Star Trek Prime Universe Megafranchise

[intrinsical]

The first truly successful movie megafranchise is Marvel's Cinematic Universe. Now every major studio is trying to copy it with competing movie megafranchiese, Superman vs Batman, more X-Men movies, Spiderman and spinoffs.

Star Trek can have its own megafranchise by leveraging all the prime universe television series, having movies for Picard's Enterprise, Sisko's Deep Space Nine, Janeway's Voyager and perhaps even Archer's Enterprise, then doing a combined movie ala Avengers. Do you think such a megafranchise would be successful?

 

[Nebusj]

Do you think such a megafranchise would be successful?

I just have a feeling there's more people interested in seeing Spider-Man battle Loki for leadership of the X-Men than there are people in seeing whether Neelix and Travis Mayweather can repair the weather control system on Risa.

 

[Cyke101]

It might have been successful 10 or 12 years ago, but right now that seems more like Made-for-TV fodder.

The thing with the Marvel movies is that not only have each of them grossed more than your average pre-Abrams Trek movie, but it was also years of planning and foresight in the making. If it would have been successful 12 years ago, then planning would have started even further ago.

 

[milojthatch]

Sadly, from what I understand, this was the idea for Star Trek 11 had Nemesis done better. I could imagine all the Captains teaming up to fight all the bad guys, or something like that. Done right, it could have been a better way to end the so-called Prime Universe.

I'd love to see the Prime Universe come back, but I'm not holding my breath. I think it's dead and all we have to look forward to is more JJ-Trek or a new reboot. Dark times indeed my friends, dark times indeed.

On a personal note, I feel that at least so far as new stuff goes, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has replaced Star Trek for me.

 

[Khan 2.0]

star trek did the marvel thing in the 90s/early00s

 

[F. King Daniel]

The first truly successful movie megafranchise is Marvel's Cinematic Universe. Now every major studio is trying to copy it with competing movie megafranchiese, Superman vs Batman, more X-Men movies, Spiderman and spinoffs.

Star Trek can have its own megafranchise by leveraging all the prime universe television series, having movies for Picard's Enterprise, Sisko's Deep Space Nine, Janeway's Voyager and perhaps even Archer's Enterprise, then doing a combined movie ala Avengers. Do you think such a megafranchise would be successful?

The MCU worked and continues to work because the movies were all successful. TNG's last movie was a franchise-killing flop, DS9 and Voyager never made enough of an splash to get movies and ENT failed so badly it was cancelled and the NX-01 was written out of the planned movie about the Earth/Romulan war (the very thing many ENT fans had been waiting for since the show began). Add to that, the actors are now a lot older than when we last saw them in Trek.

Sorry

On a personal note, I feel that at least so far as new stuff goes, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has replaced Star Trek for me.

The new movies are essentially Trek reimagined in the same vein as all the comic book movies. The tone and style is very similar to the MCU, I think. That tone and style is why I love both.

 

[Saul]

Pine, Shatner, Stewart.
Make it So.

 

[SPCTRE]

seeing whether Neelix and Travis Mayweather can repair the weather control system on Risa.

 

[The Wormhole]

The first truly successful movie megafranchise is Marvel's Cinematic Universe. Now every major studio is trying to copy it with competing movie megafranchiese, Superman vs Batman, more X-Men movies, Spiderman and spinoffs.

Star Trek can have its own megafranchise by leveraging all the prime universe television series, having movies for Picard's Enterprise, Sisko's Deep Space Nine, Janeway's Voyager and perhaps even Archer's Enterprise, then doing a combined movie ala Avengers. Do you think such a megafranchise would be successful?

Such a movie was pitched to Paramount a little over a decade ago. It was rejected due to the failure of Nemesis and declining interest in Enterprise.

 

[BigJake]

The Trek franchise is not about comic-book superheroes, and the absolute last thing it should be doing is trying to imitate the MCU.

 

[Romulan_spy]

TPTB could not even do a 2 captain movie (Generations) correctly!

 

[Cyke101]

TPTB could not even do a 2 captain movie (Generations) correctly!

Yikes, that's a damn good point.

 

[shapeshifter]

If there is to be a brave new world, our generation will have the hardest time living in it.

Is it possible much of the hesitation going on with CBS/Paramount about Trek has to do with US? Do fans of other franchises voice so loud an opinion as to what *insert franchise name here* is and what it should do, are those studio CEO's inundated with hate mail by its fanbase the way we apparently do to CBS/Paramount?

Until the most vocal branches of the fanbase either hush, or die off, Trek will likely remain delegated to eeking out a limited existence. Until tptb feel they can open Trek up and allow it to breathe in new directions without lynch mobs camping at studio gates then maybe the vision of the OP can be realized.

 

[BigJake]

Is it possible much of the hesitation going on with CBS/Paramount about Trek has to do with US?

No.

The fans have never terrified suits anywhere by Having Opinions, only other fans give a sh*t about that. The only thing that scares them is not making money. (Opinionated or not, the simple fact of the matter is that the fanbase is astonishingly loyal to all but the most awful or lacklustre product.) Nobody is killing Trek by Having Opinions about what they like.

 

[mendelin]

Star Trek can have its own megafranchise by leveraging all the prime universe television series, having movies for Picard's Enterprise, Sisko's Deep Space Nine, Janeway's Voyager and perhaps even Archer's Enterprise, then doing a combined movie ala Avengers.

I think, crossovers (combined movies) are natural for Star Trek universe.
Picard, Sisko, Janeway exist in the same space and in the same context. So, there are no difficulties to combine various characters in one movie.

Do you think such a megafranchise would be successful?

It depends on screenwriters, story and many other things.
"Generations" was quite odd crossover, but the general idea was nearly perfect.

 

[shapeshifter]

Is it possible much of the hesitation going on with CBS/Paramount about Trek has to do with US?

No.

The fans have never terrified suits anywhere by Having Opinions, only other fans give a sh*t about that.The only thing that scares them is not making money.

So, and I honestly don't know the answer, in their opinions, it's better to just sit on Trek for now, throwing out an occasion flick as they are doing, rather than open studio depts. to actively develop new commodities under the Trek brand which would serve different demographics, such as the OP is suggesting?

People, and not just fans, like Star Trek. The numovies proved that. It's a world wide phenom as much as any other. I have friends who, though not rabid fans like me, ask me where the all the Trek has gone to, why isn't more being made like it used to be?

There is an audience out there, waiting and wondering for what's next but the suits don't seem to notice or care. Why aren't they actively growing the brand in light of this broad appeal?

(Opinionated or not, the simple fact of the matter is that the fanbase is astonishingly loyal to all but the most awful or lacklustre product.) Nobody is killing Trek by Having Opinions about what they like.

Fair enough. One of the most disappointing days in my life was the day I woke up and realized I had fallen asleep during an episode of Trek the night before.

 

[BigJake]

So, and I honestly don't know the answer, in their opinions, it's better to just sit on Trek for now, throwing out an occasion flick as they are doing, rather than open studio depts. to actively develop new commodities under the Trek brand which would serve different demographics, such as the OP is suggesting?

If I had to guess? It's probably a combination of a) trying to work out the best way to approach a medium that's changing as rapidly as television currently is (and how best to take advantage of new on-demand formats, which is how a lot of people these days watch television), and b) holding off to let demand for televised Trek -- televised space adventure of any kind -- build (having learned lessons about over-saturation from having too many different Trek products running at once in the Nineties).

Were I put in charge of returning Trek to television, at any rate, I'd want to make a big splash of it, for it to have buzz and profile comparable to something like Game of Thrones. (In that sense I'm not joking about the comparison; it doesn't have to be a grimdark drama but it would need to be delivered with serious impact and in a way that puts it at the forefront of today's media formats and action / drama standards.) Something like that takes time to do right, though.

One of the most disappointing days in my life was the day I woke up and realized I had fallen asleep during an episode of Trek the night before.

[EDIT: Incidentally? I think the wait is a good thing. CBS and Paramount are both ultimately owned by National Amusements. Organizations tend to reflect the person at the top. The person at the top of National Amusements right now is Sumner Redstone. This is the sort of thing Sumner Redstone wants to see on television. And he is active, to put it mildly, about promoting what he wants. But he's also 91, and he won't be around forever.]

 

[Flake]

Impossible IMHO. It would need a producer with masses of knowledge of Trek pulling the strings and one who is insanely talented. I don't think such a person exists! Not someone who can approach a studio asking for $500 million and getting it ! Unless its James Cameron and he has been a massive Trekkie all these years.

Anyway......

Prime Trek was a multi-format mega franchise long before this Marvel movie thing came along !

 

[shapeshifter]

Were I put in charge of returning Trek to television, at any rate, I'd want to make a big splash of it, for it to have buzz and profile comparable to something like Game of Thrones. (In that sense I'm not joking about the comparison; it doesn't have to be a grimdark drama but it would need to be delivered with serious impact and in a way that puts it at the forefront of today's media formats and action / drama standards.) Something like that takes time to do right, though.

I haven't seen GoT so I cannot comment on that but we agree in the sense of going big time on a new Trek project if it were either of us with the keys.

[EDIT: CBS and Paramount are both ultimately owned by National Amusements. Organizations tend to reflect the person at the top. The person at the top of National Amusements right now is Sumner Redstone. This is the sort of thing Sumner Redstone wants to see on television. And he is active, to put it mildly, about promoting what he wants. But he's also 91, and he won't be around forever.]

That's odd. I've never felt a tingle and a shudder at the same time before.

 

[Hober Mallow]

The difference is that Marvel superheros are a part of pop culture and DS9, VOY, and ENT decidedly aren't. TNG achieved a high level of popularity, and even that group couldn't get butts in theater seats.

Berman-Trek is dead and never coming back.