New Star Trek Is a Break from the Past

After a long hiatus from movie theaters, Star Trek returns to the big screen. Entertainment Weekly spent some time on the set of the new Star Trek film, and reported some interesting information. Most importantly, this franchise is undergoing the same kind of radical transformation given to Batman and Superman. Where before, Star Trek was filled with campy technology, makeup, and models, the $150 million film is taking Star Trek somewhere new. From the super technological phasers, to the bridge of the Enterprise looking like an Apple store, this Star Trek film may engage audiences more like Star Wars.

In the director's chair is J. J. Abrams, a Hollywood veteran whose credits include Lost, Mission: Impossible III, Alias, and Cloverfield. While the characters remain mostly intact, Abrams has the freedom to reinvent them, and he is. Don't expect to see Captain Kirk, played by Chris Pine, to speak with those halting phrases. Spock will be played by Zachary Quinto, and Leonard Nimoy himself participated in the selection process.

Very few details about the film have been released, and I'm not going to give you any of the spoiler info EW shared. This is not a film meant for Trekkers, the subculture that has amassed around the franchise. This film is meant for people who watch movies.

Star Trek was once at the forefront of science fiction, both in its technological ideas and the sense of hope it offered for the future of humanity. Abrams said, "It was important to me that optimism be cool again."

Look out for a cameo by Nimoy as an elder Spock, although William Shatner will not be a part of the film. The film is slated to be released on May 8, 2009.