70s Trek: Star Trek In The 1970s

He’s the person who brought Star Trek to the big screen.  Director Robert Wise had a long and notable career before coming to Star Trek. When producers were looking for a director, his name jumped off the page! The hiring of Wise was a sign that the project was legitimate and the power of Paramount was behind it. It's also a sign that Gene Roddenberry and the studio execs knew they needed an experienced filmmaker to get this movie going and get it finished by its premiere date. Robert Wise was a guy who could do that.  At this point in 1978, he had worked in the business for 44 years and as a director for 36. That’s a lot of experience. Hiring Robert Wise In August 1977, Paramount CEO Michael Eisner decided to cancel Star Trek Phase II and create a big budget film for Star Trek.  As we talked about back in Episode 89 of 70s Trek, director Robert Collins had been hired to direct the Phase II TV pilot, In Thy Image in the fall of 1977. But Paramount felt that the big budget film project needed a credible film d