Six years after Star Trek: Enterprise went off the air, one movie, and one rumor of a failed Brian Singer pitch have all led up to this: a possible new Star Trek series that might have a fighting chance to get off the ground. David Foster (1947 Entertainment) has told Trek Web that he not only has a pilot script, but a full series plan with a finale — but it has yet to be officially pitched. This all is a very exciting possibility for Trekkies, but could this be an opportunity to introduce new fans to the decades-old franchise? (Maybe a new series could do the same for Star Trek what it did for another sci-fi institution …? )
The interview, which took place at Creation’s 2011 Star Trek Las Vegas Convention, touched on many interesting details about Foster’s new pitch, but the most promising was how developed it is. Foster is not messing around — he is really prepared to make his case to CBS:
The series concept is fully developed, subject to change of course, with a solid 5-7 year series plan, pilot script and a conceptualized finale that intends to define Star Trek for generations, extensive character bios, costume and ship/set designs, and more. This is a drastic departure from the typical 8-10 page treatment of the previously pitched Star Trek series ideas that have not included even a pilot script.
He also discusses where this new series would fall in the Star Trek canon (pre-2009’s “alternate canon” from the movie, post-Voyager and that it is intended “to return Star Trek to its original series roots in big and mighty ways, without disregarding the other series and movies.” He is using a “code name” — S.E.T.I. — as a working title for the series, which will involve a younger cast, many of the alien races we’ve already met, and a major plotline with the Ferengi:
The Ferengi have discovered a vast new resource that has propelled them towards instant riches and power beyond anything they have previously experienced.
Foster says that his pitch has a lot of support among people who have worked on past Star Trek series and that a possible pitch trailer could be on the way. But remember — no official pitch to CBS (or any network) has occurred yet.
Funnily enough, we think the best perspective on what a new Star Trek series could be like was voiced on Chris Hardwick’s Nerdist podcast that featured Wil Wheaton, Karen Gillan and Matt Smith. Specifically, that a new Star Trek series could do for that franchise what a new series did for Doctor Who in 2005.
OMG, now are we excited?
