To promote the release of Star Trek today on DVD, Blu-ray, and digital download, the cast and crew have once again stepped into public to let us know where the U.S.S. Enterprise is heading next.  First, a bit of sad but not totally unexpected news: We probably won’t see Star Trek 2 until 2012.  It is a bit of a bummer considering that we’ve grown accustomed to a breakout hit having its sequel ready in two years time.  The bright side is that they won’t be rushed and can really put their time into making this film better than the first.

Hit the jump for more about the sequel’s villains, timeline, and the tone the filmmakers want to set.

For today’s “geek gifts”, I’ve located an interesting item for any Star Trek fan.  Over at Payless, they’ve just released Star Trek sneakers.  Seriously.  According to the press release:

Taking inspiration from the iconic Starship Enterprise, the Terrain Starfleet Enterprise style is part of the STPL x Airwalk line  –  a unique, street-meets-skate collection designed exclusively by street style icon and New York-based designer jeffstaple — and is offered in three colors (red, blue and gold) inspired by Starfleet uniforms worn by the Starship Enterprise crew in the classic television series and this summer’s blockbuster film. The eye-catching high-top sneaker will retail for $49.99 at select Payless ShoeSource stores and online at Payless.com, while supplies last.  The style is available in men’s sizes 6.5-13 and features genuine suede with canvas accents, two tone laces, breathable mesh lining and a super cushiony collar, tongue and insole for comfort and style.  The style also carries the Airwalk and STPL x Airwalk brands, as well as the Starship Enterprise uniform insignia.  The gold version is an online exclusive available for a limited time at payless.com

Bigger images of the sneakers after the jump:

“Star Trek” should have a very nice Tuesday, November 17^th when the DVD and Blu-ray of the film hit stores.  But which store will get your space bucks?  With such a major release, a variety of retailers are offering extra incentives to get you to buy your copy of “Star Trek” at their store.  So not only do you have the choice between the 1-Disc, 2-Disc Digital Copy Edition, or the 3-Disc Blu-ray + Digital Copy edition,  you have the choice of which retailer will give you the best bonus.  Which path will you choose?  Hit the jump for your options.

At tonight’s 2009 Scream Awards (airing on SPIKE TV October 27^th) I was able to interview a number of people on the red carpet. While I already posted my interview with Jackie Earle Haley talking about the Sinestro rumor, I also got to speak with Karl Urban and was able to get an update on the “Star Trek” sequel and “Priest”. According to Karl, the plan is still for a draft of the screenplay to be turned into the studio this December and he hopes to be filming mid to late next year. He said the hope is for the sequel to be released in 2011. And for fans of “Priest”, he talked about how that movie has been going. Watch what he had to say after the jump.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen earned over $820 million at the box office and become the #1 movie of the year in North America and throughout the world. Star Trek is the eighth-highest-grossing film of 2009 and has become the highest-grossing film in the series.

The writers responsible for both of those films, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman talked about their DVD releases, during a recent press day at the Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica. The two compared their processes for each of the films, along with their approach to making existing material interesting and new for audiences. They also talked about their history with “Star Trek” and covered a lot of subjects the fans will find interesting. Here’s what they had to say:

This year’s reboot of the Star Trek franchise, under the guidance of director J.J. Abrams, proved that new eyes could make something that has already been around for 10 films, fresh and exciting again. Abrams’ sensational re-invention was hailed by critics and embraced by both long-time fans and newcomers to the Star Trek world. With an exciting cast, including the original Spock himself, Leonard Nimoy, the success of the film left fans highly anticipating its sequel.

While Abrams and writers Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman are busy trying to determine the story for the next Star Trek film, the director took time out to talk about the special features on the upcoming DVD/Blu-Ray release on November 17^th. Here’s what he had to say ……..

If Robert Downey Jr. has taught us anything, it’s that no actor should be trapped by just one franchise.  An actor can be the star of any series that will likely require a three-picture deal and that doesn’t mean they won’t get to do any smaller projects.  Through the magic of cloning, any actor can be in at least three or four major movies every year.  Chris Pine has apparently discovered this cloning as he is in talks to star in Paramount’s attempt to once again reboot Tom Clancy’s “Jack Ryan” franchise.  Hit the jump to boldly go where no one has gone before AND save America from freedom-haters.

A gag reel for director J.J. Abrams “Star Trek” has hit the net. The reel runs over six minutes and features some pretty funny stuff. And a lot of dancing. You’ll see. If you’re not familiar with how a movie gets made, everyone works very long hours. Some days you might be on set for 16 hours with not many breaks. By the end, you’re loopy. I think some of the dancing in this gag reel must have been from some of those days.

But the two highlights of the reel are some shots from the deleted scenes of the movie and also getting to see what it was really like on set. The video is definitely worth watching if you enjoyed the film. “Star Trek” hits DVD and Blu-ray November 17^th,

At a press day for the upcoming DVD releases of both Star Trek (out on DVD and Blu-Ray on November 17^th) and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (out on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 20^th) writer/producers Robert Orci and Alex Kurtzman took time to preview their upcoming release schedule.

While still trying to break stories for the Star Trek sequel, the twosome are pushing their next project, Cowboys and Aliens, into production with director Jon Favreau, are working on developing a View-Master film, and also oversee at least a couple episodes of the television series Fringe each season. What they had to say is after the jump:

The phenomenally successful re-imagining of the legendary adventures captured in Star Trek will be coming to DVD and Blu-Ray on November 17^th. Although it is too early to talk about the specifics of the special features and extras that will be included on the 2-disc DVD and 3-disc Blu-Ray, in speaking to members of the press this afternoon at the Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica, writer/director/producer J.J. Abrams gave some insight into the plans for the forthcoming Star Trek sequel, the possibility of it being done in 3-D and what he sees his involvement with the franchise being, for the foreseeable future. And, with so many other projects on his schedule, the prolific storyteller also touched on Mission: Impossible 4, Fringe and his latest television pilot, just sold to NBC. Hit the jump to read what he said:

You can now buy your 4 day Comic-Con 2010 pass now for $100.  Sure, Comic-Con is still almost an year away, but I can guarantee you that it’s safer to buy your passes as early as you can before it’s too late.  I’ve never been to the mecca of all things geek, but I do know that it’s a pain to get a pass and that passes were already selling out 3 months in advance this year.  I only expect it to get more difficult this year as Comic-Con only gets more popular each year.  If you know you are already going for sure, then why not get your passes now?  If something comes up there is always Ebay and people who were not as smart as you and waited until the Con was six months away.

Hit the jump to get on getting passes and if you need convicing for some reason you can also read Matt’s reasons you should go.

Few films have ever been as universally well received as J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek”, a terrific scifi action flick that captured the attention of long time Trekers and at the same time satisfied general audiences with its dazzling effects, charismatic leads, dynamic direction, and tell me warp didn’t kick your ass. So it comes as no surprise that sequel rumblings have started spreading throughout the interwebs. But now, we have solid talk from the filmmakers themselves about what a sequel to the successful series reboot, with director J.J. Abrams and writer Roberto Orci talking about the follow up. Perhaps the most surprising news is some of the directions discussed for the next film, which could involve an exploration of current themes of terrorism and politicized war, according to Orci, saying “We’re trying to keep it as up-to-date and as reflective of what’s going on today as possible. So that’s one thing, to make it reflect the things that we are all dealing with today“. For more from Orci and Abrams, as well as more potential story ideas, gun it to maximum warp and hit the jump.

A few days ago, I was able to speak with Zoe Saldana with a few other reporters. While most of what we talked about is under embargo, I’m able to post her talking about how excited she is to make another “Star Trek” movie and her reaction to “Avatar” day a few weeks ago. Read what Zoe said after the jump:

With only hours to go before Hollywood’s golden season draws to a close, I thought it was a good time to do the post-mortem on the summer of 2009.  By now you may have heard that this summer was Hollywood’s most-profitable ever with grosses topping $4.3 billion. But has it felt like the biggest summer ever?  Not really.  Blockbusters like “Transformers 2″ and “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” aside, 2009 was a season of expensive movies that didn’t live up to the hype and cheap movies that performed above all expectations.  Follow me now into the murky world of box office number crunching to see just how huge Hollywood’s hugest summer really was.

Someone at Paramount must like me. I didn’t have time to see “Star Trek” on IMAX, when it came out May 8, but now I just might. The franchise reboot is getting another run on around 100 IMAX locations this Friday. The reason for the title coming back to the big big screen is pretty simple: it broke IMAX records in May, opening with $8.5 million domestically in its first weekend and continued strong. Unfortunately, it was shelved after only two weeks due to previous commitments with Fox to release “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.” Most films get a four week theatrical run, and now that the summer season has cooled, “Star Trek” will pick up its remaining weeks. More excitement after the jump.

Last night I covered the special “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” screening at Mann’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood. While there I was able to interview tons of the cast on the red carpet and the interview you’re about to watch is with the beautiful Rachel Nichols.

During our interview she talked about being in “Star Trek” this summer, the promotional tour for “G.I. Joe”, her next film “Meskada” with Nick Stahl, and she continued Marlon Wayans conversation about Japanese bathrooms. Seriously. Of course we talked about other subjects; those are just some of the highlights. Take a look after the jump: