Justin Lin Replaces Roberto Orci as 'Star Trek 3' Director

Fast & Furious helmer Justin Lin is heading into outer space.

Lin is taking over as director of Star Trek 3 from former director Roberto Orci, who stepped down from the position earlier this month.

This makes Lin the third director of the rebooted Star Trek franchise, following Orci and J.J. Abrams, who directed the first two films in the trilogy. However, Abrams decided not to return for the third installment after being offered the director's chair for Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, a job that was among the most coveted in all of Hollywood. Abrams can now proudly lay claim to helming both a Star Trek and a Star Wars movie, meaning he's had creative control over two of the biggest franchises in all of pop culture.

Naturally, his decision to leave the Star Trek film franchise left the door open for Orci -- and now, Lin. For his own part, Lin will have directed two of film's big franchises at the moment, between Star Trek and the massively successful Fast & Furious series. So J.J. Abrams isn't exactly alone at the top of the "blockbuster franchise director" list.

However, neither Orci nor Abrams will be entirely gone from the Star Trek franchise. Both will remain on-board as producers, and while no release date or production start date has been revealed, it's expected the movie will be out in 2016, just in time for the 50th anniversary of the Star Trek franchise.

What do you think of Lin as director? Is his directing style a good fit for this franchise? Or is he too much of a hard action director for a sci-fi blockbuster? Sound off in the comments!

H/T: Entertainment Weekly

Credit: AP