With the new 'Star Trek' movie having an alternate timeline, director J.J. Abrams reveals that future plot for next movies can involve villain Khan Noonien Singh and original star William Shatner.
- May 16, 2009
AceShowbiz - Talks of sequels build up even more as director J.J. Abrams opens doors to the possibility of villain Khan Noonien Singh and original star William Shatner appearing in next movies. When talking to MTV on Friday, May 15, the filmmaker said, "Believe me, whether it's William Shatner or Khan ... it would be ridiculous to not be open to those ideas," after pointing out that the newly-released "Star Trek" has established an alternate timeline that allows new storylines to be told.
"It'll be fun to hear what Alex and Bob are thinking about Khan," Abrams moreover said of his future meeting with screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci to discuss the potential plots for the sequel. "The fun of this timeline is arguing that different stories, with the same characters, could be equally if not more compelling than what's been told before."
Speaking more of Khan's idea, the "Lost" creator explained, "[Khan and Kirk] exist - and while their history may not be exactly as people are familiar with, I would argue that a person's character is what it is." He added, "Certain people are destined to cross paths and come together, and Khan is out there ... even if he doesn't have the same issues."
As for the Shatner's issue, Abrams stated, "I wouldn't rule out anything." He continued, "The point of creating this independent timeline is to not have the restrictions we had coming into this one. And one of those restrictions was that Kirk was dead. But this all assumes that there's another story that's going to be told. We're all still coming down from making this movie."
Chronicling the early days of James T. Kirk and his fellow U.S.S. Enterprise crew members during their time at Starfleet Academy, "Star Trek" debuted atop the North American box office. Introducing a younger line-up of Star Trek crew, which include Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, it dug up $75.2 million in its first week in theaters.
