Paramount's acquisition of Warner Bros. and its changing model has Star Trek fans wondering what will happen to the beloved sci-fi franchise in the future. Thankfully, according to Star Trek producers Trevor Roth and Rod Roddenberry (son of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry), Paramount has Star Trek's best interests at heart.
"Our hope is that the new leadership understands or appreciates what we appreciate about Star Trek: that it is a wonderful piece of entertainment, that it can go beyond entertaining and talk about important issues to us today, and make people think, and allow for the intelligence of our audience to be recognized and appreciated," Roth tells The Direct. "So, our hope is that they'll just see what we see. And I think thus far, from what we can tell, they do."
"I'm a big fan of change, maybe not change just for the sake of change, but, dare I say, sometimes disruptive change for the better. I do think with the new regime, things will get better," adds Roddenberry.
"And not that they were bad, but I think there's a fresh perspective, and in this heightened climate of humanity right now, I've got a lot of high hopes that they'll understand and recognize that Star Trek has a very important message and story to tell, and that it really needs to be highlighted, emphasized, and put out there," he continues. "So, I have high hopes that the new regime at Paramount will recognize that and give us something good to watch."
There has been some debate among Trekkers about what's next for Star Trek, as there's not much announced for the future aside from the impending final seasons of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and the currently airing Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. Many fans – yours truly included – are hoping for a new show that features a current cast without redoing or throwing back to the original series.
We'll see what happens with Star Trek following Paramount's big changes. While we wait, check out our picks for the best Star Trek episodes.
