In a new, exclusive interview, executive producer Rick Berman revealed that he was not surprised to learn that Star Trek: Enterprise would not be picked up for a fifth season and said that he expected the eleventh film, still in the early stages of development, to feature a cast that would appeal to younger viewers.

In the new issue of the Star Trek Communicator (via TrekWeb), Berman noted that he was pleased that UPN announced the cancellation in February rather than waiting until the television marketing presentations in May, since it allowed Trek's long-time production staff to look for other jobs and allowed the actors to audition for new series pilots. "That was a sort of blessing in disguise, I guess," he said, explaining that he and Brannon Braga called each of the actors and the department heads to break the news after they spoke to executives at the network.

"The television business is a very itinerant business," he observed. "Most people tend to work on a project for a year, two years, sometimes three or four years...We have quite a unique situation here in that we have so many people who have worked with use for 10, 15 and even 18 years." He felt that that made it much more difficult for the staff, but at the same time he called Star Trek's 18-year television franchise a "very lucky run."

Berman said that none of the gloomy rumours surrounding the development of the eleventh feature film were true, insisting that the project has not been put on the back burner and there had been no requests for a different concept. "Whether the film is going to be made depends on the quality of the script and a number of other factors," he said. "It is now just a question of developing it and seeing what the powers-that-be think about it." Describing the planned movie as larger in scope than any of the previous ten franchise films, Berman also said that it would feature a younger-skewing cast.

After 18 years with the franchise, Berman said that he was also reevaluating his own future plans and whether he will remain attached to Star Trek. "I need some time to think about that," he said. "I am certainly going to be involving myself in other projects, as will Brannon and Manny over the next year or so. But I am not sure exactly what the future of Star Trek is, or what my future connection to it might be...when it does come back, I am hoping it will return fresh and different, and that there will be an audience waiting for it."

The new issue of Star Trek Communicator is available on newsstands. These excerpts are here and here at TrekWeb.

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