Chris Pine Hasn't Seen The Star Trek 4 Script, But He Likes The Director

Like us, Chris Pine was shocked when J.J. Abrams announced that a fourth "Star Trek" film would go into production soon with the original cast. Abrams even revealed that a December 23, 2023 release date was locked in for the movie — but according to the actor who plays Captain Kirk, he has yet to even see the script for the project. That being said, Pine is already a fan of the picture's director, Matt Shakman, and that's a step in the right direction.

"Well, what's going on with 'Star Trek' is frankly, I don't know," the "All the Old Knives" star told IndieWire in a March 2022 interview. "When the announcement was made at the shareholders' thing, I didn't know that they were doing that. I don't think anybody did."

Pine added: 

"I know there's a script out there somewhere and I'm waiting to see it. Looking forward to reading it. I love the group. I love the team. I love the world. Happy to go to work. ... I met Matt Shakman, the director. He's a super-cool guy, very smart, I like him a great deal."

Shakman is best known for helming all eight episodes of "WandaVision" on Disney+, so it's clear the filmmaker has some skills behind him. He was first reported to be attached to the film in July 2021. At the time, Deadline reported that the next Star Trek film "will now move at warp speed and begin production next spring." At the time of that announcement, the film already had a script by Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson. However, the movie will now be scripted by Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires based on Beer and Robertson's original script.

Justin Lin's "Star Trek Beyond," the most recent entry in the Kelvin Timeline (which basically just means the reboot universe) of the "Star Trek" franchise, was released in 2016, three years after 2013's "Star Trek Into Darkness." The original film in the series, 2009's "Star Trek" — which is arguably one of the best representations of the larger "Star Trek" franchise as a whole — kickstarted a renewed love for the sci-fi series and made stars of Pine and Zachary Quinto, who played Spock.

The development of a fourth film has been on the table for several years now. Several big-name directing talents have been reported to be involved in the film at different times over the years, including Quentin Tarantino — which, you have to admit, would've been interesting — and English TV director S. J. Clarkson.

While it would've been really cool to see what someone like Tarantino would've done with a fourth "Star Trek" movie, I'm at the point where I'm just grateful they're moving forward at all with the project. Development hell is a scary place, and it's not somewhere I want an anticipated "Star Trek" film spending too much time. Shakman has a great handle on the realism and fantastical that "Trek" needs because of "WandaVision," so he's a pretty smart pick. With the original cast coming back, this installment has the makings of a potential home run — so let's hope they knock it out of the park.