Bryan Singer said he thinks JJ Abrams is a "brilliant" choice to direct Star Trek XI and said he hoped Paramount would give him sufficient money to produce a great film.

Speaking to TrekMovie.com at the Saturn Awards, where Singer won Best Director for Superman Returns, the X-Men director talked about his friendship with Patrick Stewart (Captain Picard) that led to a cameo role in Star Trek Nemesis.

Though known to be a Star Trek fan, Singer said that while he had discussed ideas for reviving the franchise, "I have not been able to afford to give [full] commitment." He said that whether the new film tried to imitate the original or to go in a different direction, "Anything is cool as long as you do it well. To me it is never a premise thing, it is always an executional thing." He said that he was a fan of the writing and also the acting of the original Star Trek and "I wouldn't mind playing in that world again" if the franchise continued and the opportunity came up.

Stewart, added Singer, told him that if he did a cameo in the last film, "'you are going to be part of that Star Trek lexicon. And no one will ever be able to take that away from you.'" Stewart once surprised Singer by inviting him over for dinner with William Shatner; "I ended up playing Next Generation pinball with William Shatner in Patrick’s game room and I can’t even describe it."

Singer said he was looking forward to directing the next Superman film, which he refers to as the Wrath of Khan of that franchise, but he remains a geek about the original Star Trek. For Abrams, too, Star Trek "is something he really cares about it and he is really talented. I can't wait to see it. I hope they give him enough money to do it right."

The full interview on video and in print is at TrekMovie.com.

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