“Star Trek 3,” Starring Saldaña, to be Released in July 2016

Zoë Saldaña is ready to trek back into theaters in July 2016…

Paramount Pictures has scheduled the latest installment of the Star Trek reboot, starring the 36-year-old half-Dominican/half-Puerto Rican American actress, for release on July 8, 2016. The film will be released ahead of the 50th anniversary of the classic show.

Zoë Saldaña

The original series of Star Trek was first broadcast in September 1966 on NBC, after an unsuccessful pilot was made a couple of years earlier. The show ran for three years and spawned several spin-offs and a series of movies.

Saldaña will reprise her role as Nyota Uhura in the third installment of this latest Star Trek film franchise. She appeared in 2009’s Star Trek and its sequel Star Trek Into Darkness (2013).

Star Trek 3 will be directed by Justin Lin.

Orci to Take the USS Enterprise Crew ‘Deep in Space’ in “Star Trek 3”

Roberto Orci is ready to go “deep in space.”

The 40-year-old Mexican film and television writer, producer and director, who will direct Star Trek 3, says the crew of the USS Enterprise will explore a new world in the next installment of the film franchise.

Roberto Orci

Orci said on the Humans from Earth podcast that the next film will take place “deep in space,” unlike J.J. AbramsStar Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness, which he co-wrote.

“In [Into Darkness] they set out finally where the original series started,” he explained. “The first two films – especially the 2009 [Star Trek] – was an origin story. It was about them coming together. So they weren’t the characters they were in the original series. They were growing into them and that continues on in the second movie. So in this movie they are closer than they are to the original series characters that you have ever seen. They have set off on their five-year mission. So their adventure is going to be in deep space.”

USS Enterprise Star Trek

When asked about what alien might be seen in the upcoming third entry, Orci still played it coy as quoted by Badass Digest, “The Horta is actually the villain in the next one – no – they are in deep space now, so let’s see what’s out there.”

Of the possibility of having a gay character, he said, “It can be part of a character and not be the whole shebang…It doesn’t have to be like South Park, like ‘what have we learned today.’ It can be so normalized that it just exists. I agree it can’t be shoe-horned in. And it is not necessary for it to be the whole point of the thing. It is an ensemble and there is lots of people to represent so no one point of view should hog it.”

Star Trek 3 is slated for 2016.

Orci In Talks to Write the Next Star Trek Film…

Roberto Orci will be trekking into familiar territory…

The Mexican-American film and television writer and producer and his business partner Alex Kurtzman are in talks to pen the next Star Trek outing for Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions.

Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci

Orci and Kurtzman co-wrote the previous two installments for director J.J. Abrams, who is in negotiations to produce Star Trek 3 through his Bad Robot production company. Damon Lindelof also shared writing credit on this summer’s Star Trek Into Darkness. Sources say Lindelof will not be back for the third chapter of the rebooted franchise.

Though the project is shrouded in secrecy, much like Star Trek Into Darkness was, reports have surfaced in recent weeks that the studio would tap new writers. Rumors swirled that other young writing teams were being courted for their takes. But Paramount shifted gears recently and is returning to the duo that breathed new life into the moribund franchise. The tricky part was getting Kurtzman and Orci to find a gap in their schedules to write. In addition to their growing TV empire, they have been busy on the film front as part of their two-year first-look deal with Universal Pictures that has them rebooting The Mummy and Van Helsing.

The next Star Trek film is untitled and unscheduled, but Paramount and Skydance are eager to continue the franchise, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2016. Stars Chris PineZachary Quinto and Zoe Saldana are expected to return.