Simon Pegg wants to return for Star Trek 4 and is waiting to hear news on the project. Pegg plays the role of the USS Enterprise chief engineer, Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, the role originally made famous the late, great James Doohan. Pegg first played the role in 2009's Star Trek and reprised his role in 2013's Star Trek Into Darkness and 2016's Star Trek Beyond where he also served as the film's co-writer alongside Doug Jung.
Paramount Pictures has been trying to get a new Star Trek film off the ground since before the release of Star Trek Beyond. The latest entry in the franchise has seen multiple directors sign on, including S.J. Clarkson and Noah Hawley, and at one point, Quentin Tarantino even had a pitch for a new Star Trek film separate from the Kelvin timeline continuity. In 2021, it was confirmed that WandaVision director Matt Shakman would helm the next Star Trek film with a screenplay by Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson-Dworet.
During a recent interview with Collider to promote the new Disney+ original film, Ice Age: Adventures of Buck Wild, Pegg was asked if he knew anything about Star Trek 4. Pegg revealed he is still waiting to hear news about the project. He is eager to return to the franchise and tell more stories in the Kelvin universe, although admits it will be a little sad since the passing of Anton Yelchin, who played Pavel Chekov. Pegg said:
"I don't know much. I've met Matt briefly and seems like a great guy. I love the work he did on WandaVision. It's always waiting with these things, because the world is an uncertain place. COVID's thrown everything into a spin. There's so many factors that have to align in order for these things to happen. I'm just quietly waiting for news basically. And I texted J.J. the other day and said, 'Tell me what's happening.' He's just like, 'We're waiting for news.' I'd love to see more adventures in the Kelvin universe. Obviously, any chance I get to work with those actors is... I'll leap at it, albeit it's going to be a little sad this time, but stay tuned."
Little is known about Star Trek 4, although Paramount set a December 22, 2023 release date for the project, meaning casting and filming would have to begin soon to meet the film's release date. Bad Robot is producing the film, and with J.J Abrams' involvement in the film, it highly suggests the movie will be set within the Kelvin timeline as opposed to the original series' Prime Universe, which is continuing on television in the form of the various Paramount+ streaming series. It is currently unknown if the plan is to focus on a new crew or bring back the cast of the reboot series.
It has been seven years since the release of Star Trek Beyond, which would tie with the wait between Star Trek: Nemesis and J.J Abrams' reboot for the longest gap between Star Trek films. Part of the reasons Star Trek 4 faced such a difficult development was getting the cast back together. Talks broke down between Chris Pine and Paramount back in 2018 over salary negotiations, although both Pine and Zachary Quinto have expressed interest in returning to the franchise. The cast of Kelvin Star Trek films have now been away from their roles almost as long as the cast of the original Star Trek series was before they returned for Star Trek: The Motion Picture, so there is a precedent in the franchise history for actors returning to their iconic roles after years away.
Source: Collider