Plot details from Star Trek XI?

SyFy Portal revealed a few tidbits of info for the upcoming Star Trek XI film by JJ Abrams.

Here’s an excerpt:

Apparently the Romulans are looking to destroy Earth in the past as a way to mess up the overall timeline, and are mildly successful creating what could be best described as an alternate timeline, according to reports.

New details about the film’s storyline seems to explain why the casting of Zachary Quinto as Spock took on more of an importance than the casting of Kirk, and why Leonard Nimoy is definitely a part of the film while William Shatner is not. IESB says that the Spock portrayed by Nimoy will work with the Quinto’s Spock to try and stop the Romulan plan, and their battle against the Romulan baddie makes them the overall focus of the movie, not Kirk.

This is all still very much in the rumor stage, so no fear of spoilers just yet… but it sounds very clever in any case. I’ve always preferred the Romulans to the other alien races in the Star Trek universe. The fact that they are a loopy off-shoot of the restrained and calmly logical Vulcans has always been very interesting to me.

As long as no ‘Remians’ show up from the last Star Trek film, I think we’re in the clear.

Billie Piper (Rose) returns to Doctor Who?

Reported here at RTE Entertainment Ireland, at SyFy Portal and here, at the Hollywood Press… Rose may be coming back to Doctor Who.

Piper set for Doctor Who return
It was reported yesterday that Billie Piper was on the verge of agreeing a deal with the BBC to reprise the role of Rose Tyler in ‘Doctor Who’ next year.

The News of the World is claiming that the Doctor’s former companion would return for three episodes for the season finale.

The paper quoted a BBC insider as saying: “We are all very excited that Billie is on course to come back. We’re very close to getting her to sign.”

Piper left the very popular series at the end of the second season in the episode Doomsday which saw her character Rose Tyler confined to a parallel Earth with her family and boyfriend Mickey.

Fans have been talking about Rose coming back to the series almost as soon as she left. When it became common knowledge that Tennant was leaving at the end of the next season, many thought that Rose should return as a flashback (a la Caves of Androzani where the Doctor’s past companions float around him as he regenerates) or even to see him off in person… perhaps allowing Tennant to finish his ‘I love you’ line in Doomsday.

Of course we now know that Tennant is staying on for another two years, so it’s moot… or is it?