According to an article in Variety, Paramount is in the process of producing a new Star Trek movie for release in 2008.

I have mixed feelings about this. Here is what I see as the pros and cons of a new Star Trek movie:

Pros:
1. Berman and Braga are not involved. A new creative team is being brought in to reinvigorate the franchise.

2. The new creative team, headed by Lost creator J.J. Abrams has a proven track record and has the potential to put something really good out there.

3. It will be three years between the cancellation of Enterprise and the release of the new movie. That seems to be a reasonable "break" for Star Trek.

Cons:
1. The story is yet another rehash of the "Starfleet Academy" storyline that has been hanging around since Harve Bennett brought it up about 15 years ago. The story will center around young Kirk and Spock.

2. The actors playing Kirk and Spock will have a tremendous amount of pressure on them, following in Shatner and Nimoy's footsteps. How do they play these iconic roles? Do them imitate the originals or go their own way? I'm glad I'm not the one who will have to make these decisions.

3. The idea of someone other than Shatner and Nimoy playing Kirk and Spock is unsettling to me. It's one thing in a fan produced episode, but something totally different when it's Paramount produced, "canon" Trek. Can't we have a transporter accident like the one in the TNG episode where Picard, Guinan, Ro and Keiko get turned into kids de-age Shatner and Nimoy?

I don't know. I'm hopeful that Abrams and his group will bring Star Trek back to what it should be, but I'm nervous about the story idea. I guess we'll just have to wait until 2008 to find out.