Skip to main content

Star Trek 4 in trouble as Chris Pine, Chris Hemsworth take their Kirks and go home

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Paramount Pictures was all set to boldly go where the Star Trek film franchise has never gone before, with a female director attached to Star Trek 4. Now, that project is reportedly in jeopardy after not one but two famous Kirks have exited talks to star in the film.

More Star Trek News

Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth have cut off negotiations to reprise their roles — as Captain James T. Kirk and First Officer George Kirk, respectively — for the fourth installment of the rebooted sci-fi franchise.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the two actors are demanding that Paramount honor the deals initially struck with both actors, who are now A-list stars in Warner Bros. Pictures and Marvel Studios superhero films. The report indicates that the studio is offering contract terms based on the underwhelming performance of the franchise’s most recent installment, Star Trek Beyond, and is trying to “hold the line” on a budget for the film.

Recommended Videos

The two actors were both expected to star in the still-untitled Star Trek 4, with some sort of time-travel element allowing James T. Kirk to meet his father, George. (Hemsworth portrayed the character in 2009’s franchise-rebooting Star Trek.) The actors have reportedly walked away from the table at this point, though, leaving the film’s status uncertain.

While the studio could certainly recast both roles, the change in casting — particularly for James T. Kirk — is likely to be a jarring one for audiences and a major gamble for a franchise that has had trouble competing with the likes of Star Wars and major superhero movies in recent years.

The problems with Star Trek 4 follow the announcement that S.J. Clarkson was hired to direct the film, making her the first female filmmaker to helm one of Star Trek’s big-screen features.

Clarkson’s attachment to the film was reported by Variety, and the project would be her first feature directorial project, although she has nearly two decades of experience directing television series episodes, miniseries, and TV movies. She’s best known for her directing work on Marvel’s The Defenders and Jessica Jones series for Netflix, as well as episodes of DexterLife on Mars, Bates Motel, and Orange is the New Black. Most recently, she directed the entirety of the BBC’s four-part miniseries Collateral, a political drama and police procedural starring Academy Award nominee Carey Mulligan (An Education).

Paramount announced during this year’s CinemaCon event in Las Vegas that a fourth movie was in the works, with Star Trek Beyond writers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay working on the screenplay. Also expected to return for the untitled fourth installment of the new movie franchise is actor Zachary Quinto, who played Spock in the first three films.

The three films in the rebooted Star Trek franchise have collectively earned more than $1.19 billion worldwide — a little more than half of what Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens and Avengers: Infinity War each made on their own. There’s no official word on when Star Trek 4 will be released or even when it will begin production at this point.

Updated August 13, 2018, with news regarding the potential exit of Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth.

Rick Marshall
A veteran journalist with more than two decades of experience covering local and national news, arts and entertainment, and…
5 reasons why the original Gladiator is still worth watching
Russell Crowe points a sword as a man stands behind him with one.

Twenty-four years ago, the world witnessed Russell Crowe's Maximus Decimus Meridius become a hero in the arena in Gladiator. After being sold into slavery, Maximus becomes a gladiator, rising the ranks in the arena and setting his sights on avenging the deaths of his family. Directed by Ridley Scott, Gladiator was the second-highest-grossing film of 2000 and won five Oscars, including Best Picture.

This November, Scott will revisit these legendary warriors in Ancient Rome for Gladiator II. The sequel follows Lucius Verus (Paul Mescal), the son of Connie Nielsen's Lucilla. After the Roman army invades his home, Lucius is sold into slavery and trains to fight as a gladiator. The first trailer for Gladiator II looks spectacular. Only time will tell if Gladiator II lives up to the hype. What isn't up for debate is the legacy of Gladiator, an action-packed drama that still holds up to this day.
Action scenes remain exhilarating
Gladiator - Colosseum Battle
Scott establishes that Gladiator will be an epic action film from the opening battle, with Crowe leading the way. It's an appetizer for the gladiatorial fights to follow. The first gladiator fight features Maximus, Juba (Djimon Hounsou), and the rest of Proximo's slaves chained to a partner as they take on several masked fighters. During this fight, the violence is on full display, with unrelenting violence and gruesome kills. These are fights to the death and therefore must be brutal.
Once Maximus enters the Colosseum, the action intensifies, beginning with the magnificent reenactment of the Battle of Zama. Despite being outmatched, Maximus leads the gladiators to victory. While his showdown against Commodus puts the cherry on top of a great movie, Maximus' fight against Tigris of Gaul (Sven-Ole Thorsen) is the superior one-on-one fight. Maximus even avoids being eaten by a tiger in this confrontation. Maximus, do not worry. We are entertained.
Revenge is a dish that audiences still eat up
Gladiator (2000) - My Name is Maximus Scene | Movieclips

Read more
Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse suffers another setback. Will it be delayed again?
Miles Morales soars through the air in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

What is going on with Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse? Since Sony removed the animated film from its release calendar, Beyond the Spider-Verse has experienced multiple setbacks.

The latest troublesome report comes from Brandon Davis’ Phase Hero podcast, which claims that an early version of Beyond the Spider-Verse was completely scrapped after the release of 2023's Across the Spider-Verse. The creative team on Beyond the Spider-Verse had to rewrite the entire script for Beyond, even though several animated reels had already been created.

Read more
3 underrated Amazon Prime Video movies you should watch this weekend (November 22-24)
The Lost City of Z

As we move toward the end of the year, there are more and more reasons to stay indoors and watch a great movie. Amazon Prime Video has one of the best libraries of movies worth exploring, but if you find yourself stuck when deciding what to actually watch, you're not alone.

A library as big as Amazon's can actually make deciding what to watch more difficult instead of easier. That's why we've rounded up three titles available on Prime Video that are the perfect way to spend the weekend.

Read more