Sure Shots: 'Star Trek Into Darkness'; Tim Miller; Isla Fisher

* Oh that J.J. Abrams, always keeping things secret from us. Like any footage or even a decent photo from Star Trek Into Darkness, one of the most anticipated movies of next year. Well, he can't hide the sequel from us forever, and it looks like those who attend IMAX 3D screenings of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will get to see a pretty significant chunk of it early. Paramount has announced that nine minutes of Star Trek Into Darkness will be shown in roughly 500 IMAX 3D theaters on December 14th. So it looks like another deal has been struck between Paramount and Warner Bros., who came to a similar arrangement last year when The Dark Knight Rises was previewed prior to Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol. It's likely to be the best glimpse we're going to get before the film opens on May 17th, so I'd pre-order my tickets now.

* Tim Miller sure has a lot on his plate for a guy who still hasn't officially made his directorial debut. The newbie director is attached to two high-profile comic book adaptations in Marvel's Deadpool and Warren Ellis' Gravel, neither of which have had any movement in months. But he's still adding another to his slate, adapting Joe Haldeman's sci-fi short story, Seasons. Collected in the author's Dealing in Futures anthology, the story centers on a cultural expedition to an alien world that goes horribly wrong. Sebastian Gutierrez will pen the script. Haldeman's work has been really popular of late, with Ridley Scott attached to direct an adaptation of his novel, The Forever War. [Deadline]

* The Jackie Brown prequel just got a lot more intriguing for me. Already set to star Yasiin Bey(aka Mos Def) and John Hawkes in the roles formerly played by Samuel L. Jackson and Robert De Niro, Isla Fisher is now being sought for the role of Melanie, who was played previously by Bridget Fonda. Jenifer Aniston and Ty Burrell co-star, although Dennis Quaid has been forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts. The story takes place fifteen years before Jackie Brown, and follows the career criminals Ordell and Louis as they kidnap the wife of a wealthy developer hoping for a big score, only to have the scheme unravel.  Fisher is a special comedic actress, and should be a perfect fit to play the manipulative Melanie, who always finds a way to subtly make a situation worse. Based on Elmore Leonard's novel, The Switch, the untitled film will be adapted by director Dan Schechter. [Variety]