Here’s a day many of us never thought we’d see–long-time “Star Trek” detractor Harlan Ellison has offered his writing services for the next installment in the popular franchise.
“If anyone out there thinks this melding has legs, let Abrams or anyone else with the chops to get in touch with me directly,” Ellison said. “I am without full-time film-agent representation, by choice, at the moment; so if the job presents itself, I will work for pay.”
Ellison wrote the popular “City on the Edge of Forever” for the original “Trek” and was vocally annoyed when producer Gene Roddenberry made changes to the original script. Ellison has sued Paramount at various points over the years for using his concept and idea of the Guardian in various “Trek” spin-off novels and other tie-in merchandise. Ellison got a settlement for his latest lawsuit last year.
No word yet from Abrams on whether they’ll take Ellison up on his offer.
I’m all for this. Ellison’s a prickly bastard but he’s a sharp storyteller with a vast imagination. This could be epic. Given his litigious nature though, I have a hard time believing a studio would run the risk of working with him on something this lucrative.
Where and when did he make the offer? Was this an off-the-cuff remark at a book signing or was it part of an interview? Context matters. Still, it’s an interesting possibility to ponder. Is the world ready for the reunion of Ellison and Trek? I’d like to think so, but J.J. Abrams is the local god these days.
Given Harlan’s enormous talent this would be a dream come true for we fans of both Ellison & Star Trek. After all,there’s a reason why his script for the original Trek series “City On the Edge of Forever” is ranked the number one episode for the show as well as one of the finest sf works ever done for TV.
Ellison has the talent to pull this off. But quite frankly, I think he needs Trek more than Trek needs him right now. He’s rapidly becoming less known as a writer and more known as the guy who’s suing the entire industry and the web.
Ellison is a brilliant writer.
While I agree Trek doesn’t necessarily need him, I think getting him to pen the next movie would be a *huge* win.
He is still sharp and relevant, and while he is very abrasive, outspoken and likes to sue people, I would slap my $10 down to see the next movie without blinking if he wrote it.
Lets face it – Trek 2009 wasn’t exactly a home run in terms of quality of the plot (Red Matter, I’m looking at YOU). Characterization was great, and all in all a good reboot. Now they’re talking about Khan in Trek 2? WHY?
I loved TWOK as much as the next guy, but I’d much rather see something new and original.