularity of the CBS hit Star Trek: Discovery, several new projects are seeing the conceptual light of day, under the watchful geeky eye of new executive producer Alez Kurtzman.
Gretchen Berg, Aaron Harberts, Heather Kadin and Alex Kurtzman, at the Hollywood premiere of STAR TREK DISCOVERY, photo courtesy CBS, 2017
A seasoned writer and producer of several sci-fi and fantasy properties the likes of Fringe, Star Trek, Star Trek Into Darkness, Transformers, Watchmen, Ender’s Game and The Mummy (to name but a few), Kurtzman is an excellent choice to spearhead the latest Trek series into its second season, now shooting in Toronto.
Through a somewhat ironically measured development deal which is set to last five years into 2023 (the same duration as the Enterprise’s first mission parameter), Kurtzman is to create a variety of projects both live-action and animated, set in the expansive and rich Trek universe.
Amongst the rumored projects in development? A series based on the lives of Starfleet cadets during their Academy years, produced by Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz, known for their work on the Dynasty reboot and Marvel’s Runaways; another project possibly involving a limited return by veteran icon Sir Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard; an animated series is also in the works.
More importantly? We may finally see what happened in the late 1990s during the infamous Eugenics Wars, which led to the rise of genetically enhanced supermen the likes of Khan Noonian Singh, portrayed by Ricardo Montalban and later by Benedict Cumberbatch.
Ricardo Montalban as Khan in STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, courtesy Paramount, 1982.
In any case, while the information is scarce and quite preliminary, it’s an amazing time to be a Trek fan, not only with a promising second season of the Discovery lying ahead in the fall or winter, but with Kurtzman’s invested fan-based focus on the potential projects waiting to see airtime.
Skip It Or Love It will obviously be monitoring all sensors as these projects progress. Stay tuned, and Live Long and Prosper.
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