Caffeinated Clint
Roberto Orci is leaving the Daily Bugle behind for a cushier job with Starfleet.
The “Amazing Spider-Man” and “Star Trek” scribe says he’s done with the “Amazing Spider-Man” franchise now that he’s no longer working as part of a two-hander team with Alex Kurtzman. In addition, Orci suggests that Sony’s no longer certain of their plans for the “Spider-Man” franchise.
“I don’t know what their plans are for that franchise,” Orci tells IGN after being asked whether he might return to the series in the future after confirming earlier reports that he won’t be back for ”The Amazing Spider-Man 3”. “I don’t ever want to say never, but we have to figure out what their scheduling is in terms of when they want each movie. I’ve read probably as much as anyone else. There’s a love for the Sinister Six, the idea of Venom — there’s an idea of Spider-Man’s going to be one of these characters that’s part of our business. He’s such a popular character. Spider-Man’s not going to go away any time soon. When it all happens and how and all that has yet to be determined.”
And though he’s attached to direct the next “Star Trek” film, Orci says that’s not a sure-thing yet either.
“Well, I don’t want to count my chickens before they hatch”, he tells Collider. “The studio has yet to even read the script. I’m in the middle of writing it, with the talented team of [John D.] Payne and [Patrick] McKay. They are true Star Trek fans, as well. So, I can’t even think anything about the future until I give them a script and they greenlight it. Until that happens, everything else is just a rumor.”
Orci says he’s hopeful, reiterating what a fan of the franchise he is.
“If I’m lucky enough that Paramount loves the script and that we go forward, it’ll be because I have loved Star Trek for so long and the idea of having seen one of the best guys in the business direct two of them already, and to have seen it from the vantage point of a producer too, I know where a lot of the challenges are and where a lot of the fun is. If we’re lucky enough that everything goes right, then I’ll start to feel the pressure. Once it’s really happening, it’s like, ‘Oh, my God, the 50th anniversary! Holy, moly!’ As a writer, I feel the pressure as the returning screenwriter to this franchise. I feel it at the story level. I can’t speak for Payne and McKay, but they seem to be having a good time. They don’t look as nervous as I feel, but maybe they’re just good at hiding it.”
