WENN: Abrams Confirms 'Star Trek' Movie

Mission: Impossible III director JJ Abrams has confirmed he's set to save the Star Trek franchise after signing on to produce the next film in the sci-fi series. The 40-year-old Lost and Alias creator, who is a longtime fan of the cult TV show and subsequent movies, is considering directing the new Trek movie too. In an exclusive interview with America's TV Guide magazine, Abrams says, "It's sort of surreal but wonderful. I'm producing and may direct. I have every DVD of every Star Trek episode from every series. I haven't seen every episode from every series but I certainly know it well enough to be working on the movie." Abrams, who will team up with fellow Star Trek buff and Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof on the new project, initially fumed when his involvement in the new film was announced before he'd committed to it. He admits he took his time to sign up for the project: "There have been 10 films and all these different (TV) series, so it was a question of finding out what they (movie executives at Paramount) were anticipating." Abrams insists the cult following Lost has found will help him make decisions about where to take the secret storyline for the latest Star Trek film. He explains, "Fans of Lost don't compare to fans of Star Trek, but working on Lost gives us a view into how important it is to respect the fans."