New 'Star Trek' movie plans in limbo

After Star Trek Beyond's less than stellar box office take back in 2016, it seemed like the end for the legendary sci-fi classic's theatrical future. But this is Star Trek we're talking about, and there is a 40-plus year legacy of television and fim outings that it needs to uphold. No matter how many times the USS Enterprise blows up, it always has its day at spacedock, ready to once more go where no one has gone before.

There are currently three potential Star Trek films that may take flight. The first one is a direct sequel to the "Kelvin timeline" of movies that director JJ Abrams started in 2009 which ended with Beyond; there's the one that Quentin Tarantino is supposedly helming using his original script and concept; and lastly, the most recent being developed by Fargo and Legion showrunner Noah Hawley.

Abrams' plans seem to have stalled due to alleged contract disagreements with its main actors, while Tarantino has quietly stepped away from the project.

Now, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that Hawley's version of Trek has been banished to the Delta Quadrant by Paramount's newly-installed motion picture group president, Emma Watts. One reason that the THR article mentioned was because the story would center on a virus that invades the known universe.

Ouch. Just a little too close to home right now. It's not yet known if Hawley would change the plot or move on to other projects.

Meanwhile, a blast from the past has opened a communicator and voiced what he thinks the next Trek movie could be.

The USS Enterprise from the original TV series

Speaking to Den of Geek earlier last month, Robert Sallin, the producer of 1982's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, widely-accepted as the best and most critically-acclaimed in the film franchise's history, went on to say that he has an idea for the next Star Trek movie, but it would be dependent on what happens with Hawley's concept.

In the interview, Sallin explains that he hasn't completely written the script yet, but it is a concept that he's had talks with Paramount about. "This one I guarantee you is unlike anything that has been done in Star Trek, and it will be part of the canon," he revealed. Sallin goes on to say the studio won't even discuss it until they see what Hawley has in store.

Now that Hawley's version is on hold, there's no news if Paramount would take Sallin up on his offer.

(Images from Paramount/StarTrek.com)