How Much Does JJ Abrams Know About Star Trek

[The Mirrorball Man]

What does Lionel Messi know about the history of football?

 

[SalvorHardin]

The next Trek director has to undergo an intense written exam, proving their Trek knowledge with answering questions involving the most obscure aspects of Trek lore and writing 100 word essays on a variety of topics.

I think the next director must be chosen in a big Star Trek convention.
Only those who appear in costume or with some kind of forehead/ear prosthetic and with an above average score in the Purity Test will have voting rights.

 

[Commishsleer]

I think where his knowledge is lacking is in understanding what precisely makes Star Trek work. He hears the witty lines, and sees the comeraderie among the characters, and sees the ship firing torpedoes at some bad guys, and he thinks he knows what makes Star Trek tick. He seems to honestly think that Star Trek fans have loved the franchise simply because it was a light, fun action show with witty lines. There are plenty of light, fun action shows with witty lines that are nowhere near as good as Star Trek. Star Trek, when it was very good (much of TOS, TNG, and DS9, Wrath of Khan, Undiscovered Country, First Contact....) was certainly more than an entertaining shoot-em-up action movie. It was occasionally that, sure, but certainly not at its high points.

I wish he knew less about the look and "feel" of Star Trek, and more about the substance and the ambition and the purpose.

You can't get that from forcing yourself to watch TOS and the films as research. You've got to love it - the same way he loves SW I suppose.

Meyer and Bennett had the advantage of having a cast with enough power to push them into the right direction and enough sense to listen to them when they said Kirk wouldn't do this, Scotty wouldn't say that.

 

[Phily B]

There is an interview where he doesn't know what planet Luke was brought up on in Star Wars! Who cares, he'll probably make a much better movie than Lucas.

 

[mos6507]

Screenwriters are the ones who should do that kind of research, where necessary. The director says if he likes the script and shoots it. He's not expected to be an expert in such minutia, especially if it's not germane to the story.

BS. In this genre, you have to KNOW the world you're world-building in.

 

[mos6507]

How much did Nick Meyer or Harve Bennett know about Star Trek when they made The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock?

They may not have known a lot up front, but they did the proper research. Go read the old interviews and they'll talk about how they went back and watched the show--a lot. They just didn't egotistically move forward with their vision without knowing what came before. Sure, they changed things, but they were mindful of what they were changing.

 

[beamMe]

I think where his knowledge is lacking is in understanding what precisely makes Star Trek work. He hears the witty lines, and sees the comeraderie among the characters, and sees the ship firing torpedoes at some bad guys, and he thinks he knows what makes Star Trek tick. He seems to honestly think that Star Trek fans have loved the franchise simply because it was a light, fun action show with witty lines. There are plenty of light, fun action shows with witty lines that are nowhere near as good as Star Trek. Star Trek, when it was very good (much of TOS, TNG, and DS9, Wrath of Khan, Undiscovered Country, First Contact....) was certainly more than an entertaining shoot-em-up action movie. It was occasionally that, sure, but certainly not at its high points.

I wish he knew less about the look and "feel" of Star Trek, and more about the substance and the ambition and the purpose.

You can't get that from forcing yourself to watch TOS and the films as research. You've got to love it - the same way he loves SW I suppose.

Meyer and Bennett had the advantage of having a cast with enough power to push them into the right direction and enough sense to listen to them when they said Kirk wouldn't do this, Scotty wouldn't say that.

These aren't the same characters. They may be similar but they aren't carbon copies.

 

[JarodRussell]

I believe in that a director needs to delve into this in order to deliver a coherent film. Which is probably why my favorite films are those where the director also wrote or co-wrote the script.

If you direct a real world drama, you usually as a director also get to know the subject matter, otherwise you can't direct a proper film. And there's enough material in the Star Trek universe (and a lot of other fictional universes) to be able to treat it like it was a real world drama.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Abrams did his research, he saw all the TOS episodes and movies, and even read some of the novels.

STVI is an example of a did-not-do-research movie. The characters are treated awfully and the entire plot contradicts "Yesterday's Enterprise". If you've read co-writer Denny Martin Flynn's novel sequel The Fearful Summons you'll get an even better idea of how poor their grasp on the characters were.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Screenwriters are the ones who should do that kind of research, where necessary. The director says if he likes the script and shoots it. He's not expected to be an expert in such minutia, especially if it's not germane to the story.

BS. In this genre, you have to KNOW the world you're world-building in.

No.

He's directing a movie, not a genre. Some trekkies may take the minutiae all too seriously, but what matters is that he's made a film that apparently a lot of people enjoy and that's going to be tremendously successful.

 

[The Wormhole]

The next Trek director has to undergo an intense written exam, proving their Trek knowledge with answering questions involving the most obscure aspects of Trek lore and writing 100 word essays on a variety of topics.

I think the next director must be chosen in a big Star Trek convention.
Only those who appear in costume or with some kind of forehead/ear prosthetic and with an above average score in the Purity Test will have voting rights.

There's hope for some around here after all.

 

[BillJ]

How much did Nick Meyer or Harve Bennett know about Star Trek when they made The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock?

They may not have known a lot up front, but they did the proper research. Go read the old interviews and they'll talk about how they went back and watched the show--a lot. They just didn't egotistically move forward with their vision without knowing what came before. Sure, they changed things, but they were mindful of what they were changing.

And Orci & Kurtzman watched the shows and one of them is a fan of Trek Lit. I don't think geek cred is a barometer of whether someone is capable of making a good movie.

John Logan was a big fan...

 

[Commishsleer]

Abrams did his research, he saw all the TOS episodes and movies, and even read some of the novels.

STVI is an example of a did-not-do-research movie. The characters are treated awfully and the entire plot contradicts "Yesterday's Enterprise". If you've read co-writer Denny Martin Flynn's novel sequel The Fearful Summons you'll get an even better idea of how poor their grasp on the characters were.

He got the main characters right - it was only the minor characters who looked like fools

 

[Sector 7]

Since his version is the new continuity, he knows everything about it.

Bingo!

The next Trek director has to undergo an intense written exam, proving their Trek knowledge with answering questions involving the most obscure aspects of Trek lore and writing 100 word essays on a variety of topics.

I think the next director must be chosen in a big Star Trek convention.
Only those who appear in costume or with some kind of forehead/ear prosthetic and with an above average score in the Purity Test will have voting rights.

There's hope for some around here after all.

Gene Roddenberry said it best, "If I listened to the fans, Star Trek would be sh!t." Proof positive that JJ Abrams did it right.

 

[trevanian]

Since his version is the new continuity, he knows everything about it.

Bingo!

I think the next director must be chosen in a big Star Trek convention.
Only those who appear in costume or with some kind of forehead/ear prosthetic and with an above average score in the Purity Test will have voting rights.

There's hope for some around here after all.

Gene Roddenberry said it best, "If I listened to the fans, Star Trek would be sh!t." Proof positive that Nick Meyer did it right.

There, better ...

 

[nightwind1]

He knows enough to please this fan who's been enjoying Trek since 1966.

 

[Nero's Shadow]

I think JJ knows enough and if he doesn't I'm sure he can ask one his best friends who are die hard trek fans Bryan Burke Oric and Kurtz Damon Lindorf ??

 

[The Wormhole]

Since his version is the new continuity, he knows everything about it.

Bingo!

There's hope for some around here after all.

Gene Roddenberry said it best, "If I listened to the fans, Star Trek would be sh!t." Proof positive that Nick Meyer did it right.

There, better ...

I agree, that is better.

 

[SalvorHardin]

 

[Ovation]

Am I the only one who read that with her accent in my mind?