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‘Star Trek 2′ Villain Finally Revealed (Spoilers!)

Travis Woods — Tue, 01 May 2012 15:28:44 +0000

One of the more hotly debated elements concerning the upcoming sequel to J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot was who, exactly, was the villain? After Eric Bana’s not so memorable turn as a pointy-eared tattoo enthusiast hellbent on traveling through time to destroy the home planet of a guy who just couldn’t save Bana’s civilization in time (so, what, revenge for someone’s inadequacy, I guess?) in the original film, Star Trek 2 definitely needs an strong villainous anchor to hold the piece together. And now, it seems, that villain’s name has finally been leaked, after much speculation. Spoilers after the jump.

It’s long been rumored that the villain would be Khan—Ricardo Montalban’s big bad from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (long considered the best villain and the best film in the Trek series). When word broke that Benicio del Toro might be cast as Khan, and then Benedict Cumberbatch was finally cast as the villain, and shots were leaked showing him in combat with Spock, many assumed the baddie was Khan.

Now, one of the top Trek sites on the web, TrekMovie, seems to have gotten their hands on the name of Star Trek 2’s villain via multiple sources. Again, here there be spoilers:

TrekMovie has confirmed this with a number of sources so we no longer consider it to be a rumor. Khan is back in 2013, however sources indicate that the film is not a rehash of “Space Seed,” the original Star Trek episode where Kirk and crew first encounter the genetic superman from the past.

Well, there you have it. No altogether surprising, but still, it’s news. That said, while Khan was the finest, most potent and dangerous villain of the original series (not counting the ravages of age and overeating that hit Shatner around Trek III), it’s going to be hard to top Montalban’s indelible and melodramatic turn as Khan, a genetically-engineered tyrant of Earth’s 20^th century who cryogenically froze himself into the future and attempted to commandeer the Enterprise and kill Kirk.

Further, it would be nice to see this reboot establish its own set of villains (unless Bana is the best they can do). Oh well—we’ll find out how well it works when the film is released on May 17, 2013.

What do you think of Khan as a villain in Star Trek 2?

Source: /Film

Bryan Singer And ‘Heroes’ Producer To Reboot ‘Star Trek’ For TV?

Travis Woods — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:36:35 +0000

Potentially exciting news for fans of Star Trek and science fiction television: on the heels of the successfully rebooted Star Trek film franchise (2009’s Star Trek nearly made $400 million worldwide, with a highly anticipated sequel set for a May 2013 release), Bryan Singer and Heroes producer Bryan Fuller are currently discussing a potential new Star Trek television series.

Singer (who did wonders for the X-Men franchise with X-Men and X-2, not so much for Superman Returns, and whose Jack the Giant Killer is currently in post-production) and Fuller (who is also producing the upcoming Hannibal Lector TV series for NBC) are now in talks, hashing out a potential Star Trek TV series. It’s currently unknown as to whether or not the television series would be a reboot of a previous Trek series, set in the current “alternate timeline” of the rebooted film series, or would take place in the “original timeline” of the five previous series (Star Trek, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise).

Also unclear as to whether or not such a series would even get a green light, as according to Fuller, it would be wisely under J.J. Abrams‘ purview of what happens. He’s the guardian of Trek right now.” And since Abrams might be a just a tad busy crafting a new and successful Star Trek film franchise, a weekly TV may be put in the backseat.

As for the plot of the series, all Fuller would reveal in a recent interview is that “Bryan and I are big fans of Trek and have discussed a take on what we would do, and we would love to do it…I don’t think anything is going to happen in any official capacity until after the next movie comes out.” So let the ceaseless online speculation now begin!

Would you want to see a new Star Trek franchise?

Source: Coming Soon

First Photos From Star Trek 2 Set Reveals First Look At The Villain

Damon Houx — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:35:44 +0000

Though we still have no idea what the film is about and who Benedict Cumberbatch is playing, the first photos from Star Trek 2 have arrived (from MTV), and they show that Cumberbatch must be some kind of villain. He seems to be in conflict with Zachary Quinto‘s Spock, but maybe Spock is just trying to restrain him because he’s super upset about getting a parking ticket.

Then again, when Zoe Saldana‘s Uhura also has a gun on you, it’s probably not all friendly.

The first word out was that the villain of the piece was Khan Noonien Singh, as played so memorably by Ricardo Montalban in both the TV series and in the movie series’s first sequel, but that may have been scuttled. Cumberbatch appears to be wearing a Starfleet outfit so it’s possible he’s renegade Starfleet personnel, or he may have stolen (or been given) a uniform.

Star Trek 2 is scheduled to open May 17, 2013, so we’re a ways away, and the soonest we could conceivably see a trailer is sometime this summer. How much leaks about the film between now and release is likely to be that much smaller because of photos like this, which point out that J.J. Abrams is right to want to keep details on lock. My guess is that there will probably be a Star Trek presence at Comic-con this year, and that’s the place where an official synopsis and the reveal of Comberbatch’s character will come. Then again, if Cumberbatch is playing someone in the established universe – be it Harry Mudd or Khan – that may say too much. Still, these shots look exciting, right?

What are you most excited for in 2013?

The Top 10 Most Berserk Computers In Film

Travis Woods — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:50:33 +0000

Computers. As is the case with sentient robots, cinema has warned us repeatedly that the instant we give our Macs, iPads, X-Boxes and missile defense systems the ability to think on their own, that’s pretty much the end of humanity as we know it. Film after film, from sci-fi warnings to horror fantasias to action adventures, self-aware computers have been portrayed as instantly godlike beings who quickly recognize the obsolescence of human beings, and become hell-bent on our destruction (often sending California governors back in time to assassinate our teenage saviors). In fact, there have been so many berserker computers in cinema that we were able to cull together a list of our favorites—in the insane-computer-genre, these baddies rank as the best.

10. The Ultimate Computer (Superman III, 1983)

Ok, usually, in the berserk computer genre, it’s the computer that’s totally insane. There are, however, exceptions—such as the case in Superman III, in which it is the film itself that is, for lack of a better term, nuts. Imagine this: Supes foils new villain Ross Webster’s plans to control the world’s coffee bean supply (seriously, it gets even better). In a rage, Webster hires tech wiz Richard Pryor (really) to generate some Kryptonite, which accidentally splits Superman into two men—a “good” Supes and a bad “Supes.” Pryor then builds the Ultimate Computer, a device which should be able to zap both Supermen with a Kryptonite ray and kill them (deep breath, this is only half the madness). Pryor then changes his mind at the last minute and destroys the Ultimate Computer’s Kryptonite ray, and so the computer does the only logical thing—it eats Ross Webster’s sister and spits her out as a killer cyborg in the film’s most deranged scene. Yes, you read that right—ate her, and digested her as a cyborg. You just can’t top that.

9. ARIA (Eagle Eye,2008)

Let’s be honest—Eagle Eye is pretty overwhelmingly terrible. Its ridiculously convoluted story would take up about half this post, what with it’s tale of ARIA (that’s Autonomous Reconnaissance Intelligence Integration Analyst, to you), a self-aware missile defense system that can control any networked device in the world (from cell phones to automated construction cranes) that decides to wipe out the entire executive branch of the U.S. government because the president willfully bombed civilians in the middle east. What makes ARIA a keeper, then? Her ultimate goal (for reasons too confusing to go into here) includes the murder of Shia Labeouf and his twin brother. Two dead Shias for the price of one movie? Bless you, ARIA, bless you.

8. Queeg 500 (Red Dwarf, 1988)

In the oddball sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf, we watch the cast and crew of the Red Dwarf starship get by with their “intelligent computer,” Holly. However, when Holly’s inefficiency (due to “computer senility”) puts the crew in danger, the back-up computer system, Queeg 500, kicks in to bring some efficiency to the RD. However, Queeg’s style leaves a little to be desired—he forces the crew to scrub the ship before any food will become available, and morning workouts become mandatory. After seemingly killing Holly, Queeg disappeares—turns out he was just a prank pulled by Holly, who wanted to teach the Red Dwarf crew a lesson about appreciating a slightly less efficient (but much less insane) computer.

7. Master Control Program (Tron, 1982)

Come on—it’s the original Tron. And it’s the villain, which is also cool. And it’s voiced by David Warner, which is even cooler. And it decides to—of course—take over the world because it can run things “900 to 1,200 times better than any human.” And it’s a giant spinning red face! So, to recap the MCP: Tron, bad guy, David Warner, world domination, big weird spinning head. How awesome is that?

6. Proteus IV (Demon Seed, 1977)

Scientist creates Proteus IV self-aware computer system to cure leukemia. Proteus IV grows and learns at an exponential rate. Proteus IV kidnaps scientist’s wife. Proteus IV (deep breath) impregnates scientist’s wife. Seriously, you just have to see it to believe it. Oh, and you’ll probably want to take about 50 showers afterwards.

5. “The Machines” (The Matrix franchise, 1999 – 2003)

There’s no real name for the collective of self-aware machine baddies who, after a prolonged war with humanity, eventually succeed and begin harvesting humans for the energy our bodies naturally generate. They did give a name for our prison, however—The Matrix, an artificial reality that keeps humans under control by allowing them to believe that they are living out their lives in the late 1990s. We see a few faces of the enemy throughout the franchise—from the evil, insane Agent Smith (who goes from policing the Matrix to attempting to control it) to the arrogant and pompous Architect (the program which designed the Matrix itself). And while the last couple of films in the series were major fumbles, the original Matrix—and the ominous, mysterious artificial intelligence that was behind it—remain high-water marks of sci-fi cinema.

4. WOPR/ Joshua (WarGames, 1983)

In WarGames, early ’80s teen hacker Matthew Broderick hacks into a computer system that he thinks is related to the video game industry, and begins playing several of the games, including one called Global Thermonuclear War. One problem, however: Broderick didn’t hack a gaming company, he contacted a self-aware system belonging to the U.S. military called WOPR (War Operation Plan Response), and WOPR isn’t playing any game—Global Thermonuclear War is a real program, and WOPR thinks that it is now at war with Russia. Broderick must then convince the entire U.S. military, along with the WOPR’s creator (who refers to it as “Joshua”) of what has happened, as well as convince WOPR/Joshua that it kinda sorta isn’t really totally necessary to go and start World War III, and to pretty please not obliterate Russia. An instant 80s classic.

3. V’Ger/ Voyager 6 (Star Trek: The Motion Picture, 1979)

In what is probably the most fascinating back story in this list, V’ger began life as Voyager 6, a 20^th century NASA probe. One day, Voyager 6 flew into a massive black hole and ended up on the other side of the universe, where it encountered a planet populated only by “living machines.” Assuming that the primitive probe was some kind of kindred spirit, the machines programmed Voyager 6 (which they called V’ger, as the “oya” in Voyager was obscured by space-dust) to “learn all that was learnable,” and, once that was accomplished, “return to its creator.” So V’ger spends a few hundred years with an infinite storage capacity learning everything there is to know about the universe, becomes self-aware, and generates a forcefield cloud around itself the size of half our solar system. Then it decided to return to Earth to find its creator, which V’ger assumes is God. Instead, V’ger finds William Shatner’s hairpiece and Leonard Nimoy’s fake ears and decides to wipe out the Earth in a rage. All of which is yet another reason why we probably shouldn’t let our PCs get too religious, apparently.

2. SkyNet (The Terminator franchise, 1984 – 2009)

Really, Arnie said it best in Terminator 2:

In three years, Cyberdyne will become the largest supplier of military computer systems. All stealth bombers are upgraded with Cyberdyne computers, becoming fully unmanned. Afterwards, they fly with a perfect operational record. The Skynet Funding Bill is passed. The system goes online on August 4th, 1997. Human decisions are removed from strategic defense. Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware 2:14 AM, Eastern time, August 29th. In a panic, they try to pull the plug.

After that, SkyNet nukes, well, the whole planet, and deals with pesky resistance leader John Conner by sending cyborgs in the past to murder him as both a fetus and a teenage boy. Then SkyNet decided the best way to torture and destroy humanity would be by releasing some of the most awful sequels to great films ever, Terminator3 : Rise of the Machines, and Terminator: Salvation. Humanity has yet to recover.

1. HAL 9000 (2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968)

Come on—you knew Hal would be No. 1 on this list. An AI computer onboard a spaceship bound for Jupiter in a mission which may lead to the discovery of extraterrestrial life, Hal runs the day-to-day operations of the vessel. When the crew discover there may be a flaw in Hal’s circuitry, the smooth-talking computer does what any living would try to do—protect itself. However, Hal goes the extreme route, and decides killing the entire crew would be the smart way to go, before he begins to go a bit insane. But hey, when he finally does get shut down, he shuts down in style, singing a showtune as he slowly powers down. Both sympathetic and disturbing, Hal is king of the crazy computers.

What is your favorite out of control computer in cinema?

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Benedict Cumberbatch Joins Star Trek 2

Damon Houx — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:00:27 +0000

It’s amazing how fast rumors become truth, but as of now this is what’s known: Benedict Cumberbatch has joined the cast of Star Trek 2. What isn’t know is the role he’s playing, though it’s quickly gone from rumor to confirmation that he’s the villain of the piece. To be fair, most bigger casting decisions on a film like this are going to be for the new antagonists, but with J.J. Abrams‘s penchant for secrecy, who’s to say what he’s playing?

Cumberbatch is currently on screen in both War Horse and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and may be best known to geeks for his recent turn as Sherlock on the BBC show that’s quickly become a nerd favorite. He’s been a working actor for nearly a decade, but clearly this is his time, and he will also be doing the motion capture for the role of Smaug in The Hobbit.

As for his role, it’s possible that he’s the villain, and has taken the role that both Edgar Ramirez and Benicio Del Toro were rumored and/or passed on. Which would be that of Khan, unless the screenwriters have seen the fan ire, and done some rewriting. Surely what it is will get leaked shortly if they are trying to counter fan disappointment with the idea of rehashing Star Trek II for Star Trek 2.

What do you want out of Star Trek 2?

George Takei Asks Star Trek And Star Wars Fans To Hate Twilight

Damon Houx — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 18:03:24 +0000

For years, there has been a rift in the science fiction and fantasy community. There are some who love Star Trek, and there are those who love Star Wars, and for many it’s a one or the other sort of deal. Unfortunately, this divide has been escalated recently when William Shatner took some shots at the George Lucas-owned franchise, and Carrie Fisher responded in kind. But now George Takei made a video to broker the peace by offering a new target: Twilight.

Will this satisfy fans? Hard to say. Though Twilight is imminently hateable by people who like the idea that Star Trek is filled with ideas, and those who prefer escapist fantasies that are more about Joseph Campbell than vampire marriage, the conflict between Trekkers and Star Wars fans has more to do with them being similar. Here’s George:

Can these two worlds ever find peace enough to hate Teams Edward and Jacob? Doubtful. But it’s good to see Takei act as an ambassador for the goodwill and forward thinking that comes through in the Trek universe. But it is likely that the crossover audiences between all three fanbases is minimal at best. Perhaps they could all go to a mixer and find that hard core fandom is very similar no matter what team you’re on.

What’s the worst Science Fiction or Fantasy franchise?

The Latest on Star Trek 2: Benicio Del Toro Bails Out, Alice Eve Comes In, And Khan Is A Maybe

Damon Houx — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 19:50:55 +0000

This week has offered a flurry of news on J.J. Abrams‘s Star Trek reboot sequel – tentatively titled Star Trek 2 – which is scheduled for release May 17, 2013. Though we’ve yet to see a replacement for the main villain since Benecio Del Toro dropped out on Monday, there are more things to relay about the cast and the villain.

Recently cast members John Cho and Anton Yelchin were interviewed by E Online, and both said they had no idea what was in the script and said they hadn’t read it. Whether that’s true or not is always up for question in situations like this, but with the first film (and J.J. Abrams’s) notorious heavy security, it’s just as likely they’re telling the truth. Alice Eve has joined the cast according to Variety, along with Peter Weller, but with Del Toro out as the villain, that will be the next big casting break.

Though it’s true that Abrams confirmed that Del Toro wouldn’t be playing Khan in the sequel to Drew McWeeny at Hitfix, what he didn’t confirm or deny was if Khan was the villain. And it seems that both Latino Review and Vulture have found evidence that the bad guy will be Khan after all.

What Star Trek nerds will tell you is that Khan Noonien Singh first interacted with Kirk and company in the original series, which then set up the movie The Wrath of Khan. With the altered timeline of the new films Kirk and Khan couldn’t have met yet (god, typing this making me feel +1 Nerdy). This seems a decision based on the idea that Khan is probably the best known single villain in the franchise, though there are already the Klingons and Romulans, etc., those were an offshoot of the politics of the era; Klingons were the stand-in Russians, though you could just as easily say they were the Native Americans to the Enterprise’s cowboys.

So if it is Khan, that leaves about three options. One is that they rework Space Seed (the original episode that Khan appeared in) for the feature film, they ret-con a relationship between Kirk (or someone else aboard the ship) and Khan to give it some punch, or they pretend that they had interactions between movies. Perhaps it’s just a famous name, and that’s it, though that character has a certain history in the franchise, so…

Worst case scenario is that Kirk and Khan went to high school together. “Kirk… you gave me… a wedgie.”

Does Khan as the villain excite you?

Benicio Del Toro Set To Be The Villain In ‘Star Trek 2,’ Will Possibly Play Khan

Travis Woods — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 20:07:05 +0000

Get ready to start yelling “KKKHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNN!” all over again, Star Trek fans—looks like Benicio Del Toro is the only guy in the running to play the villain in the upcoming sequel to the Star Trek reboot… and fans are already speculating he’ll play Khan, the villain from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

Apparently, Del Toro is “director J.J. Abrams’ top choice to play his next Star Trek villain, whoever that might be.” Abrams is being increasingly secretive about the upcoming sequel, refusing to tell anyone who the villain will be—including Del Toro, who is also completely in the dark about who he would be playing.

While it would be fun to see Del Toro ham it up playing the villain with the most badass space-mullet in the history of science fiction, Ricardo Montalban’s original portrayal of Khan is so iconic, it seems pointless to try and recast that role. That said, when the new Star Trek tries to come up with an original villain, as was the case in the last film, we got Eric Bana playing a bland bald guy with pointy ears and tattoos who didn’t make much of an impression beyond playing a character that made viewers ask “who was that guy again?” after they finish watching the film. So maybe Abrams should bring Khan back after all.

What do you think of Del Toro in Star Trek 2?

Source: The AV Club

Evolution of TV: 8 Ways Television Has Changed From the 30′s to Today

Damon Houx — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 14:30:33 +0000

With Netflix splitting its rentals between DVD and streaming – and in doing so focusing more on streaming content – we’re seeing a quicker evolution on how people watch television. The changes are such that actual televisions aren’t even necessary in the process anymore, and many rentals and movies that people own no longer exist in a physical state. TV has been in American households since the late 40′s, but what was once the cornerstone of every American household has been taking a hit from how high speed internet and companies like Apple and Netflix have changed how people can watch entertainment at home. So let’s look at some of the biggest changes and evolutions of the old boob tube, shall we?

1.) Invention

Television was developed (at least theoretically) around the time of the invention of the telephone, but was not practical until the late 1920’s. By the 1930’s Television signals were in use, and it became available commercially in America by 1939 – though there was little production and use during World War II.

Fact: In 1939 there were less than 1,000 sets in use, with 441 lines of resolution.

2.) Mass Production

TV didn’t become mainstream until 1948, when people were finally home from war, and the American economy was stronger than ever. Homes had already adopted to radio, and television was the natural extension. Cinema worried about the growing desire (and – more to the point – being replaced) so it created stereoscopic sound and CinemaScope, but television was making its way into people’s homes and there was no going back. With radio stars like Lucille Ball and Milton Berle on TV, television was of the moment. It quickly became the dominant form for entertainment.

Fact: In 1953 there were 25,233,000 Television in use, with a maximum 525 lines of resolution. The top movie of the year (The Robe) sold 64.8 Million tickets.

3.) Color

Though invented in 1953, color television wasn’t standardized until the late 60′s when TV networks adopted to the format. In 1966 networks introduced their all color line-up, and color TV models became practical. The movie business, which had already lost a lot of business to television, was also going through a rocky period as studios were mounting expensive productions that were flopping – the industry was changing, and color TV hurt cinema that much more.

Fact: In 1966 there were 53.850,000 Televisions in use and in 93% of American Homes. The top movie of 1965 – The Sound of Music – sold 125 Million tickets.

4) Cable

Though cable was available as early as 1948, the FCC choked its growth until the 1970′s, when it was deregulated. In 1972 HBO was born. Other channels developed as well, and by 1984 the “Cable Growth Act” made getting cable less restrictive. One of the big innovations was the birth of MTV in 1981, which changed the pop culture landscape and pop music – for better and worse. With less restrictions on the format and more channels coming, cable was and still is divided between basic and pay channels. Basic cable channels were often like TBS – a local network broadcast through satellite throughout the country – but as the industry grew, more and more original programming was developed, with such networks as Nickelodeon, VH1 and Comedy Central coming to the fore (Comedy Central was a combination of two networks, the Ha! Channel and The Comedy Channel). The growing options for home entertainment set the tone for how we consume media now.

Fact: In 1977 there were over 12 million cable subscribers, by 1992 there were over 57 Million.

5.) Stereo Sound and VHS

As the 1980′s progressed there was an attempt to get better quality television in homes (lines of resolution were still limited), and in 1984 stereo sound was added to broadcast television. Shows would note “in Stereo” before the start, and noting that continued into the 1990′s (Mystery Science Theater 3000 started with a parody of this with its slogan “Turn Down Your Lights… Where Applicable”). Though having stereo in homes was not a big change, with it (and projector televisions, and the size of televisions expanding) it was the start of creating better home theaters. Televisions were getting modernized.

HDTV was in development, but to get better quality in homes there would have to be a huge paradigm shift. Also added to the scene was VHS (and its competitor Betamax), which allowed people to record shows and record shows they weren’t at home for if they could figure out how to program their VCRs (numerous comedy routines were based around people not understanding how to program a VCR).

Fact: In 1985 14% of households with TVs had a VCR. By 1995 79% of households had one.

6.) DVD and Flat Screens

Though laserdiscs and S-VHS never made much of an impression on the general public, in 1997 DVD was launched, and completely changed the home video landscape. The CD to VHS’s audio tapes, the format offered better picture and sound, and eventually killed off video tape.The biggest drawback was that DVD didn’t record, and though steps were made to make DVD-R’s for home use, eventually that need was killed by DVR.

But more than replacing video tape, it helped accelerate home theater technology. One of the big evolutions was the flat screen format, which allowed for a reduction in weight versus the old curved screen model (a 32=inch TV used to weight around 200 pounds, where a flat screen of the same size weighs around 50 pounds). In 2005 flat screens were the industry standard, and HDTV’s offered 1080 lines of resolution versus the original standard of 480. By 2006, Flat screens and HDTV were mass produced to the point that their prices dropped to make them no longer just for the collector, and these days manufacturers no longer make 4×3 (or 1.33:1, or non-widescreen) models any more. The Government had long been suggesting a switch to all=digital for television broadcast, but it took until 2009 for that change to finally be enforced. But this switch to digital picture was also a move toward integrating the home theater with growing computer technology.

Fact: 2005′s A History of Violence was the last film released on VHS.

7.) Tivo and DVR

In 1999, Tivo was launched and changed the way people could watch television with DVRing (aka Digital Video Recording). It would record shows while you watched them, so if you delayed your start you could skip commercials. You could also sign up for a season pass, and make sure you didn’t miss your favorite show – or save them for a rainy day. Tivo in its prime had 4.36 million user, but DVR transcended Tivo itself. Now, a company like DirecTV has 19.2 Million users, all of whom have free DVR. Between that and the popularity of seasons of TV shows being collected on DVD, how people would watch (or re-watch) a program changed, so much so that the narratives of television stories reflected audiences who would watch every episode, versus the old standard of shows that were written so a viewer could watch them in virtually any order.

Fact: Janet Jackson’s Superbowl Nipple slip is still one of the most Tivo’d events in history, and changed network television’s censorship standards.

8.) Smart TV

With Smart TV, streaming video has become a battleground, where Apple, Netgear, Logitech, Boxee and many others are competing to get the best streaming video on the market. Watching television no longer necessarily involves watching a television, with many shows set to stream on tablets and computers. We’ve also seen HBO get into streaming their shows after release, but only for subscribers – something that seems destined to change.

Between renting shows that just aired through iTunes and Hulu, people can now watch things whenever they feel like (not to mention Netflix instant), and the technology is moving in the Smart TV direction where web-based technology allows internet access to television. With shows available for rent or for free online shortly after broadcast, we’re now seeing movies follow this example with video on demand – where consumers can watch a movie at home just as easily as going to the theater (this has been a boom for low budget and art films in that making a print of a movie can cost thousands of dollars).

Fact: One in four people in 2011 use Hulu to watch TV and Movies.

Overall:

Ultimately, the internet has irrevocably changed how people consume television. Currently Smart TV have sold over 2 Million units worldwide, but it’s in less than a million US homes. Like Blu-ray technology, we’re still in the infancy of this format. The Wild West days. But – as this list shows – it takes a while for most innovations to become standardized. And to that, we’re seeing that all of these innovations have been incorporated into the latest technology – Netflix streams movies in HD and 5.1 surround and allow the instant access of DVRing something, while Hulu offers many premium cable shows through their streaming networks. As time has shown it’s likely this will all come together in one package (one can already see it on the way) and from there, there big question is, what’s next?

So now that you know where we’ve been, where do you think TV will go? What’s the next big step for TV?

Join the conversation on Twitter at #IntelEMP!

J. J. Abrams Helming Star Trek 2

Damon Houx — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:13:56 +0000

In what may have been inevitable, J.J. Abrams has finally signed on to direct Star Trek 2. Though Paramount was hot for the sequel after the first film’s impressive domestic showing, Abrams went on to direct Super 8, and Hollywood considered turning Chris Pine into a movie star (there were a number of rumors about what he would do next, but mostly there’s been Unstoppable). Production is supposed to start later this year for what is more than likely a 2013 summer release date.

There was a lot of puttering about getting this sequel going for a film that surpassed expectations. And it would be one thing if J.J. Abrams was making his passion project, but unless his passion is aping Steven Spielberg, it’s hard to say that of Super 8. It’s hard to say what gave some cold feet, other than having opportunities elsewhere after its success.

Star Trek came out in 2009, after original having been slotted for a December 2008 release. The film was heavily altered by the writer’s strike, which went into effect while the film was shooting. There has been some speculation about how much re-writing got done before (and reshoots after) the strike, but it’s undeniable that the film played like gangbusters. Perhaps partly because of some of the obstacles that got in the film’s way. Perhaps its makers are worried about getting that lightning back in the bottle.
Star Trek 2: if you had nothing better to do would you line up now?

Creators Of ‘Star Trek’ Reboot Making ‘Trek’ Video Game As A Bridge To Upcoming Sequel

Travis Woods — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 22:43:58 +0000

Attention age 18-24 male film viewing demographic—next year will be your year of years. Turns out the brains behind 2009’s Star Trek reboot will be releasing a video game next year that acts as a narrative “bridge” between the wildly successful, J.J. Abrams film and it’s even more wildly anticipated 2012 sequel. So, Trek, fans, you’ll be able to play a game that works as an interquel (yes, that’s a word) between two Star Trek movies. Let your minds be blown now.

According to /Film, Star Trek film writer Roberto Orci asserts that the game will be ‘canon’—i.e., part of the “official” Star Trek storyline, something that the fans take very seriously:

“I’m not an authority on what is canon. However, I will tell you that this may be the first game that falls within the parameters of the people who are in charge of canon for now; the “supreme court,” as we call ourselves because we are the ones in charge of Star Trek for now. We won’t be in charge forever, but for right now we’re deciding what canon is, so I can tell you this is the first time where the game itself is generated by the people who are deciding canon and we generated the game to fit within canon.”

Orci also stated that, in terms of the film, he’s excited to take old concepts from the television show, and reintroduce them to the new cast (who now exist in a parallel timeline to the original—I think):

“We want to make sure that we’re true to what happened in the universe. The things I want to see a lot of the same things that happened in Star Trek, a lot of the same scenarios but I want see them in a new way. In the original series they met the doomsday machine. What would happen if they met it now? The things we want to see are old ideas in a new way. Because it’s a new universe, because things have changed, the outcomes might be different, the decisions might be different. It’s exciting to think about the fact that you could take any one of the old episodes or movies and see what happens if things were just a little bit different.”

Movie nerds, 2012 is gonna be your year.

What do you think of the Star Trek game idea?

‘Star Trek’ Writers To Incorporate Fan Input And Criticism Into ‘Star Trek 2′

Travis Woods — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 18:09:22 +0000

Star Trek nerds, prepare to celebrate—Star Trek and Star Trek 2 (the reboot versions) writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman plan on taking fan input on the Star Trek 2 script, which is currently in development. Which means my fanfic piece about the movie blogger who manages to seduce Uhura away from Spock might totally be happening in the sequel, gang!

According to Dark Horizons, Orci was on hand at WonderCon over the weekend to talk Cowboys and Aliens, however, the conversation quickly turned to Star Trek 2, during which Orci acknowledged that he reads the message board complaints about the first film and will be incorporating the criticism into the new script:

“Everyone said [Kirk] is too young to become Captain. So maybe in the next movie, somebody goes, ‘Man, you sure became Captain young and fast.’ You start to incorporate people’s opinions… If it’s organic to the story and you find someone who doesn’t think too highly of Kirk because he maybe skipped a few steps, that’s maybe a fun thing to consider. That comes from a fan reaction and maybe gives you a story point… [Fans] wanted more character time with everybody, and because that was an origin story for ‘Star Trek,’ everyone had to come in at a certain point. Now everyone is going to be there from the beginning, so they’re going to get that. Everyone sure hated engineering. They thought it looked like a brewery, which it was. I’ll pass that on to J.J. [Abrams] and see what he says.”

Orci also revealed that he and Kurtzman were unable to alter or change the original film’s script to amend these issue’s due the writer’s strike that was going down during filming. On Star Trek 2, however, “we’ll be working and tweaking that story through shooting.”

Star Trek 2 is scheduled for release in summer 2012.

What would you add to the Star Trek sequel?

ScreenCrave.com » star trek

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