‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ 4K Director’s Edition To Debut In April – Watch New Trailer

The highly anticipated release of the director’s edition of Star Trek: The Motion Picture on Paramount+ finally has a date and a brand new trailer! There will also be a theatrical event, as well as a 4K UHD home video release. And we have all the details.

TMP: DE UHD on FC Day

Robert Wise’s director’s edition of Star Trek: The Motion Picture will premiere on Paramount+ April 5th, which happens to be First Contact Day. This new version was struck from the original camera negative, includes the original visual effects shots on 65mm film taken from Paramount’s archives, and will also feature upgrades to the film’s special effects, using the 2001 Director’s Edition as a guide.  In addition, there will be a brand new Dolby Atmos sound mix.

Check out the brand new trailer…

NOTE: if this doesn’t play for international visitors it can also be viewed on StarTrek.com

The new release was “meticulously assembled and restored” by producer David C. Fein with preservationist Mike Matessino, both of whom originally collaborated with director Robert Wise on the 2001 DVD release. Fein and Matessino assembled a team of special effects experts, led by returning visual effects supervisor Daren Dochterman, and utilized the extensive resources in the Paramount Archives to recreate the effects not just in HD, but in Ultra HD. The team has been working on the project for over six months. And according to Paramount the updated movie “looks and sounds better than ever while staying true to Wise’s original intention.”

“I couldn’t be prouder and more thrilled to have completed the film in 4K,” said Fein in a statement. “Paramount offered unprecedented access to the original elements and exceptional support and the results are stunning. Utilizing the latest discoveries and innovations of modern film production, The Director’s Edition delivers so much more today than was previously possible. It’s an adventure you’ll never forget!” Fein spoke to StarTrek.com about some of the great discoveries the team made during the restoration process, his own fandom, and more.

The Director’s Edition was originally created in 2001 by working closely with director Robert Wise. In addition to edits for pacing, a number of small fixes and changes were made to the visual effects, and a new sound mix was created. TMP was rather famously rushed to completion in December 1979, because of this Robert Wise considered The Director’s Edition to be his “final cut.”

Theatrical event and home video release

Fathom Events will also be bringing the film to theaters for a two-day event on May 22 and May 25. Tickets go on sale April 8 at fathomevents.com. That will be followed by 4K UHD Blu-ray disc and digital releases in September (more details of the home video release are expected closer to the release date), which will include HDR10 and Dolby Vision color grades, the new Dolby Atmos mix, as well as new and legacy special features.

Paramount also released a new key art poster.

Comparison shots

The new trailer showed off how much of an update the new 4K UHD version is, revealing much more detail on the USS Enterprise and more in comparison to the 2001 DVD release. The images not only show an increase in resolution, but also how far digital effects have come in the last 20 years.

The Enterprise approaches the heart of V’Ger

V’Ger

The “bridge” to V’Ger


Find more news about TMP:DE and other Star Trek home media and streaming at TrekMovie.com.

89 Comments
oldest
newest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Love the new graphics.

video unavailable (to europeans)

And Canadians

And kiwis

@TrekMovie – can you confirm if this version of the film would be released ONLY on 4K UHD Blu-Ray or if there are plans for regular BD release as well?

It’s mentioned right there in the article. Bluray release in September.

No… The article says it will be released in 4K in September. Not that it will be released on BD.

Don’t get your panties in a bunch; it’ll play on your Bluray player.

4K discs play on BD players?

There are 4K BD players. I have them.

Well, I don’t have one.

Typically, Paramount packages a standard Blu along with their 4K titles, so hopefully that’s the case with this as well.

If that is the case then I will probably pick it up. But it would be nice if that was confirmed somewhere.

I’m sure it will when the formal announcement comes.

Fingers crossed. Thanks.

Apart from the improved graphics, how is this different from the original theatrical version? Are any of the scenes any different so that the story makes a little more sense, and do they spend any less time on the ridiculously long shots of the Enterprise and V’Ger? Or is it just a prettier version of the original?

You don’t seem to be familiar with the Directors Edition released 20 years ago. It is Robert Wise’s final edit of the film that he felt he never got to complete in 79. Some scenes have been trimmed, some rearranged slightly, effects shots completed and a proper sound mix. The original movie had no bridge ambience for example. It’s still the original special effects along with some CGI enhancement and a few shots added with CGI that couldn’t be completed in 1979. So yeah, it’s much more than just a prettier version of the theatrical cut. I’ve been waiting 20 years for this cut of the film to be upgraded to HD.

it is crazy that the ’79 version, largely unfinished, was the only version we have seen over the last 40 odd years.
no wonder people hated it.
thank the lord wise was able do the DE years later

Thanks. I’m trying to decide whether or not it will be worth going to see this in theatres. I saw the theatrical version when it was in theatres a couple of years ago, and I rewatched it on Paramount + about a month ago, and its my least favorite Trek movie, so I’m not sure.

Personally, I’d say it’s absolutely worth seeing in theaters, but then TMP in any of its several editions is one of my favorites in the franchise; if it’s your absolute least favorite, I don’t know that this DE will affect your opinion enough to warrant going if you otherwise wouldn’t (though I do think this particular film is best served by theatrical exhibition, anyway). Moreover, your decision might always be affected by outside considerations. I was very looking forward to last year’s screenings of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home but then ultimately passed on them over COVID-19-related concerns.

I do plan to see this, though, likely multiple times.

Can you enjoy the movie as an audio-visual-spectacle.

You prefer Star Trek V: The Final Frontier?

the long paced shots of the enterprise in dry dock make sense to establish its size and weight.
alter that we see it dwarfed by the size of v’ger so it actually clever foreshadowing.

Gorgeous. I’ll be watching this again, wish I had a better television, ha!

Go see it in a theater then, bro.

Might be an unpopular opinion, but I think parts of the “new” graphics look too bright and artificial, essepcially V’Ger in orbit.

The old shot looks way too dark!

Yeah, I suspect the old shots were darker to hide any imperfections in the CGI of the time. Probably could have found more of a middle ground as it has certainly been amped up.

Also most of the bridge view screens and displays were back projected Super 8 movie film. The bridge was filmed very dark so that the Super 8 images could be seen and not washed out by the lighting. I’m hoping the bridge is at least a little brighter.

I love the movie, and I’m in awe of the work the restorers put in, but I have to agree. Some of the shots seem too clear — as though there’s no “haze” to indicate distance. I’m going to watch this, though.

Also, they need to make sure they aren’t making models and paintings look like modern CGI, which has little “warmth”. I’m not sure how to say it.

The 2001 version looks ominous, less perdy and more ‘oh shit’. Still, I’ll take the new version.

If only they could spoil us like this every First Contact day . . .

Really don’t dig the V’Ger vessel VFX, but hope it looks better on the big screen, and everything else looks pretty splendid. The difference between this trailer and the one that Paramount released earlier in the week and then removed is the running tag of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (The Director’s Edition) and the removal of Stephen Collins, who was given a key line (“We need you to help make direct contact with V’ger”) and a reaction to V’Ger reaction shot. Good cuts! F that guy.

Guess that was the delay…recutting the trailer. I mean, I totally get it but at the same time…he’s in the movie. For me, I can separate the character from the actor but I know not everyone can.

Sure, but there’s no sense using him in the trailer to re-sell the movie if you don’t have to. Plus, removing him left room for them to add in the shot of the landing party walking on the saucer section (which wasn’t in the first trailer), so double bonus.

The 4k Blu-Ray is a PRE-ORDER as soon as it’s possible!!! Looks awesome and I’m looking forward very much!!!!

This looks amazing. I confess to being a fan of TMP.
The V’Ger ship looks cool but also like something we’ll see in the new Halo series lol

You don’t have to confess to anything. There’s no need to word things so as to sound apologetic for liking this movie. ST:TMP is a movie worthy of having fans. Those that don’t like TMP simply miss out on what made it so grand and so spectacular. I was 8 years old when this movie came in cinemas in 1979 and it was one of the most awesome cinematic experiences I ever had.

But the big question is…. Will it be available on Blu-Ray? Don’t tell me they went from DVD straight to 4K without putting out a BD….

As mentioned, Paramount usually packages a 4K + Bluray set.

You’re spamming this. It’s already been answered. And, BTW, I’ve *never* had a problem playing a 4K disc in my regular Blu-ray player. Have you???

How am I spamming this? I just asked a question. Check the time stamps before you whine like that.

And I’ve never put a 4K disc in my BD player. Why would I?

Anthony, you CANNOT play a regular 4k disc in a standard BD player. Please stop spreading something you evidently do not understand.

There’s a lot Thompson doesn’t understand (and even more he seems unwilling to consider since it doesn’t come from one of his favored sources), but it has never stopped him from commenting. And the mods never stop him either.

The frame grab of the exterior of V’ger looks really bad. The textures look like something from a late 90’s video game. I can’t see the trailer so I’m hoping it looks better when there’s movement.

Search for Star Trek the Motion Picture Directors Edition on You Tube. It appears to be region free on the Paramount Movies channel.

Man, I love this movie. It’s what got me into being a Trek fan. I was 6 when it came out, I didn’t like the TV show at first, which my mom watched faithfully every Saturday and Sunday at 6. Probably because it was what she was watching after I woke up from the nap she would make me and my sister take when we were toddlers. For whatever reason, though, I took to this movie and the USS Enterprise.

My only disappointment with the director’s cut is the slight change in the Enterprise emerging from whatever happened to V’ger. I liked the original way better.

Somebody needs to tell Paramount+ how to upload a 4k video to youtube. Because it’s kind of silly to advertise a 4k movie in..1080p…

Does it matter? How many 4K computer, laptop or phone displays are out there? Basically just Youtube on a 4K TV would see any difference.

That argument is about half a decade out of date. :D

Displays that can take advantage of 4K content are quite common nowadays.

Most MacBooks (and many other laptops) are often running near that res (with the DPI bumped up).

Tablets and phones often have a resolution in that neighborhood. (Whether it’s actually advantageous to see it at that res on small devices is left as an exercise for the user’s eyesight.)

And quite often… folks who enjoy theatrical content… like maybe some science fiction films… just might have a 4K capable television.

So a 4K demo of a 4K product is not an unreasonable expectation.

Once we step past that, however, it’s the wild west.

Wow this looks so good!

I’m getting really tired of Paramount geo-locking every single trail and promo they put out on official channels to the US. It’s as if they don’t actually want my dirty British money, so I’m minded not to give it to them!

They don’t want my filthy Canadian dollars either, apparently.

The trailer is available for all to view on the StarTrek.com website.

There also appears to be a region free version on the Paramount Movies you tube channel.

I’ve always thought that this was the worst Trek movie. It was long and boring. Looking at these pictures, maybe not all of my problem, but some of it might be that I just couldn’t even see what was happening onscreen. I remember V’Ger being this nondescript blob of lights and haziness. This shows an actual structure. I’ll give it another watch, but I’m afraid it’s still going to be long shots of people looking awed at whatever is on the viewscreen.

Watching this trailer was a fun trip down TMP lane and then they showed the comparison shots.🤯

I don’t have a 4K TV but I am really looking forward to seeing this in HD and owning this on 4K.

Best. U.S.S. Enterprise. EVER.

Effects look iffy, and I think the theatrical cut is better , but I’m still really looking forward to this.

Hope there are no effects retcons though, like say having a big statue of Burnham
at Starfleet HQ.

Well, Burnham and crew were made top secret right? So there shouldn’t be any mention of them.

They already wrecked Starfleet and San Fran on the DE by flushing the GR dictum about most of the area being back to nature, with only a few recognizable above-ground structures. Now they’ve managed to ‘top’ themselves with views that somehow seem even more cartoon-like and inappropriate (and also looks like it puts Starfleet on the SF side of the bay instead of in the Marin headlands!)

And that’s despite the fact that there were two unused VFX shots from the original film showing the shuttle tram — one a closeup, seen in the very long promo trailer, and one, a wide view of the tram going left to right along the bridge, that has only been seen in a frame blowup in ENTERPRISE INCIDENTS magazine — that would have told the story just as effectively (moreso, if they had actually gone back to the original color scheme that somebody printing TMP screwed up by dialing the early evening warmth out of all of the matte shots, rendering the skies a cooler color that looked immensely fake.)

It looks like a great upgrade, except for that CGI V’Ger shot…looks like Babylon 5 level CGI quality with HDR turned up to max.

So since they just released the “original” in 4k… What’s going to happen to those sets on sale, or the inevitable 1-6 or 1-10 box sets 🤔

TMP is a visual masterpiece. I’m not a fan of the theatrical version, but I have the director’s edition on DVD. I began to like it the more I saw it. And now I have a deep appreciation for Wise’s cut. I am looking forward to this edition coming to P+ and eventually blu-ray.

I don’t think any movie that so misuses split field diopters — and with the same director who used them very well on ANDROMEDA STRAIN and nearly as successfully on THE HINDENBURG — can ever be considered a visual masterpiece (or one with TMP’s Starfleet colorscheme), but it has its moments (mostly due to Trumbull.) I threw away the director’s version of the DVD, disgusted with the sound mix — wormhole sequence utterly ruined with a droning that sounds like it was the guy making the ‘alert’ sound in KENTUCKY FRIED MOVIE’s ‘A Fistful of Yen’ — and other bad choices like the fireball in vacuum of space for the wormhole.

Currently I’m still sticking with the outdated blu-rays from more than a decade back, as the weird (read that as tragic) mushy treatment of some VFX shots in this new set is an atrocity I won’t support. I suppose somebody will eventually come up with a version of the new theatrical TMP that blends it with unsoftened VFX, and that’ll be what I bite on (either that or I will have to do it myself.) I wouldn’t mind if it included the Spock tear from the SLV and director’s edition, to be honest.

V – G – E – R… Vger..

V-O-Y-A-G-E-R… Voyager!….

Voyager Six!!?

The poster is a little tacky for my taste. It’s fine for promo purposes but I hope for the 4k blu ray, they use the original DVD cover art.

It’s awful. Tastewise, it is like the lady who tried to restore an old religious painting and wound up creating the beast jesus. You don’t mess with Bob Peak’s work, and it makes me dread what’ll happen if folks like this unearth his unused LICENCE REVOKED poster with Dalton/Bond in full Dirty Harry mode. Probably airbrush that ugly bag of mostly ego Daniel Craig over Timothy Dalton.

Agreed, like the new logo but those plasma lamp lightning effects were some marketing genius’s bad decision.

Yep. The original TMP poster is simple, elegant and epic.

It’s framed and on the wall of my media room!

Cool. When I eventually move to a place where I can actually have a media room, as opposed to a lame living room, that will literally be the first thing I wall mount.

Amazing! Can’t wait till First Contact Day!

I wonder what would happen if they just use the Kevlin cast and put them on the Star Trek II 1701 and had them do a movie in the style of the original films (Nick Meyer story?).

That new poster suggests the Enterprise does have the spore drive too! 😁 Now I understand how much she was refitted and why Kirk was said to know her only by 10%! And why she was the only ship that could intercept VGer in time. Lol.
I wish I could see the new version in Germany in a cinema too. 🤔
I wonder if we’re gonna see a version restored with all additional scenes too.

Spore drive equals “yuck”. I put “spore drive” in the same trash bin as the TNG episode that told us that high warp speeds were “polluting” space so starships could no longer travel faster than warp five.
And I think this will be the last version of TMP we will ever see.

I’m not so sure. The same has been made with the first Superman-movie, where the one time aired extended tv-version has been restored. I also would like to see the hypothetical tv-pilot-version “in thy image”. Now that would be a “demaster”.

‘stop competing with me, decker!!!’

I really cannot wait for this! On top of the graphics, the updated audio sounds really good. I hope it just looks amazing on my TV (though P+ streaming via my Playstation has not been the best as of late. Pixel-city sometimes).

It finally fixed the shadow and perspective on the scene of the team walking on the saucer! They always looked huge next to the ship and it was a tiny quibble in my head

A new scene featuring Scotty, Decker and Illia in Engineering? I’d like to see this as a deleted scene, not incorporated into the movie itself. Wise may have wanted it included twenty years ago, but given he isn’t around to give the nod now, sticking it on the disc as a short extra would be an appropriate compromise.

I’m looking forward to the theatrical re-release even if its just for a few days. However, when they’ve released the films for these special events, they always get shown in the smaller of the multiplex auditoriums.

The last TMP 40th edition were probably copies of the print they used for the video. The font during the alien languages were not in the TMP font. Still hoping they’ll do a 3D and/or IMAX version. The first person style of the VFX would be terrific.

I’ll wait for the 30th Anniversary 256K version in 2031.
>;>}

I’m hoping the trailer on youtube was just horribly compressed. I’d hate to see that this film was degrained to the point it doesn’t look like a movie made in 1979. I hate DVNR with a passion except when its necessary to a point, but the trailer looked like a digitally processed and shot movie. I saw no grain. Not even what you would see on a 65mm negative.

I hope they fix the Spock’s and McCoy’s jacket arm band colors in the last scene!

I don’t! That’s an iconic goof. I love it!

I’m absolutely thrilled about the 4K release of STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE!! My sincere gratitude to everyone involved.

WHAT IS THAT MUSIC!!! Here hearing TMP new revamp’d soundtrack! Goosebumps everywere!!!! FRACK’NTASTIC!