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Star Trek Sequel Scoop: Stars Still Waiting to See Script

Exclusive! J.J. Abrams admits he was never contracted to direct follow-up to his reboot of the sci-fi franchise

By Marc Malkin Dec 05, 2011 7:28 PMTags
Star Trek, CastIndustrial Light and Magic / Paramount Pictures

The cast and crew of Star Trek sure do trust director J.J. Abrams.

They start shooting the much-anticipated sequel to his reboot of the sci-fi franchise next month, but...

No one has read the script yet!

It's not like they don't want to.

"I'm sure before we finish shooting, I'll see one," John Cho laughed the other night at the Children's Defense Fund-California's Beat the Odds Awards at the Beverly Hills Hotel. "Maybe we'll get a clue tonight. I'd be curious to know whether I'm in it. That'd be the greatest gift bag of all time."

As if.

It was a Trek reunion of sorts at the gala with Zoe Saldana, Zachary Quinto and Anton Yelchin also there. Abrams and his wife, Katie McGrath, cochaired the event.

Alice Eve, rumored to be playing a new character in the sequel, hit the red carpet, but declined to do interviews.

"That's a good question," Yelchin said when asked what fans should expect in the follow-up. "Your guess is good as mine."

Speaking of guessing, Abrams shot down a report that Benicio Del Toro will be playing villain Khan Noonien Singh, telling HitFix, "Not true."

Abrams admitted to me that he was never obligated to direct the sequel. "I was always hoping to, but until I read the script it was hard to be able to say definitely," he said. "So it was great to read it and get that feeling that you hope to get when you read a script."

Where the heck is said script? "It's out there somewhere," he smiled. "I'm sure there's one in a safe somewhere."