Although we were privy to three frames from J.J. Abram‘s upcoming Star Trek sequel, sooner or later he’ll actually have to show us something substantial. And it looks like our first real glimpse of footage will indeed be that, as Paramount Pictures have announced today they will screen the first nine minutes from Star Trek Into Darkness in front of 500 IMAX 3D screens on December 14th, presumably before The Hobbit: An Unexpected  Journey.

This IMAX exclusive is not unlike The Dark Knight Rises with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and The Dark Knight with I Am Legend, but with WB also expected to release new Man of Steel and Pacific Rim teasers with Peter Jackson‘s epic, it’s becoming quite an event. With Abrams also actually utilizing IMAX film stock for some scenes, I greatly look forward to checking it out.

Although no plot details have been revealed yet, Star Trek Into Darkness, starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, Anton Yelchin, Benedict Cumberbatch, Alice Eve and Peter Weller, arrives on May 17th, 2013.

If you weren’t seeing The Hobbit before, will you reconsider with this news?