Consider it a rumor no more: Paramount Pictures has officially confirmed plans to push ahead with Star Trek 4, with Marvel’s God of Thunder himself Chris Hemsworth on board to reprise his role as Kirk’s father, George Kirk.
News first emerged late last week when J.J. Abrams, a former director and long-time producer on Paramount’s sci-fi juggernaut, sparked rumors that Star Trek 4 was indeed a reality, though it’s only now that Hemsworth’s place on the fourth film appears to be a done deal.
Ensuring that there is still a future for the franchise after Justin Lin’s Beyond, an early logline for Star Trek 4 reveals that, “in the next installment of the epic space adventure, Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk will cross paths with a man he never had a chance to meet, but whose legacy has haunted him since the day he was born: his father.”
Though his voice was heard during Star Trek Into Darkness, Chris Hemsworth hasn’t appeared on screen as George Kirk since the opening prologue to J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek all the way back in 2009. Plus, considering that James Kirk’s daddy issues have coursed through the veins of Paramount’s series since the off, it’ll be interesting to see how that arc comes to a head.
Already scoring rave reviews across the board, Star Trek Beyond marks the next installment in Paramount and Bad Robot’s rebooted universe – and it’s due to arrive on Friday, July 22. No word yet on a release timeline for Star Trek 4, but should both studios adhere to their current production cycle, the spacefaring sequel could hit theaters as early as 2019.