R Wise - was a highly respected director but most certainly wont have been a fan of the show/trekkie (think I read somewhere his wife had to tell him to make sure Spock was included in the movie) N Meyer - hardly knew what Trek was about before he got the job. most certainly NOT a trekkie Nimoy - cmon, you think the guys actually in Trek are fans? Shatner - see above Carson - doubt he was a huge fan (don't remember reading interviews with him around the time saying he was a huge fan or anything) Frakes - see Nimoy/Shatner (& I don't think Frakes was a trekkie prior to TNG either) Baird - didn't even know who the characters were! JJ - publically stated he wasn't a fan (more a Star Wars/Twilight Zone fan) so basically with Orci this will be the first time a full on bone fide TREKKIE will be directing a Trek movie...im kind of excited! imagining a lot of callbacks/nods/references/easter eggs, plus maybe Patrick Stewart and TNG (flashback? flash forward?), Shatner (the holo scene Orci wrote for ST09)
I picture the end scene of TMP, but instead of Decker and Kirk, it's between Orci (in uniform) and Abrams (dressed as Han Solo): "JJ, I want this. As much as you wanted Star Wars, I want this!"
Thing is, big SW fan? Sure bring it on, you get it. The history, the canon, the need to create new within the rich history of the old. I think we got that, and I think SW is going to get that too.
No Trekkie may have ever directed a film, but a couple of Trekkies have written (assuming they consider themselves Trekkies....they certainly considered themselves fans at the very least). Ronald D. Moore (Generations, First Contact, and I believe Insurrection), and John Logan (Nemesis).
And Piller was pretty much more like Nick Meyer in a sense, not knowing too much about Trek prior to being hired for TNG.
That mental image has had me chuckling for the last day or so. I hope Orci doesn't get pissy and curse at the commentors on Trekmovie.com again when they critique his directing. Don't feed the trolls, man...