J.J. Abrams and Jon Stewart debate "Star Trek" versus "Star Wars"

The director also hands out pointers to the comedian and soon-to-be director

Published May 14, 2013 12:49PM (EDT)

In a two-part interview on "The Daily Show," science fiction director J.J. Abrams and Jon Stewart debate the societal impact of "Star Wars" and "Star Trek." Abrams, who by directing both "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" movies has realized every nerd's dream, says "They are fundamentally different," calling "Star Wars" a "samurai movie western." But "I couldn't get into it," Abrams says as of "Star Trek." "The goal was to make a movie for movie-goers, not just for 'Star Trek' fans."

"The interesting thing to me was I stopped listening to when said you didn't like 'Star Trek.' I know you what happened cause your mouth was moving after that. So I'm assuming you apologized," joked Stewart.

Abrams then gave Stewart, who is taking a hiatus from "The Daily Show" to direct his first film, pointers on film directing:


By Prachi Gupta

Prachi Gupta is an Assistant News Editor for Salon, focusing on pop culture. Follow her on Twitter at @prachigu or email her at pgupta@salon.com.

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Jj Abrams Jon Stewart Movies Sci-fi Star Trek Star Wars Video