Justin Lin to Direct ‘Star Trek 3’!
This week film journalism arguably became (one of, let’s not get carried away) the most important subject in the national conversation. It has been a hell of a week, from the surreal to the maddening, and it’s hard to look at any movie news without getting a bit frustrated at the state of affairs. But Deadline just reported something that has made my heart sing: Justin Lin, currently directing True Detective season two but renowned for every Fast & Furious film since Tokyo Drift will helm Star Trek 3.
Almost everything about this is awesome.
From Deadline:
He is available because he was going to direct the sequel to The Bourne Legacy spinoff with Jeremy Renner, but that film got postponed when Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass agreed to do another installment of The Bourne Identity, which Universal wants to come first. Lin was courted to return to the Fast & Furious franchise to do a multi-part finale, but I am not sure whether that will be in the cards in light of the Star Trek job. Orci remains a producer on the Star Trek film.
Where do I begin with my excitement? I love the Fast & Furious movies. It’s a wildly misunderstood series, mistaken for something to leave on the TV while you do yard work or chores. But it’s not! It is, without pretense, the most fun and ever-changing blockbuster franchise that warps your perception of what these films are all about with each installment. The action pieces are brilliantly put-together, and the central characters ooze charm. You want to be invited to their barbecues.
But what of Lin? Thought to be a dying series after 2 Fast 2 Furious, Lin transformed the Fast movies starting with Tokyo Drift, also a totally misunderstood movie. It comes off as the most direct-to-DVD of the entire franchise, but it’s a wonderful film and a door to a whole other world that exists in the crazy Fast universe. Had Lin stopped at Tokyo Drift his selection to direct Star Trek 3 would still be in question, even I would admit. But it was the crazy-awesome Fast Five and Fast & Furious 6 that legitimizes Lin as the guy to do Star Trek 3. Next to The Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, both Fast Five and Fast & Furious 6 are expert demonstrations on ensemble action blockbusters. How do you make a compelling action movie with a wide cast of characters? If you’re an aspiring creative, take notes and watch the last two Fast movies. How Lin managed to make goofs driving willy-nilly compelling and visceral is outstanding.
Lastly, on the subject of ethnicity. It’s incredible, at least to me, that the Fast series, one of Hollywood’s leading franchises, has largely been directed by people of color. Roberto Orci is Latino, but without a proven track record as director it was hard to get excited for him as a creative. Lin, one of the top contenders of blockbuster filmmaking, has without a doubt proved he can do a film as massive as Star Trek, and his choosing honors Star Trek and sci-fi in general from their own lessons in progressive social politics. On that note, I urge you to watch Justin Lin’s Better Luck Tomorrow, an excellent film that can kickstart any conversation about Asian-Americans and the bullshit “model minority.”
Even if that’s not your jive, come on, the dude who made the best episode of Community is now doing Star Trek. Get hyped.
