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Rick Berman Asserts STAR TREK Needs Re-Invention, TREK XI Scribe Announced

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By TRexx / 16:56, 22 February 2005 / Enterprise

For the past 19 years Paramount has launched STAR TREK films and series amid continued syndication and massive video sales. "Each time we started something else, we were competing against the previous shows, so as the number started to accumulate, we started to see franchise fatigue," glums Rick Berman. "You could see it with the performance of the last film, which was a wonderful movie. You can only squeeze so many eggs out of a golden goose." Downbeat results for STAR TREK: NEMESIS have curbed the studio's appetite to move quickly on more features. Dismal ratings prompted UPN to pull the plug on ENTERPRISE.

Berman tells Variety that the whole TREK concept has been so exposed that it needs to be re-invented. Another series would be at least three years away; and if a film goes forward, it will be the first that won't be based on already established TV characters.

Roger Nygard, who put together the TREKKIES and TREKKIES 2 documentaries, believes that taking a break is the sensible course. "It's a little like after you've eaten Thanksgiving dinner, you really don't want any more turkey," he notes. "There's been so much, for so long, that the feeling is that it's OK to take a pause."

"I think we're unique in Hollywood in people working here for 12, 15 even the full 18 years, so that's the sad part -- the family we've had here splitting up," frets Berman, who has teamed with Jordan Kerner and Kerry McCluggage to create an 11th feature now at the early stages of development; Erik Jendresen has signed on as writer.

"I don't think it's going away," attests Paramount Network Television president David Stapf. "We look at this as a hiatus."

Nygard's not worried. "We asked the question in TREKKIES 2 whether STAR TREK would be around in another 50 years and it was unanimous that it would be, in some incarnation. It's worth noting that STAR TREK didn't really begin to flourish until it had been off the air for awhile the first time."

Walter Koenig, a.k.a. "Chekov" in the original series, also believes it will be back eventually. "I really don't think that the series cancellation is its ultimate demise, although that may be just a reflex on my part," he says. "At some point, everything loses a little bit of its glow but STAR TREK has shown an uncanny ability to survive."

You can read the complete article at Variety.

UPDATE: Via Paramount Studios, Variety confirmed TrekWeb staff speculation that Erik Jendresen, not "Eric Genderson," is the scribe for TREK XI (story). Variety has now changed the name on their web site.



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RE: I don't get it | Report this post to moderator
By: Sennik (Odo's file, contact) @ 11:25:20 on Feb 24, 2005

I didn't know Berman's contract was done in 2006. That certainly reveals some light on this whole 2 or 3 year break thing we've been getting from Paramount. I read that article you linked, and it implies that Rick Berman Productions (original name there Ricky) is going to look into things beyond the Star Trek universe. Maybe, when the next contract is signed (because I doubt Paramount is going to throw him on the street) it'll be for only new productions that have nothing to do with Star Trek. Like "Rick Berman Productions signs a new multi-year deal which sees the former head of Star Trek remain with Paramount to produce and develop new and original series and films for the studio." And a few weeks later we get, "Paramount signs a multi-year deal with [insert name here] to begin pre-production on a new Star Trek series to air in fall of 2007."

It all makes sense now. Thanks for the insight on Berman's contract. I have some hope for the franchise now. I hope Paramount doesn't give his Star Trek XI idea any merit, lets his contract expire, and that's that.

I was a little disappointed in the novel end. Only one new novel a month? They've got like 15 different spin-offs now. It looks like only one DS9 novel a year from here on out. Pity because those were awesome.

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