Quentin Tarantino and Star Trek. Though the filmmaker is a huge fan of the franchise, he’s not the first director you’d think of as being a natural pick to helm a movie set on board the Enterprise. But for the past couple of years, we’ve heard a lot about how the acclaimed auteur is looking to put his stamp on Trek and deliver an R-rated effort that he’s jokingly dubbed “Pulp Fiction in space.” Ultimately, though, it looks like the project might not make it to screens.
In a new interview with Consequence of Sound, Tarantino reaffirmed his long-held rule that he’s going to stop making movies after his tenth directorial production. With Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood marking his ninth, that would mean whatever he does next will be his final film ever. Given the weight of this, Tarantino admitted that he’s considering putting his Trek project aside and maybe going for something smaller in scale to act as a coda to his career.
“I think I’m steering away from Star Trek, but I haven’t had an official conversation with those guys yet. In a strange way, it seems like this movie, Hollywood, would be my last. So, I’ve kind of taken the pressure off myself to make that last big voilà kind of statement. I mean to such a degree there was a moment when I was writing and went, “Should I do this now? Should I do something else? Is this the 10th one?” No, no don’t stop the planets from aligning, what are you, Galactus? If the Earth is saying do it, do it. Not that it was an argument, but a little thought, like, “Well, if I’m gonna go out like Max Ophüls style, Lola Montez, this is it, and if It’s not good, then all my other work is trash, alright.” This would have been the one. But in a weird way, it actually kind of freed me up. I mean, I have no idea what the story of the next one’s going to be. I don’t even have a clue.”
The director’s fans have long been skeptical that Tarantino would ultimately choose his Star Trek flick as his last ever movie, and it seems these doubters may have been right on the money. That said, he doesn’t guarantee that he’s walking away from the franchise just yet, as he’s still to have an official conversation with Paramount to call time on the project and as such, it remains to be seen which way Tarantino will make his mind up.
What’s surprising about this though is that it comes just days after the CEO of ViacomCBS (Paramount’s parent company) assured us that two separate Star Trek movies were in the works. At least the good news here is that there’s still something in development, even if Tarantino drops out. That would be Star Trek 4, written and directed by Noah Hawley, which would bring back Chris Pine as Kirk and the rest of the Kelvin timeline cast.
Tell us, though, are you bummed out by Tarantino potentially steering away from Star Trek? Share your thoughts in the comments section down below.