1. Matt Reeves
For my money, Matt Reeves has to be the favorite for the job. Sure, he isn't a director with 'star power' and you may not have even heard of him before but there is a lot going for him. Matt Reeves is the long time friend of JJ Abrams and they have been making films together since they were 13. They co-created Felicity together, but Reeves got his first real recognition from the public when he directed the Abrams produced Cloverfield. From there, Matt Reeves went on to direct the surprisingly decent remake of Let The Right One In, Let Me In. He was momentarily attached to direct a Twilight Zone movie but is now currently busy directing Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apeas, the sequel of the prequel. So While Matt Reeves is not the biggest director in Hollywood, he certainly is no slouch. He has big budget films under his belt that have done well at the box office and has proven himself to be a more than competent director. While Dawn Of The Planet of the Apes is in the way at the moment, he is currently deep into shooting and will become a freer man in the new year when Paramount will start looking around seriously for a new director. Obviously Reeves also has the deep connection with JJ Abrams and Bad Robot so it would not be overly surprising to see Abrams pass his franchise off to his close friend, who is more than capable of making a great Trek Movie
Pros: Long standing relationship with JJ Abrams, Will have had experience with a franchise after he is done with Dawn of the Planet Of The Apes, More than competent to produce a great Star Trek movie
Cons: Not an A-List Hollywood director, Quality of Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes could depend on Paramount saying yes
Grade: A-