I swear this is the last Star Trek item for at least 24 hours. Later this week I'm planning a great little feature on great science fiction novels and maybe we'll talk about robots or something. In the meantime, this is too big to pass up on passing on to all of you.

JJ Abrams new Star Trek prequel is still months away from theaters, and they're already planning the sequel. Variety says:

As Paramount Pictures readies the May 8 release of its "Star Trek" franchise relaunch, the studio is moving forward with a sequel, and has hired Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof to pen the screenplay.

J.J. Abrams, who directed and produced the latest chapter, is onboard to produce the follow-up alongside his Bad Robot partner Bryan Burk. No decision has been made yet on whether Abrams will return behind the camera for the sequel.

You'd think they'd wait for someone to see it before locking in a second one, but it seems Paramount isn't so interested in whether or not people like it. In fact critics in Australia have already seen the film, but they're embargoed from talking about it until the end of April. Whether you like it or not (and let's face it we're probably gonna love it), Star Trek 12 is coming. Or is it Star Trek 2-B? I'm so confused.

The past few days have been so flooded with cool Star Trek tidbits that it's probably starting to seem like this is a Star Trek fan site. Well it isn't, it's just a sci-fi site run by a Star Trek fanboy, who can't help but be excited over stuff like this.

MTV has scored new images from Star Trek, among them your much anticipated first look at an actual green-skinned, generously proportioned, Orion slave girl. Admit it, you had a dream or two about green women after you first saw Vina shaking it in The Cage. Who hasn't. more...

When I walk through the streets and look up at all the government cameras watching and recording my every move, mostly I get terrified. But then I've read 1984. Chris McCoy, apparently has not, because he sees those cameras and thinks only of romance.

HR says McCoy has sold a script called Good Looking to DreamWorks. Here's how they describe it:

McCoy developed the idea last year while on a working vacation in London, where he noticed the city's near-universal coverage by surveillance camera to deter crime. He started musing on alternative uses for that collected personal information.

"If someone could organize that information and know what everyone in London was doing and eating and who they're dating and who they're going home with, then that's an incredibly powerful tool," McCoy said. "I think I have an oddball brain or something, but then I started thinking about how all that stuff could be applied to matchmaking. It would totally subvert Match.com and eHarmony, (where) I think people lie about who they are or they say what they think people will want them to be. But 'Good Looking,' my service, knows who they are and can put them together."

Nobody's likely to mention it in this context, since science fiction is now a dirty word in Hollywood, but science fiction is exactly what Monsters vs. Aliens is. And whether they call it sci-fi or not, America clearly loves it.

The animated comedy was #1 at the box office this past weekend, with big numbers. The film earned $58 million from Friday through Sunday, easily trouncing #2 horror movie The Haunting in Connecticut.

Meanwhile last week's top finishing science fiction movie Knowing held on to land in third place. In fact all of the year's highest grossing films, with the exception of Paul Blart: Mall Cop have been flat out science fiction. So here's my question: Science fiction seems to be what America wants. When are we allowed to stop hiding our heads, pretending it's something else, and admit we're a nation of geeks? Or are we all still afraid of being pantsed?

For detailed weekend box office results click over to our sister site Cinema Blend.

When Star Trek, the original series, was released on HD-DVD it was a pretty big deal. Now not so much. Owning Trek on HD-DVD is about as useful as having it on laserdisc. Dead format. On April 28th, you'll have a chance to rectify your puchasing error when the whole thing gets ported over to Blu-Ray.

Details from the press release:

As part of the special features, select episodes include the “Starfleet Access” bonus content. By choosing the “Starfleet Access” option, viewers will be able to watch the selected episodes with special pop-up trivia and picture-in-picture video commentaries. The set also includes an interactive tour of the starship Enterprise, rare on-set home movie footage, an inside perspective on what it took to transport Trek into the 21st century and much more. A definitive STAR TREK® collection with more than 24 hours of entertainment, the set will be available for the suggested retail price of $118.00 US and $136.00 CAN. An exclusive collectible Sulu figure from Diamond Select Toys is also being made available with purchase of the Blu-ray set; fans pay only shipping and handling charges. more...

There's a new Star Trek TV spot online. It debuted during the Kid's Choice Awards last night, which probably explains the gratuitous shot of kid-Kirk at the start. But it also contains some new footage, including an extended shot of someone swimming through a series of tubes. Apparently the redesigned Enterprise also contains a water park! Take a look:

Remember those really fantastic international Star Trek posters I showed you earlier in the week? Well now it's America's turn for a fresh one sheet, and we're being stuck with this monstrosity, released moments ago on MySpace:

It's like someone spilled ink on a sheet and then called it the Enterprise. I know Paramount is a little leery of associating their movie with anything as geeky as, you know, a Star Trek movie, but hiding the Enterprise behind an old sheet isn't going to make it any less of a science fiction movie.

They're taking their sweet time, but the Astro Boy movie is finally close to being released. Well close relatively speaking. You'll have to wait till October 3rd. Meanwhile, the movie's second trailer has arrived. Take a look:

Low-budget science fiction is spectacularly hard to pull off. The effects demanded by most good sci-fi scripts are too grandiose, too complicated, impossible to do on a limited budget. When someone does manage to pull it off though, it's pretty special. The last time anyone really did it, it was Richard Kelly with Donnie Darko.

Quality sci-fi on a budget is a rarity, but I root for it. I haven't heard many great things about Mutant Chronicles, but wouldn't it be great if they managed to pull something cool off, right under Hollywood's nose? The first five minutes of the low-budget Thomas Jane movie is online, and worth watching. Take a look:

Fox has sent out the first trailer for their Family Guy & Star Trek episode, debuting this weekend. In the ep, Stewie Griffin kidnaps the entire cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation for his own amusement. The entire cast, from Brent Spiner to Wil Wheaton does voices. It looks like a lot of awesome. Here's the trailer: