The search is finally over. Following last week's reveal of a directorial shortlist including Justin Lin, Rupert Wyatt, Daniel Espinosa, Duncan Jones and Morten Tyldum, Paramount has chosen its man behind the camera. Fast & Furious veteran Lin has got the gig.
The vacancy has been filled quickly, since it was only a couple of weeks ago that the previous instalments' writer Roberto Orci stepped back from making the third modern Trek his directorial debut. He was, in the end, reportedly the only person offered the job. Handily, he has a gap in his schedule, created by the abandonment of the Bourne Legacy sequel when Universal decided to return the franchise to Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon.
There were some left-field names on Paramount's Trek list, but Lin's seem like a safe pair of hands, especially at short notice. He's proved with four Fast & Furiouses (Furioi?) that he can juggle large casts and FX-heavy action, to the tune of more than a billion dollars at the box office. The question of what he'll do beyond the Final Frontier is a tantalising one.
Orci remains aboard as a producer, overseeing the script he’s co-written with J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay. Lin is currently at work on the first two episodes of True Detective's second season. He'll board the Enterprise right afterwards, with the still untitled Star Trek 3 expected in cinemas sometime in 2016.
