William Shatner is one of the faces of the Star Trek franchise, having played Captain Kirk in the original series as well as several other movies. Shatner has since been closely associated with the franchise, as he attends conventions and has made the role a significant part of his public image.
However, his time in the franchise itself has not always been successful. The Original Series was deemed to be too expensive for the fanbase it had back in the day, and was promptly canceled after three seasons. Though Shatner returned for the six original movies, the highest-rated film in the franchise does not even star him. But it still stars Captain Kirk.
The highest-rated Star Trek film is J.J. Abrams’ 2009 reboot
Even at gunpoint, every Trekkie will say that Star Trek is not meant for the silver screen. The sci-fi franchise was conceived as a TV show, depicting episodic storylines as the Enterprise travels from planet to planet on diplomatic missions. The goal is to minimize attack or violence, and in a sci-fi movie, no explosions means no money.
Still, J.J. Abrams and crew tried their best and rebooted the original series for the big screen, casting Chris Pine in William Shatner’s role. The resulting Star Trek was a flawed yet packed with potential origin story of the beloved characters. What worked best for it was the casting, with an ensemble of incredibly talented and passionate actors joining in.
Star Trek (2009) was nothing like the show. It was more of an action blockbuster that saw its hero, Captain Kirk, battle it out. However, Chris Pine’s performance, as well as the acting performances of actors such as Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, and Zoe Saldana, proved that the franchise could be made for the movies.
At 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, it is the highest-rated Star Trek movie, followed by the TNG cast’s First Contact. Abrams’ sequels did not really come close to the flagship movie, but they are still among the top films in the franchise. Despite the absence of William Shatner, Abrams’ reboot seemed to introduce the franchise to a whole new set of audiences.
William Shatner dismissed rumors of being offered a cameo in J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek
William Shatner played Captain Kirk in the original series, the animated series, the six original movies with the TOS cast, and Star Trek: Generations, where he metaphorically passed the baton to the TNG cast. In the latter, Captain Kirk actually dies, and thus, Shatner’s time on the franchise ended.
Leonard Nimoy, who played Spock in TOS, played Spock Prime in J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot. However, fans were expecting a similar callback with William Shatner in the film. However, he did not return, though Abrams confirmed that there were some pitches, but they never made it past the writing team (via Trek Movie).
While the scene reportedly saw Shatner’s Kirk return as a hologram message, the actor denied ever being approached and called it fake news. He also called the scene dumb when a fan described it at a convention. He said (via Trek Movie),
That is the stupidest scene I have ever heard of! When I saw Leonard [Nimoy] in the first movie that J.J. [Abrams] made and he went back in time, I said to Leonard, ‘You know you are old when you go back in time and you are still old!’… Those are gratuitous scenes! I want to play something – well, the question is ‘How do you put this 50-year-older captain into that thing?’
Abrams had previously mentioned that Kirk’s death in Generations was a major issue in bringing back Shatner in the reboot, and it ultimately proved too complicated for it to happen. William Shatner had reportedly pitched a more him-centric idea to the team, but it never happened.
Star Trek is now available to stream on Paramount+.
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