Star Trek 3 was left without a director after Roberto Orci dropped out, but Deadline now reports that Paramount has a shortlist of possible replacements.
None of the choices are precisely what you’d expect for this kind of sci-fi franchise, ranging from Fast & Furious director Justin Lin to Morten Tyldum, the director of The Imitation Game. The fan-favorite choice would surely be Duncan Jones, director of Moon, but he has already let the world know he isn’t interested.
Very flattering being on short list for Star Trek, but won't be doing it. Absolutely MUST make my own thing next, or I'll die of old age!
— Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) December 15, 2014
It’s tempting to imagine Duncan Jones bringing Star Trek back to its sci-fi roots, but his Twitter rejection makes a good point. Directors who made their name with more personal indie projects might venture into Hollywood blockbuster territory for a movie or two, but Edgar Wright’s experience with Ant-Man proves that they can all too easily get burned. Jones is currently working on the World of Warcraft movie, and after that it sounds like he’s going back to original films.
The rest of the shortlist consists of Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) and Daniel Espinosa (Safe House), with no mention of the previous rumor that Edgar Wright might be in the running.
This is a pretty mixed bag, since Justin Lin’s Star Trek would presumably be very different from Morten Tyldum’s vision for the movie (whatever that would be). All of these men are experienced directors, but their wide variety of backgrounds makes it difficult to see what Paramount is looking for. Does the studio want a visionary director like the many acclaimed filmmakers snapped up by franchises such as Star Wars and The Avengers, or is it just looking for someone who will toe the company line?
Photo via StarTrekMovie