Star Trek 4's Cancellation Means The End Of My Biggest Kelvin Timeline Wish
By Dan Bibby
November 6th, 2025
While I shouldn't really be surprised that Star Trek 4 has finally been axed after years of being stuck in production hell, I was still shocked when I saw the news. According to a piece by Variety on the current state of Paramount, the studio has decided to move on "from the idea of bringing back Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto and the rest of the ensemble from the J.J. Abrams reboot." So, the movies that saw the introduction of and fleshing out of Star Trek's Kelvin Timeline have ended as an accidental trilogy.
For those who don't know, J.J. Abrams' first Star Trek movie in 2009 acted as a soft reboot of the franchise, during an era when the saga had no active TV shows. The project, rather than being a traditional reimagining, ended up adding to the Star Trek multiverse, so the trilogy technically holds a place in the larger canon. The 2009 effort and its two sequels replaced every member of Star Trek: The Original Series' cast with younger actors — although Leonard Nimoy did reprise his role as OG Spock in Abrams' universe, sharing the character with Zachary Quinto.
It was a very cool formula that wasn't used to its fullest potential. The second two movies all but moved on from the revelation that they were set in an alternate Star Trek reality, choosing instead to focus on telling stories that were somewhere between familiar and brand new. The Kelvin Timeline never really addressed any era other than its take on The Original Series, but I was quietly hoping it would a little further down the line. That looks impossible now.
For those who don't know, J.J. Abrams' first Star Trek movie in 2009 acted as a soft reboot of the franchise, during an era when the saga had no active TV shows. The project, rather than being a traditional reimagining, ended up adding to the Star Trek multiverse, so the trilogy technically holds a place in the larger canon. The 2009 effort and its two sequels replaced every member of Star Trek: The Original Series' cast with younger actors — although Leonard Nimoy did reprise his role as OG Spock in Abrams' universe, sharing the character with Zachary Quinto.
It was a very cool formula that wasn't used to its fullest potential. The second two movies all but moved on from the revelation that they were set in an alternate Star Trek reality, choosing instead to focus on telling stories that were somewhere between familiar and brand new. The Kelvin Timeline never really addressed any era other than its take on The Original Series, but I was quietly hoping it would a little further down the line. That looks impossible now.
I'd Have Loved To See The Kelvin Timeline Tackle Other Star Trek Shows After The Original Series
The destruction of the USS Kelvin in Abrams' first Star Trek movie is what served as the point of divergence between the franchise's Prime Universe and the timeline that has come to be named by Trekkies after the unfortunate vessel. It caused the two realities to gradually drift apart from the other, and because the USS Kelvin was lost decades before the events of the Original Series era, the crew of the USS Enterprise in the Kelvin Timeline experienced a very different version of events compared to their Prime Universe counterparts.
So, it stands to reason that the Kelvin Timeline would look even more different by the time it reached Star Trek's 24th century stories like those told in The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. Even Star Trek: Picard and Lower Decks would be included in this group, but TOS prequels like Enterprise would be unaffected. I think it would have been fascinating to see how the Kelvin Timeline movies would have approached recasting iconic characters like Patrick Stewart's Captain Jean-Luc Picard, and the adventures the original character had already experienced in the Prime Universe with his crew.
Paramount have stated that it's still the plan to make a "fresh Star Trek" movie, despite Star Trek 4 no longer being a part of the studio's future. This could technically mean a 24th century Kelvin Timeline project, but even I will admit that I'd be clutching at straws if I interpreted Paramount's words in that way. I think what's more likely is that a new Star Trek movie set in the Prime Universe is on the way — I only hope it's a massive improvement on Star Trek: Section 31 from earlier this year.
So, it stands to reason that the Kelvin Timeline would look even more different by the time it reached Star Trek's 24th century stories like those told in The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. Even Star Trek: Picard and Lower Decks would be included in this group, but TOS prequels like Enterprise would be unaffected. I think it would have been fascinating to see how the Kelvin Timeline movies would have approached recasting iconic characters like Patrick Stewart's Captain Jean-Luc Picard, and the adventures the original character had already experienced in the Prime Universe with his crew.
Paramount have stated that it's still the plan to make a "fresh Star Trek" movie, despite Star Trek 4 no longer being a part of the studio's future. This could technically mean a 24th century Kelvin Timeline project, but even I will admit that I'd be clutching at straws if I interpreted Paramount's words in that way. I think what's more likely is that a new Star Trek movie set in the Prime Universe is on the way — I only hope it's a massive improvement on Star Trek: Section 31 from earlier this year.
It's Probably For The Best That Star Trek's Kelvin Timeline Is Over
I am still a very big fan of the Kelvin Timeline movies. However, it's tough to ignore that, while the premise is sound, the execution is a little nonsensical. Specifically, recasting every TOS character is logical on paper, but it doesn't really explain why Zachary Quinto's Spock will somehow grow into looking like Leonard Nimoy, which is what the series sets up to happen with their conversation in the first movie. That train of thought can then be applied to every other member of the Kelvin Timeline's Enterprise, including Kirk transforming from Chris Pine into William Shatner within the same timeline — when, really, Kirk would already look like Shatner in the 2009 effort.
I could talk about this temporal dissonance all day, but I won't. Instead, I'll point out a more pragmatic reason why I think Star Trek 4 isn't going ahead anymore. Since 2016's Star Trek Beyond, the franchise has exploded once again into a small-screen juggernaut, and the Prime Universe has returned to prominence. Among the myriad of Star Trek shows is Strange New Worlds.
While Strange New Worlds is technically a Discovery spinoff, it's more accurate to consider it a direct prequel to The Original Series. As Strange New Worlds goes on, it's growing closer and closer to the events of TOS, and there have even been rumors of a plan to blend the two eras when the time comes. If Star Trek 4 were to go ahead, there would be three sets of actors relevantly known for playing active franchise icons.
For example, let's say Strange New Worlds does transition seamlessly into the events of TOS, with the former showing previously unseen adventures from the show that started it all. That would mean Paul Wesley playing Captain Kirk, when the character SHOULD have Shatner's face by that point. It's simple enough to forgive that quirk, but if Chris Pine is also parading around as Kelvin Kirk, the franchise starts to eat its own tail and spit it back out again. So, with the saga doing just fine without a new Abrams movie since 2016, it makes sense that Strange New Worlds has been permitted to continue filling the Original Series hole that was once intended for Star Trek 4.
I could talk about this temporal dissonance all day, but I won't. Instead, I'll point out a more pragmatic reason why I think Star Trek 4 isn't going ahead anymore. Since 2016's Star Trek Beyond, the franchise has exploded once again into a small-screen juggernaut, and the Prime Universe has returned to prominence. Among the myriad of Star Trek shows is Strange New Worlds.
While Strange New Worlds is technically a Discovery spinoff, it's more accurate to consider it a direct prequel to The Original Series. As Strange New Worlds goes on, it's growing closer and closer to the events of TOS, and there have even been rumors of a plan to blend the two eras when the time comes. If Star Trek 4 were to go ahead, there would be three sets of actors relevantly known for playing active franchise icons.
For example, let's say Strange New Worlds does transition seamlessly into the events of TOS, with the former showing previously unseen adventures from the show that started it all. That would mean Paul Wesley playing Captain Kirk, when the character SHOULD have Shatner's face by that point. It's simple enough to forgive that quirk, but if Chris Pine is also parading around as Kelvin Kirk, the franchise starts to eat its own tail and spit it back out again. So, with the saga doing just fine without a new Abrams movie since 2016, it makes sense that Strange New Worlds has been permitted to continue filling the Original Series hole that was once intended for Star Trek 4.
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