Shatner: To Get The Audience, Include Old Star Trek Cast
Kirk actor once again talks about new Star Trek movie
With "Lost" producer J.J. Abrams working on a Star Trek movie about a young Kirk and Spock, rumors about the appearance of William Shatner in the movie abound. In a recent Time interview, Shatner, the current star of ABC's "Boston Legal," addresses these rumors.
"I did have a talk with J.J., and he outlined what he wanted to do," Shatner said. "Getting a character who is supposed to be dead to talk to his younger self is a storytelling problem. But if you want to guarantee the audience will come in droves, one of the things you might do is include some members of the old cast."
On the topic of how he’ll pass the torch to a younger actor to play Capt. Kirk, Shatner muses, 'Well, you light a match ... No, I really have nothing to offer. I can't say to some young actor, 'Play it this way,' because he's going to play it his way. But I will say, he's got to be young and good-looking and rich. And charming."
With the failures of the last two movies and "Star Trek: Enterprise" to draw in both old and new fans, one of the main concerns about a new Star Trek movie is that Star Trek may have run its course and is past its prime. Shatner reflects on this.
"There was something about Star Trek that sustained it all those years," Shatner said. "But with so many entities of Star Trek out there all at once, the audience began to leave it. Now there's a huge experiment going on: Will the audience pick up their love affair? We don't know. And as talented as J.J. is, this is the real test for him. He's got to give a known quantity the Abrams twist and yet maintain the Star Trek game."
Another topic Shatner discussed was why he backed out of Richard Branson's civilian-spaceflight program. Shatner reportedly signed on to take a flight but then later backed out.
"Well, I really hadn't," he said. "They were trying to get as much publicity for their venture as possible, so they made this statement that I'd signed on, but in fact nobody had ever contacted me until much later. And I said no, I wouldn't pay [$210,000] to go into space. Throwing up is a lonely sickness and not something I'd like to pay for. But if it's thrust upon me, it might be a good adventure."
The 11th Star Trek movie is expected to be released in 2008. With "Lost" producer J.J. Abrams working on a Star Trek movie about a young Kirk and Spock, rumors about the appearance of William Shatner in the movie abound. In a recent Time interview, Shatner, the current star of ABC's "Boston Legal," addresses these rumors.
"I did have a talk with J.J., and he outlined what he wanted to do," Shatner said. "Getting a character who is supposed to be dead to talk to his younger self is a storytelling problem. But if you want to guarantee the audience will come in droves, one of the things you might do is include some members of the old cast."
On the topic of how he’ll pass the torch to a younger actor to play Capt. Kirk, Shatner muses, 'Well, you light a match ... No, I really have nothing to offer. I can't say to some young actor, 'Play it this way,' because he's going to play it his way. But I will say, he's got to be young and good-looking and rich. And charming."
With the failures of the last two movies and "Star Trek: Enterprise" to draw in both old and new fans, one of the main concerns about a new Star Trek movie is that Star Trek may have run its course and is past its prime. Shatner reflects on this.
"There was something about Star Trek that sustained it all those years," Shatner said. "But with so many entities of Star Trek out there all at once, the audience began to leave it. Now there's a huge experiment going on: Will the audience pick up their love affair? We don't know. And as talented as J.J. is, this is the real test for him. He's got to give a known quantity the Abrams twist and yet maintain the Star Trek game."
Another topic Shatner discussed was why he backed out of Richard Branson's civilian-spaceflight program. Shatner reportedly signed on to take a flight but then later backed out.
"Well, I really hadn't," he said. "They were trying to get as much publicity for their venture as possible, so they made this statement that I'd signed on, but in fact nobody had ever contacted me until much later. And I said no, I wouldn't pay [$210,000] to go into space. Throwing up is a lonely sickness and not something I'd like to pay for. But if it's thrust upon me, it might be a good adventure."
The 11th Star Trek movie is expected to be released in 2008.
Well i think that there isn't a space suit big enough for him :)
There is no hope?
"There is only chaos and evolution."
'There is only order and obedience. You will do as you are told.'
"You will fight because we tell you to fight."
'You will die for us when we tell you to die for us because the others know no other way.'
- Shadows and Vorlons
