IGN Star Trek Rumors Summary and Russell Crowe?

IGN has posted an article that covers several rumors and bits of information about Star Trek XI. A summary of what is (little) is known about the JJ Abrams directed movie, written by Transformers team of Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci and produced by those two and Bryan Burk.

From the article:

- Shooting begins November 5th, 2007
- Kirk, McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, and Sulu remain uncast.
- Initially the studio wanted Matt Damon for Kirk, Adrien Brody for Spock, and Gary Sinise as McCoy. Actually good casting but a pipe dream as Spock is now Heroes' Zachary Quinto and Damon shot down the rumor (video here)
- Shatner's Kirk not in the film but Abrams trying to add. (if following canon, might be best to leave well enough alone).
- Captain Christopher Pike is in the film with Tom Cruise on Abrams casting wishlist.
- RottenTomatoes.com is reporting that Sydney Tamilia Poitier auditioned for a role, assuming Uhura.
- Chekov, despite being in mid-teens, is somehow in the movie and played by Anton Yelchin.
- The story might be the first adventure of the Enterprise crew, I guess on Pike's Enterprise, with Starfleet Academy playing a part in the film but not central to it (echoing what I have said).
- This change is due to conflict with the Starfleet Academy ideas that been floated by Harve Bennett for years without traction and thought this other direction might prove more successful (I imagine there is legal reasons to boot).
- Apparently studio wants Russell Crowe as the main villain of the movie. Give them credit for swinging for the fences but wouldn't hold your breath on that casting to come through.
- IGN points out that pretty much pre-Kirk's enterprise, there is plenty of history unexplored about the main crew. There are bit here and there of course such as Kirk (Carol Marcus, cheating Kobayashi Maru, Tarsus IV, and Farragut tour with gas creature) or McCoy (wife and kids) but really its just little bits here and there that could be easily referenced or written around.
- There are some speculations on possible story ideas but none are backed up by any evidence. About the only point I thought was of interest would be if Sulu would start out as a navigator (as was in most of the series and movies) or as a Physicist (as was in the Kirk pilot episode). Easy enough to have him show interest in both, but curious to see if these little "gotcha" moments will slip past the writers and directors.
- Also suggested that Carol Marcus could be in the movie, but not the son. Pretty much the series and movies follow the "real world" timeline so first season of the series in 1966 Kirk was 31, by Star Trek II (1982) he was 47 so his son was conceived when he was around 23 or so years of age. The relationship was either close to its last legs or had come and gone. I guess the "first adventure" could be when Carol realizes that exploration or the Enterprise would be his love and not her and ended things. That would fit the timeline. Any case its all just idle speculation with nothing proof to back it up.