Screenwriting : Quentin Tarantino leading the next Star Trek movie writing team? He wants an R-rated Star Trek? by Phillip E. Hardy, Prolifique

Spock: What 'cha eatin there?

Zeebzorb: A Rigellian Burger.

Spock: Fascinating. Let me analyze.

Spock grabs burger and takes a bite.

Spock: (to Kirk) Captain, this is one tasty burger!

Not a fan of Star Trek (never watched one), but someone somewhere said something interesting: "If it's Rated R, is it even Star Trek?"

Apparently longtime ST fans aren't too happy with the decision.

I AM a fan of Star Trek and I dig most of the Tarantino flicks, but this one made me scratch my head. His style is so different then the action movies J.J. made. So I sure hope it won't be a talking Star Trek.

I dig it. Lots of folks complain studios don't take risks anymore. Well, here is a studio & high salaried Execs risking their jobs with QT directing Star Trek.

Beam him up Scottie! QT can take this ship where it needs to go. I think his non linear, visceral, sometimes out of the box approach may add a third dimension to characters without stripping their originality. A genius wont go in with two left feet, but bring out what was missed first time around.

Dan and Debbie: Yeah, risks and out of the container (tired of box) thinking are exciting.

Absolutely will piss off long-time ST fans - R-rated is sooo not part of Roddenberry's legacy. But, if they're trying to attract a new legion of fans, R-rated may work. I wouldn't watch it (but I'm an old Trekker and haven't had much use for JJ's vision either).

Blah... I'm not thrilled. Strikes a sour note to me. Big action movies are great to see with the family, something we can enjoy together. Personally though, I'm not a huge fan of either Star Trek or Tarantino, but I'd much rather see someone like Taiki Waititi direct or another Indie writer/director. ;)

I am with you Beth Fox Heisinger. I am actually surprised, based on the movies that he has done in the past, that Star Trek would even interest him.

Us film geeks & math nerds luv us our Star Trek (echo effect and cymbal crash)

QT is not a one trick pony, and Im guessing he can incorporate his usual twists, stings and rich mind play into the characters stories without distancing them too far from family viewing. Star Trek needs to “boldly go” to other dimensions without being stripped of its originality and he might just pull it off. QT sometimes incorporates “lessons learned” themes in adult films, so why not new stories to suit the younger generation as examples of human behaviour? The spaceship is meant to explore and not get wedged in some magnolia galaxy but be thrown new curve balls.

Yeah, but... I can easily see QT not care about the history, nor the franchise, nor the fans. If memory serves, he doesn't like studios, hates anyone messing with his work. It's his vision or no vision. Period. He writes, directs and produces his work. Star Trek is not his. This makes little sense, a clash of sorts, not only in creative style but in "personality" too. But who knows?

Nah - why spoil a strong family suitable franchise?

From a pure profit standpoint, how can a studio rationalize the loss of family viewers worldwide? I realize some teens will manage to sneak in, but why deliberately shut kids out of what has traditionally been a family franchise? An R-rated Star Trek makes zero sense!

I gotta be honest, I consider myself a pretty big Star Trek fan, but I've lost nearly all interest in the franchise lately. I loved the original series, and most of the films with the original cast. Loved The Next Generation and mostly liked Deep Space Nine, but it's been a steady drop-off with every new project until now. I didn't even bother seeing the last film, and haven't watched a single episode of the most recent Star Trek television series.

The Tarantino news has me interested, though.

I just do NOT see Tarantino directing a Star Trek movie, R-rated or not.To keep the David Downes fibe; it's like Spock: "Shall I give you a foot massage Kirk or shall I directly engage in massaging your neck? Kirk: "What the fuck does ENGAGE mean? Sulu (interrupting): "May I suggest..." Kirk: "No you may not." Just step on the trottle Sulu." Sulu: "The what? You mean go to Warp speed... We go to Warp 5?" Kirk: "Warp WHAT?!" ENGLISH motherfucker. Do you speak it?!

I feel people are confusing the personality of the man QT with the Artist. He may well hate everything around him but Im sure for X amount of bucks he can create what is demanded of him.

QT's personality, personal taste, his interests, etc, permeate all his work. He has a distinct voice and style. This weird clash just seems gratuitous. :/

QT, no stay away from the franchise!

Star Trek films over the last decade have probably barely broken even for Paramount, and hadn't done well globally until JJ Abrams got involved. Paramount is in financial trouble and had a few big budget films under-perform at the U.S. box office this year (and last year), too. Bringing Mr. Tarantino on board for this film was easily a right move by Mr. Abrams. Best wishes to them and to Paramount - it certainly needs some big hits in 2018 and 2019 to stay in business.

Star Trek Beyond, 2016, Budget: $185,000.000. Worldwide Box Office: $336,398,312. Since 1979 there have been 13 Star Trek movies. Total Numbers on Movie Franchise: Budget: $875,000,000. Domestic Box Office: $1,400,952,879. Worldwide Box Office: $2,266,473,168. I dunno... to me... all together... the franchise seems to have performed well, and still is performing well. :)

Also... Can you imagine a Star Wars film rated R?! Or Guardians of the Galaxy? It is rather sad to steer Star Trek away from its broad audience. Sorry, kids, you can't see this one. :(

So more gruesome, gory violence, vulgarity, and profanity is what this needs? Okay?! Just saying... LOL!!! I think it would be more interesting to hold it to PG-13. Tarantino has never done that before, right? I believe? Just personally speaking... that, I would find very interesting. Looking at some of the writers they are talking to... maybe it won't be The Hateful Eight in space. Lol! ;)

I just don´t see it, LOL. QT and Star Trek??? R-rated??? What the H???

This film will be a sure success.

I always liked the message that Gene Roddenberry tried to convey, I think it would become lost in all the guts and glory style of Tarantino

I think it will be colossal compared to the last few offerings from the franchise.

I'm not a fan of QT's style, but I think it can work if he can bring a fresh take and limit the violence to PG-13 like what Nolan did to the Batman.

At least it's something different. I consider that progress!

Sounds like a train wreck to me. JJ Abrams has already crashed the series - each of his new films has made less than the previous film. A big part of the problem is that he has said he hates what makes the series unique (it's about ideas and social issues) and prefers a slam-bang action version. This has alienated fans of the original, and with the declining box office numbers seems to be doing the same with everyone else as well. People have an idea of what STAR TREK is and how it is different than STAR WARS and other films that take place in space. JJ seems to think all space is the same... but the audience seems to want a specific kind of space story for STAR TREK that is not being delivered. So the key is to find someone like Nicholas Meyer who rescued the series the first time around - someone who can make an exciting film with deeper meaning that will be a STAR TREK movie. QT is not that guy. QT may do something unique and interesting, but it will not be a STAR TREK movie... it will be a QT movie. The problem there - QT movies don't make as much money as a STAR TREK movie. They don't appeal to a studio film sized audience. So a QT STAR TREK is most likely to make even less than the JJ movies.

Key is to find the people who match the material.

Fantasy is open to all and no story should stay in a rut. At least his musical choices will be brilliant for the subject matter.

I can not adequately put into words the disgust I felt when I read this news. Tarantino does not belong within a thousand miles of any franchise. I like some of his films, but I do not and cannot hold him up as some kind of irreverent god of filmmaking. A lot of what he has put on the screen is just sad exposition of every weird idea he’s had that regular studios would not even hear about. To put in at the helm of Star Trek speaks volumes of what is wrong with Hollywood today. First off, Star Trek has, from day one, been something that an entire family can enjoy. It has motivated children to become engineers, astronauts, scientists, doctors. It spoke to the masses, even during times when they did not want to hear the message Roddenberry was giving us. It’s bad enough that the newest Start Trek needed to introduce profanity. Completely unnecessary and quite frankly the product of talentless writers and ignorant producers. Lazy. Sad. Stupid. Now we’re going to move Star Trek into “adult” territory? Tarantino is a moron. Everyone involved is a moron. They want to ruin what is an American institution of television and film for what? For what??? If there are no writers out there able to produce a script that gives us Star Trek with all of the things it was known for, then I am deeply saddened and ashamed for every writer on payroll somewhere. Second, this very situation speaks volumes of the lack of real talent in the industry. JJ Abrams’ version of Star Trek was not horrible, but it was not good. Every film that followed though is horrible. Just another reboot. We did not need a reboot. We did not need a reinvention of the history and primary directive of the franchise. We did not need a renewal. This pandering to “the audience” is what has killed Hollywood. If a modern audience is too stupid to understand a basic movie then why make movies? I thought this was supposed to be an endeavor in art, creation, not dumbing down simple concepts to the lowest common denominator. The excuse that “it’s a business....” blah blah blah, just does not cut it. Laziness is all it is. What happened to expecting more of the audience? To actually expect them to have more than two functioning brain cells? To require them to follow a story rather than just sit and be awed with pointless explosions and terrible music? This is a terrible decision. Another truly horrific decision from Hollywood. It’s this kind of garbage that makes me seriously want to reconsider whether or not I even want to continue to try to be a part of it. Honestly, and with zero humility, I just can’t make myself dumb enough to think of things like this Tarantino fiasco as good or acceptable.

The only redeeming activity that could possibly make this work is if QT wrote the villain's part, and a writer who understands what Star Trek is all about writes the rest. It won't happen, but that's about the extent in which QT should be involved.

Mark Smith got the writing assignment.

http://deadline.com/2017/12/quentin-tarantino-star-trek-mark-l-smith-jj-...

Tarrantino has excelled at both Antagonist AND Protagonist Characters. One example is Django Unchained. The parts played by Jamie Foxx, (Underdog escaped slave with heart of gold but needs to change to fight the fight) Leonardo DiCaprio (Malevolent Puppeteer and Landowner who has never even been tested by life, outside of what his father gave him) and Samuel L Jackson (The sadistic twisted right hand man of Di Caprio albeit a slave himself, who worships his boss like a sick puppy) This film and others of QT are masterpieces of human nature for anyone to study and learn from. YES QT HAS made some stuff I detest, such as Hostel series, yet he has also made some films I love. Off course Star Trek is a family film, but why does everyone doubt a genius cannot make a family film, just because his prior record was adult fiction? Im sure he has the brain cells to water it down a bit, from stuff he has done before.

Debbie, QT insists on changing the rating to R, which pulls the franchise away from its long-standing, family-friendly audience base of PG/PG-13. Thus he is not making a family film. :(

Maybe the Bosses will release two movie versions, PG-13 and R rated? The R rated could play at theatres and PG13 streamed via netflix/itunes/amazon service.