According to SciFi Wire, J.J. Abrams has picked his longtime friend and collaborator Greg Grunberg to be in the next feature film in the STAR TREK franchise. I can already hear the bi-line: “JJ Hires GG To Star in ST.”

Grunberg, currently working on the newest TV SF project “Heroes” for NBC says he doesn’t know too much more than anyone else at this point when it comes to the storyline for the future STAR TREK film. “Yeah, we joked about that,” Grunberg said while on the set of ‘Heroes.’ “It’s the old ‘You’re too old!’ And I’m like, ‘I’m too old? What does that mean?’ And he won’t tell me anything else. And I’m like, you know, ‘Come on!'”

Could Greg’s remarks be a hidden message about the rumored plot of the film centering on a young Kirk and Spock? He isn’t saying.

Being an old friend, Grunberg has appeared as a cast member in the past on several of J.J.’s projects including “Felicity,” “Alias,” “LOST” and the movie “Mission Impossible III.” I guess you could say Greg is to Abrams as Bruce Campbell is to Raimi.

Will he do a cameo in this movie? “He’s going to find something for me,” Grunberg said. “We joked about that, with Bob and Alex and J.J. We were all out, and I said, ‘Look, if you think I’m going to sit through eight hours of makeup for two lines, forget it.’ And Bob goes, ‘Oh, no, you will.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, well, I guess [I] will.’ But hopefully they’ll give me something….”I want to be a bad guy!” Grunberg said. “It would be great to have some great role. But people are coming out of the woodwork. Amazing actors are coming out from everywhere calling J.J. and saying, ‘I want to be in this movie!’ … So, yeah, we’ll see.”