Orci now frontrunner for "Trek 3" director

Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Roberto Orci is now considered the "frontrunner" to direct the next Star Trek film, currently slated for a 2016 release. It had been previously reported that Orci was interested but that Paramount was cautious about the idea. It would be Orci's first time in the director's chair, although he has a wealth of experience working on big-name TV and film projects as a writer and producer.

About the risks of a tapping a first-time director for a project of this magnitude, Deadline Hollwood said, "Orci could be an exception [for a first-time-director] because he has been involved for so long as writer and producer in shaping such big scale films as the Star Trek films as well as the Transformers and Amazing Spider-Man movies... Paramount’s partner, Skydance Productions, has been in Orci’s corner, but Paramount needed convincing. Now it all could happen at warp speed."

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Shatner's Brown Bag Wine Tasting has a new home

William Shatner has a knack for bringing fun and unique projects to the world, and his show Brown Bag Wine Tasting certainly qualifies. The show, which has been appearing on Shatner's own website, will be making the move to Ora.T.V. beginning June 23. The concept of the show is simple: Shatner accosts ordinary people with a bottle of wine in a brown bag and strikes up a conversation. As he told StarTrek.com in a recent interview:

"It’s me interviewing people. Talking to people, it can take time for them to warm up. My insertion, if you will, is a sip of wine from a brown bag. We analyze the wine and then the guests talk about themselves, and they’re mostly man on the street people rather than celebrities. They’re literally man on the street; they’ll be walking by and I’ll accost them and start talking to them."

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Star Trek Online releases new Tempest and Maelstrom Class escort ships

If you're looking for new escort ships with a bit of extra firepower, STO has two new options for you. The Tempest Class improves on the original design and gives your weapons systems some extra punch with a Nadion Saturation Bomb console and an Aft-Firing Tempest Tail Gun. Of course, there are new Tempest Class costumes that are set by default, and those can be worn by whomever you put in the fifth tactical seat.

The second option is the Maelstrom Class, which is available if you have a Tier 1 Fleet Shipyard.  It gives you a third engineering console rather that a fifth tactical seat, and includes the Aft-Firing Tempest Tail Gun despite lacking the Nadion Saturation Bomb console. You'll need to be a Vice Admiral or higher to get your hands on either of these new escort options.