J.J. Abrams on the new Star Trek film and Lost

There’s a great TV Guide interview with J.J. Abrams who has been tapped to co-produce the next Star Trek film. There’s something quite neat to see that someone who loves the show will be involved:

Lost Boss Tackles Star Trek Enterprise

“TV Guide: Why do you think Star Trek continues to fascinate?
Abrams: It was incredibly smart television. The original series and Next Generation were about something — human nature and the idea of coming up against the unexpected and the often terrifying. It was a good story that happened to be science fiction. When I watch episodes with my 7-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter and see them so vitally respond to a show that was made the year I was born — it’s not because it takes place on a spaceship. What endures isn’t a genre, it’s character and emotional connection.”

…I like the fact that his focus is on the original series from the 60s and when he talks about “smart television”, you start to suspect that he respects his audience.