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Star Trek film directors say new movie has no legacy characters and is not in the Kelvin timeline

In an Empire interview, writer-directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein said their planned Star Trek film has no legacy characters, is not set in the Kelvin timeline and is their darkest film yet. Paramount has not greenlit it.

2 outlets · 0L · 2C · 0R First reported Account updated
Image: Screen Rant
Image: /Film

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The story, neutrally told

CentreJohn Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, the writer-directors of the next Star Trek film, told Empire Magazine that it has "no legacy characters, nobody that you've met before". CentreDaley described it as "a different time, not a different timeline per se, but it's a little further in the future"; Goldstein added it was "sort of a different timeline", and Daley clarified: "not the Kelvin timeline. It's not the J.J. [Abrams] timeline." CentreDaley called it "probably our darkest film that we've ever written" and said "It's not a comedy", though the characters find humour in dark moments. He cited research for their film Mayday on an aircraft carrier. Goldstein said: "You want it to be a fun watch."

CentreGoldstein also joked, "It's tribbles. It's all tribbles. The whole movie." CentreScreen Rant reports that at San Diego Comic-Con in July the pair said the film is set ambiguously "further" in the future and draws inspiration from the Denzel Washington films Crimson Tide and Training Day. CentreThe outlets read the timeline remark differently. Screen Rant calls it murkier and suggests a setting between the early 25th century of Picard and the 32nd century of Discovery, or possibly another alternate universe. /Film reads it as after 2263, when Star Trek Beyond takes place, so familiar events could still appear.

CentreScreen Rant says Paramount Skydance has not greenlit the film, so there is no release date or casting information, and other Star Trek films are reportedly in development. It notes the Chris Pine-led Star Trek 4 was scrapped. Centre/Film says the duo were hired almost a year ago after Skydance's David Ellison acquired Paramount. It adds that Paramount is about to close a merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, and that getting Star Trek back on screen seems a priority for Ellison.

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Left0 outlets

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Centre2 outlets

Framing
Both outlets relay the Empire interview as fan-facing franchise news. Screen Rant stresses the break from past films and the timeline puzzle. /Film stresses tone and Paramount's business context.
Emphasis
Screen Rant covers the timeline ambiguity, inspirations and lack of a greenlight. /Film covers the darker tone, the Paramount–Warner Bros. Discovery merger and Ellison's priorities.
Leaves out or plays down
/Film does not mention that the film has not been greenlit or the Comic-Con remarks. Screen Rant does not mention the merger.
Charged language
“decade of development hell”“straight from the horse's mouth”
For example
“A movie introducing all-new, original Star Trek characters is an exciting prospect.” — Screen Rant
“To quote Mr. Spock: Fascinating.” — /Film

Right0 outlets

No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.