Logan On Trek X: Playing With Paramount's Toys

Writing the tenth Trek feature film was a new experience for John Logan, who recently spoke about why writing for established characters was a challenge.

"A friend of mine," Logan told SFX Magazine (via the Great Link). "Who had written a James Bond movie said, `Look, the only thing about a franchise movie is that when you take the toys out of the toy box, you have to put them back in the same way. You can't mess anything up.' Which is absolutely not what we're doing in 'Nemesis'."

"I think it's to Paramount's credit that they agreed that we should make a strong statement with this movie and recognise that there is a continuum with these characters," he continued. "We're moving on with them and we should underline that at certain points. My personal favourite Trek film is 'Star Trek II' - that's the one I looked back on and studied. What makes a good Trek film is what makes any good adventure film, which is a really strong adversary."

The second Trek feature contained another great character element for Logan. "I think the smartest thing ever done in a Trek film was when Nick Meyer gave Captain Kirk glasses in 'Star Trek II'," he explained. "That said: `These characters are getting older, they're moving on in their lives.' The same with these characters, they're not just stuck in that Next Generation world that we're so used to in the TV show."

"They have a life that moves on, they have careers, they have romantic lives, they have demons - they have all of these things they're grappling with. I think in this movie we're acknowledging that and celebrating the fact that life is moving on for these characters."

More from John Logan, including his thoughts on the action elements in the film and on shocking Rick Berman, can be found in the latest edition of SFX Magazine on sale now in the UK. Alternatively, a transcript is online here at the Great Link.

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