After STAR TREK BEYOND's box-office proved to be not quite as impressive as Paramount undoubtedly would have wanted, it wasn't certain whether or not J.J. Abrams' rebooted STAR TREK franchise would get a fourth installment, but development on STAR TREK 4 finally got underway earlier this year when the studio hired S.J. Clarkson (The Defenders) to direct. However, THR has reported that there's a risk that the project may lose both Chris Pine (Captain Kirk) and Chris Hemsworth (George Kirk) thanks to negotiations with the two actors breaking down.
Sources told THR that talks between Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth with Paramount Pictures and Skydance Media have fallen apart, with both sides walking away from the table. The reason – cold hard cash. Due to the lackluster performance of STAR TREK BEYOND, the studios are trying to save some of the budget by forcing Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth to take pay cuts for the fourth installment. However, the actors say that they already have deals in place, which Paramount and Skydance are reneging upon. I can't blame the studios for wanting to cut costs a little, after all, STAR TREK BEYOND cost $185 million but only brought in $343 million worldwide; That said, deals were made and they should be honoured. As STAR TREK 4 still remains a priority, there are several options for what could happen next. The studio could recast the roles, but it's much more likely that they'll return to the bargaining table at a later date. Deals with the other STAR TREK actors, including Zoe Saldana, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, and John Cho, were expected to follow suit.
Details on STAR TREK 4 are sparse, but we do know that Chris Hemsworth was to reprise the role of George Kirk, the man who sacrificed his life so that his crew and family could escape safely from Nero in STAR TREK. This would allow Chris Pine's Captain Kirk to "cross paths with a man he never had a chance to meet, but whose legacy has haunted him since the day he was born: his father."