When did JJ Abrams pitch his ST XI?

[Lord Garth]

I know that Rick Berman's contract expired sometime in the first half of 2006 and that in short order the Romulan War movie was rejected and JJ Abrams' film was greenlighted but what I'm wondering is this:

Do you think that Paramount approved JJ Abrams pitch in advance of cancelling the Romulan War (RW) movie, waiting for Rick Berman's contract to expire in order to free up any obligations, contractual or otherwise, so someone else could produce the movie?

Was Paramount advertising its willingness to accept proposals from new blood before the cancellation of RW or do you think JJ Abrams just had his ear to the wall and was watching the status of Star Trek like a hawk, to mix metaphors, so he would know when he could get the chance to tell the story he wanted to tell?

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

It's never been clear to me based on any direct statements by the principles that Abrams asked to work on Trek rather than it being offered to him, with encouragement, by the studio.

I believe that the announcement of the film, however, actually was made before Berman's contract was technically over.

It's unlikely that there was ever real interest on the studio's part in the Berman-produced "Romulan War" story.

 

[Photoman15]

It's never been clear to me based on any direct statements by the principles that Abrams asked to work on Trek rather than it being offered to him, with encouragement, by the studio.

I believe that the announcement of the film, however, actually was made before Berman's contract was technically over.

It's unlikely that there was ever real interest on the studio's part in the Berman-produced "Romulan War" story.

IIRC, Abrams said he'd hang his shingle at Paramount ONLY if they let him do Star Trek XI.

 

[PowderedToastMan]

the whole thing started while Abrams, Orci and Kurtzman were working on MI3. The first overture was from a Para exec to Orci actually. This was probably in early 2006. By that time Para had already dropped the Jendresen Romulan War 'Star Trek The Beginning' movie. By the way that film was not a Berman project. It was being pushed through by a couple of other people who had a production deal at Paramount who were really just kind of freelancing. Berman was attached as a courtesy and likely due to some contract, but he had nothing to do with it really. JJ did make the Trek film part of his deal when he and Bad Robot signed a multipic deal by the summer of 2006, but the film was not technically greenlit until Jan. 2007 when the script was completed...it was finaly announced a month later.

Does that clear it up?

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

the whole thing started while Abrams, Orci and Kurtzman were working on MI3. The first overture was from a Para exec to Orci actually. This was probably in early 2006.

Yep. Thanks.

 

[Procutus]

This was probably in early 2006. By that time Para had already dropped the Jendresen Romulan War 'Star Trek The Beginning' movie.

I can certainly understand the decision to drop the Jendresen project to do a TOS remake, as there would be more draw from re-doing Trek as most people are familiar with it.

That said though, the Romulan War still could've made a worthwhile Straight-to-DVD release, filling in that particular gap in Trek history.

I remember there were rumors that Tom Hanks, who's friends with Jendresen, was apparently interested in this project. Do you know if there's any truth to that, PTM?

 

[Good Will Riker]

IIRC, Abrams said he'd hang his shingle at Paramount ONLY if they let him do Star Trek XI.

Abrams already hung his shingle at Paramount when he wrote the screenplay for and appeared as the delivery boy in Paramount Picture's "Regarding Henry" back in 1991.

 

[Anthony Sabre]

That said though, the Romulan War still could've made a worthwhile Straight-to-DVD release, filling in that particular gap in Trek history.

Now those are some waters I wish Paramount/CBS would test. Everything doesn't have to be a multi million dollar movie or long term TV series. A nice movie of the week type production.

 

[chardman]

IIRC, Abrams said he'd hang his shingle at Paramount ONLY if they let him do Star Trek XI.

Abrams already hung his shingle at Paramount when he wrote the screenplay for and appeared as the delivery boy in Paramount Picture's "Regarding Henry" back in 1991.

Abrams' shingle may have been at Paramount back in the early 90s, but it sure as hell didn't stay there for long. Sometime prior to 2001 Abrams/Bad Robot moved their shingle from Paramount to Disney/Touchstone, where Abrams developed and produced "Felicity", "Alias" and "Lost". His return to Paramount only came about fairly recently, when Paramount offered him a sweetheart deal to come back.

 

[pookha]

IIRC, Abrams said he'd hang his shingle at Paramount ONLY if they let him do Star Trek XI.

Abrams already hung his shingle at Paramount when he wrote the screenplay for and appeared as the delivery boy in Paramount Picture's "Regarding Henry" back in 1991.

actually no, '
hanging ones hat to me implies some type of long term deal and not the one shot that regarding henry was with jj and paramount.,

 

[Procutus]

That said though, the Romulan War still could've made a worthwhile Straight-to-DVD release, filling in that particular gap in Trek history.

Now those are some waters I wish Paramount/CBS would test. Everything doesn't have to be a multi million dollar movie or long term TV series. A nice movie of the week type production.

Well, it seems to be working for MGM with Stargate SG-1. Both The Ark of Truth and Continuum were decent productions, with far more scope than the series had, yet they were probably produced at a fraction of STXI's budget (somewhere around $130 mil, according to Nimoy).

I'd love to see two to three Straight-to-DVD Treks a year, which also wouldn't limit Paramount to any particular series or timeframe within the Trek Universe. I'd really like to see the century between ENT and TOS explored, and this would be a perfect means to do so, IMO.

 

[Swarles Barkley]

I'm still holding out for the Singer/DeSanto version of Trek. With Richard Hatch. And daggits.

 

[M'Sharak]

*twitch*

 

[pookha]

I'm still holding out for the Singer/DeSanto version of Trek. With Richard Hatch. And daggits.

can we "box" this post

 

[Swarles Barkley]

I'm still holding out for the Singer/DeSanto version of Trek. With Richard Hatch. And daggits.

can we "box" this post

Waiting for someone to start referring to Abrams' movie as "TINO".

 

[Therin of Andor]

they were probably produced at a fraction of STXI's budget (somewhere around $130 mil, according to Nimoy).

ST's IV to X were all a fraction of ST XI's budget and the complaint was that Paramount was no longer throwing the kind of money at ST to make it competitive.

ST telemovies have been mooted since the mid 70s, but there are obviously more profits to be made with big budget movies rather than TV shows and "cheapie" telemovies.

 

[M'Sharak]

IIRC, during a DVD commentary for a fourth season episode of Alias (released in 2005) some of the series' staff and actors made very thinly veiled requests to JJ that they be given jobs on the new Star Trek film.

This would seem to fit reasonably well with what was posted above by PowderedToastMan.

 

[PowderedToastMan]

it is possible the first overture to Bob and Alex (who also worked on Alias) was made in 2005. The Jendresen script was declared totally dead in 2005 when Jonathan Dolgen left and Brad Grey came in as head of the studio. Grey quickly became enamored with the Abrams team, especially how they were able to keep the budget and star of MI3 in check (at least on the film...they couldnt control the couch jumping, etc).

I will ask him next time I talk to Bob. But I do know that it was Paramount that made the first move and it was some time during Grey's tenure, but Team Abrams was not willing to do it unless they could do it their way with minimal studio interference, which is exactly the deal they have now.


As for Jenresen's thing as a TV DVD movie
Well maybe, except that it didn't have any cross over stars. DVD movies work due to minimal marketing costs. The Jendresen thing would have been a whole new cast, that might have needed more promotion like a feature film would normally get. These days new DVD releases generally tend to continue stories with known casts, like the Stargate, Babylon 5 stuff. Anyway it is a moot point now.

 

[blockaderunner]

Well, it seems to be working for MGM with Stargate SG-1. Both The Ark of Truth and Continuum were decent productions, with far more scope than the series had, yet they were probably produced at a fraction of STXI's budget (somewhere around $130 mil, according to Nimoy).

I'd love to see two to three Straight-to-DVD Treks a year, which also wouldn't limit Paramount to any particular series or timeframe within the Trek Universe. I'd really like to see the century between ENT and TOS explored, and this would be a perfect means to do so, IMO.

That route is okay for sometthing like Stargate or B5 because they still have that cult niche status.

For Trek to do that, it would be a symbolic gesture that it has failed and has given up being a powerhouse franchise and a pop culture phenomenom on par with Star Wars. With yet another Star Wars film comming out (albeit animated), Paramount couldn't afford to turn throw in the towel now. Besides, how wold you feel if any new Trek hit the shelves wedged between the latest Richard Grieco crapfest and Girls Gone Wild: Sumatra Spring Break with little to no fanfare? Talk about going out with a whimper.

 

[M'Sharak]

I will ask him next time I talk to Bob. But I do know that it was Paramount that made the first move and it was some time during Grey's tenure, but Team Abrams was not willing to do it unless they could do it their way with minimal studio interference, which is exactly the deal they have now.

I also remember reading quite some time ago that it was part of a multi-picture (three?) deal offered by the studio, rather than a pitch made by Abrams to Paramount. He would get to do a couple of things he wanted to do and agreed to take on the Star Trek project as a condition, something I have the impression he was initially reluctant about but allowed himself to be talked into doing.