Zoe Saldana says it will be "bittersweet" to make 'Star Trek 4' without Anton Yelchin.

The 43-year-old star is set to reprise her role as Uhura alongside fellow returning stars such as Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto and Simon Pegg but admits that it will be with a sense of sadness without Anton – who died tragically aged 27 in 2016 after being crushed by his own car.

Zoe told Entertainment Tonight: "We're excited. Obviously, it's bittersweet because we are coming together for a fourth time and one of us is no longer with us with Anton's passing, but we honestly feel that going back and keeping the 'Star Trek' family together is a way to really keep him alive in our thoughts and our hearts because he was such a fan.

"And he was such a devoted artist to the craft and also to 'Star Trek'. So, it would be great to get to go back to work and get to, you know, be together with the gang."

J.J. Abrams has indicated that filming will begin by the end of the year and it will feature both original cast members and newcomers.

The 55-year-old filmmaker said: "We are thrilled to say we are hard at work on a new 'Star Trek' film that will be shooting by the end of the year that will be featuring our original cast and some new characters that I think are going to be really fun and exciting and help take 'Star Trek' into areas that you've just never seen before.

"We're thrilled about this film, we have a bunch of other stories that we're talking about that we think will be really exciting so can't wait for you to see what we're cooking up. But until then, live long and prosper."