Alex Kurtzman Talks ‘Star Trek: Discovery’

By Reggie's Take on June 9, 2017

Star Trek is returning to television this fall for the first time since 2005, but it has not been an easy road getting there and Alex Kurtzman sheds some light on the shows progress.

When Discovery finally debuts later this year it will be the first new Star Trek show since Enterprise was cancelled, but getting this new series up and running has not been as easy as most would of liked or hoped. Originally scheduled to premier this past January several set backs caused delays razing eyebrows as to why it’s taking so long for this show find solid footing behind the camera.

Alex Kurtzman who has worked on the last three Star Trek films has been involved in bringing this new Star Trek show to life. Kurtzman recently sat down with the fine people over at Collider and talked about Star Trek Discovery.

Discovery’s original showrunner Bryan Fuller departed the series and Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberg were promoted as the new showrunners. Kurtzman was asked if there were still any of Fuller’s ideas he initially brought with him still influencing the show.

“No absolutely there are footprints left on the show. Bryan was very involved in American Gods and I think that the scope and scale of what Trek has become made it so that Bryan elected to say, ‘I don’t wanna short-change either of these two things,’ they’re both sort of beloved to him, so we sat down and we figured out how are we going to take what we can have of you and continue that through not only this season of Trek but hopefully set up things that are coming next season. So much of what’s there in terms of story and certainly in terms of set-up, character, big ideas, the big movement of the season, that’s all stuff that Bryan and I talked about.”

Kurtzman also addressed the delays with the show saying that CBS wanted to ensure they could launch the new series with the best possible incarnation of the show making air.

“We postponed our schedule because the truth is we did not want to put out something that was subpar, and as the vision expanded we started feeling like we weren’t gonna be able to deliver the scope and the scale that was on the page. And CBS was extremely supportive in saying, ’Okay you know what, this is streaming, it’s not like we have to beat out right away, let’s do the best version of this, Trek is too important for all of us.”

Star Trek Discovery / CBS / 2017

Reggie’s Take:

I am looking forward to seeing Discovery and giving it every opportunity to succeed, but at the same time I’m being just as cautious with what I’ve heard and seen.

The trailer for the show looked extremely intriguing and also confusing. I’ve heard the show is to be set in the original time-line, but when you watch the trailer it has a feel that seems more suited for the “Kelvin Timeline” or the Abrams universe.

The trailer showed us what looked like Klingons, which is great, something I wish the rebooted movies would use more of, but have only given us a small glimpse in “Into Darkness”. If those were actually Klingons in the trailer then it would appear that Discovery is set in the “Kelvin Timeline”.

I have no problem if in fact the show is set in the alternate timeline, but don’t tell us it’s set in the original and give us a look of the other. I personally feel that setting it in the alternate or “Kelvin Timeline” would give the show a broader canvas to tell more stories and not have to worry about continuity as much.

From what I’ve read online not a lot of people are giving this show much hope and in some ways I can understand there concerns, but what we can’t do is judge it before anyone has even seen one episode.

All Star Trek and non-Trek fans a like have to be willing to give Discovery a fair shake on its own merits. We can’t go in with such high expectations that we judge it before it has had a chance to come into its own. Look at Star Trek TNG; it took until the third season before it found its voice and stride.

Discovery will have a mixed audience of life long Trek fans and new Trek fans and the older Trek fans will have to embrace some change as not everyone will have the knowledge of what came before it.

Just keep in mind that if your a long time Star Trek fan and you’ve already made up your mind based on the trailer or after you’ve watched the first episode that if Discovery fails in its first season it could take longer the twelve years before we get another chance at another series.