Star Trek 3 on pace for a 2016 release, will have more Klingons and less J.J. Abrams, according to Damon Lindelof

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

With STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS poised to be one of the top grossing movies of the summer, it is no surprise that Paramount is already planning on STAR TREK 3. Despite J.J. Abrams now being committed to STAR WARS: EPISODE VII hitting for a 2015 premiere, Paramount's goal of the follow-up to STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS being released in 2016 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the original Gene Roddenberry series may not be attainable with the same director in place.

STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS co-screenwriter Damon Lindelof told Trek Movie he doesn't see J.J. Abrams directing the third film without cloning himself.  Paramount would be foolish to not maximize the 50th anniversary, so who could take over the reigns from Abrams?  Roberto Orci?  Alex Kurtzman?  The directorial debut of Lindelof himself?  Who knows.

What we do know is that there is already a seed planted in STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS to possibly be explored in the third film.  Also according to Lindelof:

"You can never see enough Klingons, and I think in this film we’ve given the audience a little taste," he said. "but there’s also a promise that there’s a larger conflict on the horizon, and that would be fun to see."

Lindelof also played coy on whether Benedict Cumberbatch would return for a third film saying it all depends on whether he survives STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS, an answe we will all get when the movie hits on May 17th.  For now, we know that the press rounds for the new film are the last item before Abrams dives deep into STAR WARS: EPISODE VII.

With that in mind, check out this great chat between Abrams and his STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS cast-member (and STAR WARS superfan) Simon Pegg about tackling George Lucas' galaxy far, far away.