Del Toro Discussions Confirmed, Giacchino Returns

Star Trek 12 (or 2) now has an official release date of May 17th, 2013 so now things can turn to other details like who is being cast and who else might be returning. A recent rumor on that front was that Benicio Del Toro was picked by director JJ Abrams to play the main villain of the film. That has not been confirmed by the man himself in a quick interview with MTV while promoting the home release of Super 8. Abrams is made sure to point out (video below) that the casting of Del Toro is not a done deal, just that they are "in discussions" with the actor. While at the same event he also told NY Magazine, "...we cannot in any way rely on the first Star Trek. We can't think, Okay, we've got it in the bag, everyone loves these characters. We have to start over in a way."

On a related note, the composer of the score for the first Star Trek film (main themes above), Michael Giacchino has told Coming Soon that, "Yes, I'll be back [to score Star Trek 2]. I'll be there just as soon as they finish it." This isn't really a surprise as Giacchino has long been Abrams go to composer for films he is either directing or producing including Mission: Impossible films, Super 8 and more.