Simon Pegg Is Still Game To Do Star Trek 4, But He Explained Why The Sequel Is ‘Forever Tainted’ (2024)

If you have a Paramount+ subscription, then the TV gates of Star Trek have been opened back up to you since 2017, with shows like Discovery, Picard, Strange New Worlds, Lower Decks and Prodigy (which is now on Netflix) breathing new life into this corner of the franchise. Film-wise though, it’s been eight years since the release of Star Trek Beyond, and development remains stalled on Star Trek 4. Although Simon Pegg, who plays the Kelvin Timeline’s Scotty, is still game to return for this Star Trek sequel, he did acknowledge that it will be “forever tainted” for a specific, yet understandable reason.

On June 19, 2016, a month before the wide release of Star Trek Beyond, Anton Yelchin, who played Pavel Chekov in these movies, tragically died at the age of 27. So regardless of whether Chekov is recast or it’s decided to retire the character, Pegg explained to Katee Sackhoff on The Sackhoff Show that it’ll be sad for him and the other leading actors to tackle Star Trek 4 without their late co-star, though that wouldn’t stop Pegg from agreeing to come back. As he explained:

I’d love to do more. Obviously it’s been forever tainted because we lost Anton, and that was a really hard thing for everyone involved, and for the real world, let alone anything else. If we do come back, if there is another opportunity to come back, then I’d love to. Because as we were saying earlier on, it’s a group of guys that I dearly, dearly love and don’t get to see very often. It would be good to get back together with them.

Simon Pegg’s history with Anton Yelchin stretched back to November 2007, when the first Star Trek movie in this film series began shooting. Naturally when making a movie starting different versions of the crew of the USS Enterprise, Chekov needed to be included, and Yelchin was cast in the role after impressing in movies like Along Came a Spider and Charlie Bartlett. So a certain degree of sadness would be unavoidable when coming back for Star Trek 4, but nevertheless, Pegg would welcome the opportunity to reunite with Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldaña and John Cho.

Even a nearly a decade after Star Trek Beyond, it remains up in the air if Star Trek 4 will ever happen. On the one hand, it was reported in March that The Flight Attendant’s Steve Yockey was writing the script for what’s expected to be the final installment of this saga. On the other hand, Chris Pine was caught off guard by this news in May, and he still doesn’t know where things stand on the project.

Additionally, it was officially confirmed in May that the vaguely-described Star Trek origins movie, which was first reported on in January, would be moving forward. Andor’s Toby Haynes and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter’s Seth Grahame-Smith are respectively directing and writing the feature, which will take places decades before the events of 2009’s Star Trek. In other words, the Kelvin timeline is intended to stick around, but we’ll be going backwards within it next rather than forwards. That in turn begs the question of if this means Star Trek 4 is now off the table or if it’s just been pushed back again.

Hopefully Paramount Pictures will provide some kind of official update on Star Trek 4 in the coming months. For now, there are a handful of upcoming Star Trek shows to look forward to, and Simon Pegg can be seen playing Hugh Campbell Sr. in The Boys, which is streamable with an Amazon Prime Video subscription.

Simon Pegg Is Still Game To Do Star Trek 4, But He Explained Why The Sequel Is ‘Forever Tainted’ (1)

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Simon Pegg Is Still Game To Do Star Trek 4, But He Explained Why The Sequel Is ‘Forever Tainted’ (2024)

FAQs

Simon Pegg Is Still Game To Do Star Trek 4, But He Explained Why The Sequel Is ‘Forever Tainted’? ›

As he explained: I'd love to do more. Obviously it's been forever tainted because we lost Anton, and that was a really hard thing for everyone involved, and for the real world, let alone anything else. If we do come back, if there is another opportunity to come back, then I'd love to.

Who will replace Chekov in Star Trek 4? ›

Fans can breathe a sigh of relief now because according to producer J.J. Abrams, they will not be recasting the role.

Will there be a Star Trek 4 with Chris Pine? ›

For the last couple of years, since he has recommitted to return as James T. Kirk for a fourth Star Trek movie, actor Chris Pine has often expressed his enthusiasm for the return, but also some frustrations. His latest comments from from a recent appearance at ACE Superhero Comic in San Antonio, TX.

What happened to Star Trek 4 movie? ›

After eight long years, Paramount Pictures today announced that they are ending all development work on the long-gestating fourth entry in the Star Trek Kelvin Timeline film series. “It's clear that Star Trek 4 was just not coming together,” said Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins in a statement released today.

Why was there no sequel to Star Trek Beyond? ›

Star Trek Beyond introduced the USS Enterprise-A as the new starship for Kirk and his crew. The delays in creating a sequel to Star Trek Beyond may be due to pay disputes and the desire to compete with Marvel blockbusters.

Is Chekov from Star Trek still alive? ›

William Shatner (Kirk), George Takei (Sulu) and Walter Koenig (Chekov) are all still alive. I have had the honour of meeting all three. Moreover, I met Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) and Leonard Nimoy (Spock) before they died. Shatner can be very amusing and entertaining or a complete arse.

Is Chekov from Star Trek Russian? ›

His Russian accent is faked on the series, albeit his parents really were from Russia. He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television at 6679 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on September 10, 2012 (four days before his 76th birthday).

Why did Chris Pine quit Star Trek? ›

It's been a turbulent last several years for Star Trek 4. Back in 2018, plans for another film with the cast stalled, reportedly after Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth, who played George Kirk in the 2009 reboot, walked away over pay disputes.

Why did Chris Pine say Star Trek is cursed? ›

Pine also doesn't mince his words when he claims that the Star Trek franchise “feels like it's cursed.” Although the franchise has been massively successful, Pine claims that the return from Star Trek Beyond didn't meet expectations and even references the death of cast member Anton Yelchin, who died in a freak ...

Why did Star Trek end so abruptly? ›

While on NBC, Star Trek's Nielsen ratings were low and the network canceled it after three seasons and 79 episodes. In the United Kingdom the series was not broadcast until July 12, 1969, coinciding with the Apollo 11 mission to land the first humans on the Moon.

Will there be a Star Trek 5? ›

Originally on CBS All Access (now Paramount+), the series brought in a record number of subscribers to the streamer. Now in its fifth and final season, Star Trek: Discovery is ready for its swan song. Here's everything we know about the final season of Star Trek: Discovery.

Is Star Trek 4 being filmed? ›

Paramount had put the movie on the release calendar for Christmas 2023 but director Matt Shakman (WandaVision) exited the project in the summer of 2022 months before filming was set to start, moving Star Trek 4 back to the development queue.

Why did Star Trek: Beyond flop? ›

Star Trek Beyond underperformed financially at the box office. Scott Mendelson of Forbes observed that one factor contributing to the film's underperformance was its untimely release in a crowded summer in which it was surrounded by other films like Ghostbusters, Jason Bourne and Suicide Squad.

Why is Alice Eve not in Star Trek beyond? ›

"With ['Beyond'], it felt like we would under-serve her if we included her, she might end up feeling like she hadn't been given the amount of screen-time she deserves, so rather than bring her in and just have her be a supporting role, like, have her not be in this one, and when the time comes [bring her back]."

Why did Star Trek movies end? ›

Outside of the narrative, Star Trek is unique because it is the rare property that has been successful on both television and in feature films. Despite more hits than flops, Paramount stopped making Star Trek movies -- twice -- after two installments failed to live up to executives' lofty expectations.

Who replaced Scotty in Star Trek? ›

Scotty (Star Trek)
Scotty
First appearance"Where No Man Has Gone Before" Star Trek: The Original Series 1966
Last appearance"Hegemony" Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 2023
Created byGene Roddenberry
Portrayed byJames Doohan (1966–1994) Simon Pegg (2009–2016) Martin Quinn (2023-present)
13 more rows

Are they writing Chekov out of Star Trek? ›

Anton Yelchin's death

A dedication to Yelchin's memory was inserted into the credits. J. J. Abrams, producer of the reboot trilogy and director of its first two films, has stated that the role will not be recast for future sequels, implying the character of Chekov will be written out in future films.

Who plays Chekov in the new Star Trek? ›

Yelchin landed higher-profile film roles in 2009, portraying Pavel Chekov in the Star Trek reboot and Kyle Reese in Terminator Salvation. He reprised his role as Chekov in the sequels Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) and Star Trek Beyond (2016).

Who replaced Spock in Star Trek? ›

Leonard Nimoy played Spock in ALL episodes of Star Trek:tos and the Star Trek movies PLUS an appearance in two episodes of The Next Generation. He did the same in all movies up to Star Trek: Nemesis. Then came the Kelvin Time line of movies (only three) where Chris Pine was Captain Kirk and Zachary Quinto played Spock.

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