[UPDATE] Iceland Production Companies Fighting Over ‘Star Trek’ – Production Said To Be ‘Big’

It appears that there is more to the recent story that the new ‘Star Trek’ film will be doing some shooting in Iceland. Today in an article titled ‘Two Production Companies fight over Star Trek‘ the Reykjavik newspaper Frettabladid is reporting that a company called called Pegasus is competing with the previously reported firm (Saga Film) to work with Paramount on ‘Star Trek.’ Both companies are currently scouting multiple locations in Iceland along with people from the studio. Neither film would provide a comment and Frettabladid noted "the Hollywood men are very cautious and want the staff at the production companies to keep this quiet and so the travel plans are top secret." It also looks like there might be a substantial amount of shooting in Iceland. The article states it could be ‘bigger than Flags of our Fathers,’ the recent Clint Eastwood film that did much of its shooting in Iceland. The black sand beaches (pictured right) of Iceland stood in for Iwo Jima (Japan would not allow the shooting of battle scenes on the island).

If this pans out it would make the new ‘Star Trek’ the first film in the franchise to film outside the US. In fact almost all location shooting on Trek films has been limited to locations within a few hours drive from Los Angeles.

Iceland becoming a bigger destination for Hollywood
In recent years Iceland has become more and more popular for location shooting. This is due to its unique locales and its very pro Hollywood business climate. In addition to Flags of our Fathers (as well as Letters from Iwo Jima) other recent films include Batman Begins, Die Another Day, Hostel and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. According to a recent article on Iceland productions in Variety Iceland is providing significant rebates (up to 14%) for money spent on the small island. Variety also notes that local production crews are very tech savvy and speak excellent English. I would imagine that studios also like how such a far away spot keeps prying eyes (and spy photos) away from their projects…something JJ Abrams is sure to appreciate. 

Thanks to TrekMovie.com reader Hallbjörn for the tip and translation, and we will be keeping our eye on Iceland

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As long as there are no frozen Borg in the ice. (But a good frozen Roddenberry script would be OK.)

I have a feeling it would be something bigger the 2nd unit shots. The incentive to shot in Iceland is the tax breaks, and they are only significant if the production is of a significant scale.

Wow!!!

Frozen Borg in the Ice worked pretty well the first time around!

Star Trek – Size Matters!

I haven’t seen “Flags of our Fathers”, can somebody tell me how much of it was filmed in Iceland?

If I never see that “Plains of Fire” or whatever set from “Arena,” “Generations,” et. al., it’ll be too soon.

I support this. I do hope this show isn’t too planet-based. But that’s just my old-timey preference.

Why is there all this whining about Iceland? Would you prefer that they work indoors with some paper mache’ rocks and colored lights on the wall in the back?

Remember that with modern film techniques, you can make a huge change in appearance to any location you shoot in. Even films that don’t look like they have special effects in them can have the atmosphere or time of day changed, smoke or fog added in post-production, etc etc.

What whining?

Like Anthony said, when Flags was filmed here, they all came, Adam Beach, Jamie Bell, Ryan Phillipe, Jesse Bradford and Clint himself. It was always in the news, and a casting call went out for extras, I was going to apply, but I broke my shoulder, the week before. Two of my friends got work as extras.

I hope it STXI comes to Iceland, now that would be a real treat !!!

“maybe Dead Red Shirt #5!”

Kirk: “Spock, McCoy, you’re with me. Bjornson, Friggasdottir, you circle around to the right. Ensign Drakkonbait – go behind that big rock and scream like the monster is eating you alive.”

#13 Pike

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL>>>>>> ROTFOMGIALSH

I’m getting excited about Trek XI now. I just hope they choose good actors and don’t mess with 1701 that much but I hope they will update the interior and not have it be the same as the TV show version.

Anothony I guess you scan all types of web sites for news in addition to your contacts that you have so this would be the one place to go for Trek XI and if Paramount decided to do a new TV series?

Sorry I misspelled your name Anthony. :)

I know this is totally off the wall, but I always thought John Lithgow would be a good bad guy in a Trek movie…or at least have some sort of role…..

He has always been able to play thouse serious mean roles pretty well…..

“kinsey” “Footloose” “Cliffhanger” and of course he was great in “2010”

re:17 but have you seen him in 3rd Rock from the Sun? we could have the first comedic Star Trek movie

Will Iceland complain if the crew spray paints the rocks and trees and sticks ‘exotic’ dried flowers all over their country? (Shore Leave reference; I’m sure you all got it.)
If they digitally tint the sky ever so slightly and leave the rest of that stark, wonderful landscape as is, that could be a very cool ‘planet.’

“John Lithgow … has always been able to play those serious mean roles pretty well…..
“kinsey” “Footloose” “Cliffhanger” and of course”

Doctor Emilio Lizardo/Lord John Worfin Red Lectroid Warlord of Planet Ten!

‘Wherever You Go, There You Are….’ Dr. B. Banzai

You are all forgetting CHRISTOPHER LLOYD…STIII:TSFS

Sorry, the complaint about Iceland is in another thread. This thread is amazingly well-behaved.

re: 20 What about Paramount wanting Eddie Murphy to be in Star Trek IV? too bad that didn’t work out so we wouldn’t have to hear the complaints from the “Bring Back Kirk” camp

It’s Saga Film not Sega Film.

this film had better be as good as Insurrection.

Hallbjorn–Great to see you here–Anthony I think we have found our inside man already–You do have a nice camera right? :-)

And as for 25) Snake–I do NOT think that will be a problem at ALL!

snake – Deuce Bigalow: American Gigilo is “as good as Insurrection.”

Every report, even reports that people are looking to film in Iceland, makes this whole thing more real to me. I think when I see the first leaked shot of someone in a TOS uniform I will totally flip out.

Every article is getting me more and more excited.

I can’t wait for next Christmas.

This is big. They’ve done location shoots before, but I don’t think they’ve ever done one outside the U.S. before. Alaska in 6, Colorado in Insurrection… they’re certainly putting a lot of money into this if they’re going to take parts of the production international.

I hope they remember the lessons from Star Trek; The Motion Picture… no matter how much money you dump into the movie, if the story ain’t great, the movie will drag. Judging from what’s coming from the writing team, though, I think they really care about the story.

I got it !! I got it!!!!

This is gotta be the battle of Axanar during the four years war wih the Klingons. Or maybe not. But if so it could be extremely cool. Anyone have the old FASA Four Years War module. Hope we get the good old fashioned evil Klingons and not the buried under doopey makeup Nobile- Viking-Navajo-prosetic teeth Klingons.

I wonder if we’ll see any of the old Franz Joseph/FASA ships…

I think I’d cry if I saw one of those Starfleet Tech Manual ships, but I doubt we will. There was animosity between GR and FR over the SFTM. Fans really wanted and needed something in the 70s and early 80s and in the absence of anything “official” from GR, the fans picked up and ran with the stuff in the SFTM.

The SFTM was my bible when I was a kid but it does deviate from TOS as seen on TV in more than a few details. But even if all we got were those few pages of ships drawings and names then it had a huge impact on Trek fans and fandom. Heck the movie Enterprise in STTMP has details that appear in the SFTM and blueprints that were never on the TV Enterprise.

And in the absence of GR approval, FJ was allowed to copyright the SFTM material himself. Strange but true. Paramount would have to pay FR’s estate to use them. So the “GR can do no Wrong” won’t want to use them, and they’d have pay – so it won’t happen.

#29 Crusade2267

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it’s my understanding that a lot of companies are going outside the country because it’s cheaper to shoot on location internationally than on location domestically. They’re basically outsourcing Hollywood.

Good to here that they’re willing to shell out for on location shoots instead of the usual Paramount soundstages though. Those scenes from Iwo Jima were particularly memorable. They would work well if they were depicting a scourged planet.

well if they need Green Fields and hills come to ireland , we have tax breaks , and our reserve army will fill in for all the extras you need ( done so in braveheart and King Arthur ) it was great lol.

I don’t care WHERE they film it, as long as we get a great story of a young Kirk fighting and f**king his way through the galaxy!!! Yeehaaah!!

> I have a feeling it would be something bigger the 2nd unit shots. The incentive to shot in Iceland is the tax breaks, and they are only significant if the production is of a significant scale.

Depends – Batman Begins shot in Iceland as a sea-level double for high-up in the mountains.

#30 Lord Garth

Even better, let’s NOT have any Klingons in this particular entry.

Hallbjorn, where in Iceland do you live? I spent three weeks there about fifteen years ago and just loved it. One of my favorite directors is Hrafn. I saw one of his films right after my return and had great fun figuring out where it was all shot.

Maybe they’ll thaw a frozen Kirk out of the ice and bring him back to life in some way.