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EXCLUSIVE: As Paramount continues to develop the final chapter of its main Star Trek series, it is looking to expand the IP universe by hiring Toby Haynes to direct a new film that explores the Star Trek universe, helmed by Seth Grahame-Smith expands script. JJ Abrams' Bad Robot is in production, and sources tell Deadline that while plot details are being kept under wraps, the project is an origin story set decades before the original 2009 Star Trek film. Insiders add the final chapter of the main series, Star Trek 4 remains in active development.
Although there hasn't been a film since “Star Trek Beyond” in 2016, the brand is still going strong as ever with popular Paramount+ series like “Picard” and “Strange New Worlds” and has since the last film's theatrical release received strong reviews and great ratings. The Brian Robbins-led regime saw an opportunity to build on this popularity by having multiple films in development, just as the streamer had multiple shows running simultaneously.
This means the studio is handing over the reins to two people who have a history of dealing with major intellectual property rights. Haynes was the lead director of the Star Wars series Andor, which has become one of the most critically acclaimed series in its own universe since Lucasfilm began developing series for Disney+. Andor is nominated for multiple Emmys this Monday, including best drama series.
Smith got his big break as a bestselling author with hits like Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and has since become one of the most sought-after writers and producers in the genre and fanboy world. These credits include producing “It” and writing “The Batman Lego Movie.”
Haynes and Smith are represented by WME, with Haynes also represented by Joe Phillips at Curtis Brown and attorneys Peter Nelson and Smith also represented by PJ Shapiro and Wendy Kirk.