Quinto, Yelchin Talking Trek and Abrams

MTV recently spoke with Zachary Quinto (Spock) and Anton Yelchin (Chekov) about Star Trek 2, specifically their thoughts on where the script may be going (neither have read it), JJ Abrams returning as director and how they get into character. In short they are glad Abrams is on board and excited to reprise their roles. Below is the video for both actors.

Star Trek 2 Losing the "2"

Access Hollywood recently spoke with Zoe Saldana about the progress on the script for Star Trek 2. While she has not read the script, Access Hollywood's source (not Zoe, at least on the record) did to provide some information. Their source indicated that filming will start in mid-January and will not be called "Star Trek 2". This has not been officially confirmed but it does align with a goal to get the film ready for release either by Christmas 2012 or Summer 2013. As for losing the "2", that has been the norm for a while with Iron Man 2 being the only recent except that I can think of for the last few years. Since not news on the story, the universe is the limit on what it will be titled.

“We still haven’t gotten a script yet,” she said of progress on the film, which Access has confirmed with a source will begin shooting in mid-January, and won’t be called “Star Trek 2.” “We’re very excited to read it and get back into space.”

Spock: Action Hero?

While there has been virtually no news on the status of the Star Trek sequel, it seems that Zachary Quinto has seen a copy of it. In an interview with Hero Complex, the actor suggests Spock has a significant action moment in the film that requires him to prep in advance by working out and stunt training.

“There’s a big sequence for me that I have to prepare for in this movie physically so I’m training, working on getting in some serious shape, building my cardio endurance, preparing to run a lot,” Quinto said.

While Leonard Nimoy’s Spock was more about mental fitness than physical stunts, Quinto said the new “Trek” franchise already has broken out of that mold: “One of the climactic scenes for me in the first movie was when I go against that grain and lose my cool and beat up Kirk. So I think they’re trying to change that up a little bit and not have him be just intellectual but also have another side.”

There has been no announcement if the script has been completed, when the new targeted release date or when Abrams and company plan on starting principle photography. Considering JJ Abrams love of secrets, they could start filming next week for we know. Having said that, I expect filming to start early next year with a target release date of early summer 2013.

IDW January Star Trek Comics

IDW Publishing has released their publishing plans for January that continues the adventures of the Enterprise 2.0 crew while the Prime crew and DC's Legion of Super-heroes have their own problems. Two comics are being released that month. If you are interested in the books, just let your local comic book store know. For the full details of IDW's other books including GI Joe, Transformers, Locke& Key and more click here.

William Shatner's Bohemian Rhapsody

Below is a rather trippy video with William Shatner citing (singing?) the lyrics to the Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. The result is very odd and probably scary to anyone that watches it while high. (via io9)

StarTrek.com Zachary Quinto Interview

StarTrek.com has posted their two part interview with Zachary Quinto (Spock) as he looks back at the first film, the recent announcement that he was gay, upcoming projects and his hopes for Spock in the next sequel. Below are a few highlights. Part 1 | Part 2

Let’s go back to Star Trek for a moment. Some fans found the Spock-Uhura romance to be a fresh twist, and others did not care for it because it strayed too far from familiar territory and they weren’t convinced that the characters would actually ever go there. What were your feelings on the relationship? And do you understand why some people might not have liked it?
Quinto: I don’t know. I tend not to get too caught up in people’s reactions to stuff, creatively. For me, it worked 100 percent in that movie. It created a different kind of dimension to both of those characters than we’ve ever seen in the Trek universe before. And there was a real undercurrent of heart to that part of the storyline, I thought. I’m actually really interested to see where it goes from here.

What else do you hope to see, in general and for Spock specifically, in the next Star Trek film?
Quinto: I just am excited to read what those guys have come up with. I have such implicit trust in their ability to tell compelling and dynamic stories that I’m just really eager to know where we’re going. I’ll go wherever they take me. So, I’ll be interested and ready whenever the time comes.

QMX's Enterprise Replica Model

If you have $5000 and love the 2009 version of the Enterprise, then QMX may have the item for you. The company has created the Artisan Refit Replica of NCC-1701 Enterprise that looks like it came out of the movie. The model comes with lighting effects, glass stand and is 34" long and stands 7.5" high. Pre-orders start on October 31st at a price of $4,995.00. More details and images can be found here.

Zachary Quinto Outs Himself

Yesterday Zachary Quinto has confirmed one of the worst kept secrets in Hollywood. It turns out that he is gay. Apparently it is a big deal. The only reason posting it is because most news organizations are treating it like major news and since Quinto is Spock in the Abrams' Star Trek 2.0 universe; it makes it relevant to this particular blog. The "outing" was broken in a pretty offhand way by Quinto to New York Magazine.

Seth MacFarlane Reboot Star Trek for TV

The recent issue of The Hollywood Reporter has an interesting interview with Seth McFarlane, the current king of Fox's Sunday night animation block with Family Guy, American Dad, and The Cleveland Show (with more in the pipeline). As part of that he mentioned an interest in reboot Star Trek for TV, while acknowledging that is unlikely to happen.

MacFarlane is particularly eager to reboot one of his favorite franchises, Star Trek, for TV. "I don't know who would give me the keys to that car," he jokes, acknowledging that the films have been so profitable for Paramount that he isn't so sure they have a lot of interest in getting back into the TV business. "But I’d love to see that franchise revived for television in the way that it was in the 1990s: very thoughtful, smartly written stories that transcend the science fiction audience.”

Leonard Nimoy's Final Convention

Leonard Nimoy has officially retired as of Sunday. The decades long actor has put away Spock for good at his final convention appearance at the Chicago Creation Star Trek Con. At his October 2nd appearance the actor was given a farewell from the cast of the 2009 movie via video along with a presentation from Nimoy as he shared his life story. The full report can be found at TrekMovie.com. Live long and proper Leonard Nimoy, thank you for the memories!

DS9 Available on NetFlix

As promised, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: The Animated Series are now available on Netflix for streaming. The series joins the rest so now all Star Trek episodes through its entire history are avaiable on demand, commercial-free. Between Amazon Prime and now Netflix, it will be very difficult to not get your Trek fix if willing to money up the monthly costs of around $8.00.