 The Wrath of Khan was a critical and commercial success , and Paramount Pictures quickly prepared for a third Star Trek film . The Wrath of Khan 's director , Nicholas Meyer , would not return ; he had disagreed with changes made to his film 's ending without his consent . Upon seeing The Wrath of Khan , Leonard Nimoy became " excited " about playing Spock again . When asked by Paramount Pictures if he wanted to reprise the role for the third feature , Nimoy agreed and told them , " You 're damned right , I want to direct that picture ! " Studio chief Michael Eisner was reluctant to hire Nimoy because he mistakenly believed that the actor hated Star Trek and had demanded in his contract that Spock be killed . Nimoy was given the job after he persuaded Eisner that this was not the case . Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry 's first reaction to the news was that producer Harve Bennett had " hired a director you can 't fire " . 
