In a new interview with Deadline Hollywood, Star Trek 3 director Justin Lin gave some insight into his conversations with producer J.J. Abrams about taking the helm of the third film, tentatively titled Star Trek Beyond.
I was in the last week of shooting ‘True Detective’ when J.J. Abrams called last December. He asked me, ‘Do you like ‘Star Trek’? If you do, you should take this, be bold, and just go for it.’
I thought about how much a part of my life ‘Star Trek’ was. Growing up, my parents had this little fish and chips restaurant in Anaheim in the shadows of Disneyland, and they didn’t close until 9 PM. As a family, we didn’t eat dinner until 10 PM, and we would watch the original ‘Star Trek’ every night at 11.
My dad worked 364 days a year, only took Thanksgiving off, and from age 8 to 18, the only time I could hang out with my parents was by staying late. And every night, it was ‘Star Trek’ on Channel 13 in L.A. That was my childhood.
All my friends were ‘Star Wars’ kids but I didn’t go to the movies, so I was the ‘Star Trek’ kid. Thinking about this, it became a very personal and very emotional decision.
Lin also talked about the hurried buildup to the film, which is expected start active production in just three weeks.
On ‘Fast 6,’ we had a year turnaround and that was crazy. [‘Star Trek 3’] gave us six months to get ready, which makes it like an incredibly expensive indie movie.
Finally, he also weighed in on the goals of Trek 3, addressing the two prior films and the need for a new direction of storytelling.
As great as [the first two Abrams films] were, there’s still a lot to be mined from these characters. They haven’t really gone on their five-year mission, so what we experienced in the TV show hasn’t been touched on yet.
That sets up an opportunity for exploration and the deeper you go, the more you are examining humanity. Those are the things that I absorbed as a kid and hope to tap into and embrace and celebrate. By the time this movie comes out, ‘Star Trek’ will have been around for 50 years.
[The story is] all new and fresh. The Klingons, Romulans and other species are great, but it’s time to go further. It has been fun to focus on creating whole new worlds and species.
Star Trek Beyond is scheduled for release on July 8, 2016.