Shatner On Dissapointment Not Being in Movie + New Book and Ballet Documentary

Creation TV caught Shatner backstage at the recent Vegas con

Bonus Video New Shatner video from Pocket Books on new novel below…

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gotta love the shat

Set phasers on “bitter!”

Cheer up, Bill. We love ya, but don’t turn mean.

Dear Paramount Executives,

I know how to put William Shatner in the new Star Trek. Spock would go back in time to his and Kirk’s early years at the Starfleet Academy and tell the young Kirk to make the right choices in his life. The point I’m making here is that the death of Kirk was indeed pointless and maybe Spock is warning Kirk not to be aboard the Enterprise B before it encounters the Nexus so he wouldn’t have to end up dying while helping Picard stop Soran from killing millions of lives just to get back. In other words, it’d be too dangerous for an experienced captain to attend the christening of an unfinished successor to a starship he comandeered before. That way, it’d just be that Kirk never died at all. It’s quite logical. As soon as you get this message, tell J.J. Abrams that this would be worthy of all Trekkies to put Shatner in the film without shoving him in. It’s just perfect.

I am a little surprised we have not heard more casting news

Jeeze Adam I usually agree with your reasoned posts but how did he come off as bitter or mean ??

#3

Oh man, exactly the kind of baggage the new movie doesn’t need! If they were going to have older Kirk in the movie, I sure hope they’d come up with something better than that.

#4 As am I. Getting a bit frustrated now! Must be something soon?

I don’t see how Kirk and Spock could have interacted as teens in the Academy. Spock served with Captain Pike on the Enterprise thirteen years or so before Kirk became captain. Spock would have been out of the Academy years before Kirk entered it.

Abrams has said he would try to get Shatner in the movie. Nimoy says the movie would be better with Shatner in it. Let’s see if Abrams lives up to his word.

Still no edit feature :D

The comments weren’t bad at all. Nothing new, and certainly not denying hope. He wants in. Abrams says he wants him in. So write him in! His comments were hardly bitter. He just continued to express his desire to be in the movie.

The feeling is certainly shared by a significant group of fans.

Re 9:

But let’s be clear, StillKirok. Abrams said he would _try_ to get Shatner in the movie. He didn’t promise or give his word about anything.

I hope if things don’t turn out the way you want, you don’t accuse J.J. of being a liar, too.

I’m wondering if maybe the writers have already figured out how to put Shatner in the film and he is already signed on, but the writers are holding off divulging this information.
If this is the case, they may in fact be trying to prevent the circumstances of Kirk’s return from being leaked onto the Internet. But, that’s my own opinion.

Well, if Shat ain’t in it, then we know what the name of the next film will be,

STAR TREK XII: THE WRATH OF KIRK
or
STAR TREK XII: SHAT HAPPENS!

Seriously, outside of a cameo, such as a pre Enterprise B launch scene, the producers may see Shatner as a liability to the integrity of the film they hope to make, in that for the past ten years Mr. Shatner has made a carer out of lampooning his own (and by extention Captain Kirk’s) image.
His public image today is that of a portly clown on a lawyer show.

#13 You are quite mistaken! How many people actually watch Boston Legal? No. Shatner IS Captain Kirk.

#13 You are quite mistaken! How many people actually watch Boston Legal? No. Shatner IS Captain Kirk.
-ZoomZoom

Well, maybe your right. I hope so.
Captain Kirk is a cultural icon.

Shatner killed Kirk.

re #3:
then kirk could not help picard against soran and as we saw in generations, soran destroys the veridian system. picard would be in the nexus, but there would be no kirk to help him defeat soran.
i strongly recommend the book “engines of destiny”. in this story, old scotty travels back in time to rescue kirk from the deflector control room on the 1701-B just before the nexus energy whip hits the ship. but then the entire timeline is altered: soran succeeds, the 1701-D is destroyed with the entire crew on veridian III – which means that the crew is not there on the 1701-E later in 2373! so there is no ship that follows the borg sphere into the temporal wake – and the borg assimilate earth in 2063.

isn’t that the greatest story ever written? prevent kirk from getting into the nexus and the borg will tekt over the alpha quadrant in the 21st century. and it’s logical!!!

Here we go again, as Mr. Shatner said:

“Sauve, Debonair, Athletic, Rich.”

Qualities required for the “young” Captain Kirk. No mention as to what is required for a potential “old” Captain Kirk. For starters how about ‘ALIVE’?

#16, a lot of truth to that statement.

#4, yes, only 3 confirmed that we know of. Would also like to know more.

Before all you fanboys start ripping me, you can cool your jets, I’ve heard it all MANY times already. William Shatner is past his prime, he is a little short on most of the qualities just mentioned above. I’ve said me peace in many posts here. Fanboys need not reply. His character died!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You bring back characters from the dead too many times then death becomes an irrelevent plot line.

First priority is the movie, (I think we have that with Mr. Nimoy’s endorsement).

Thanks for the memories Mr. Shatner, it’s time to move on.

488 dtST

#13 “His public image today is that of a portly clown on a lawyer show”

And his best friend, who is in the movie, is that of photographer of fat naked women :D

They’ll call you soon Bill. Hang in there.

#18 how can Shatner be past his prime? He’s exactly the same age as Leonard Nimoy and he’s still currently emmy nominated for his acting! He’s not laying in a bed waiting to make piece with his maker. And I reckon he could beat you at paintball any day ;)

#5 Yo Garth!

I watched that clip of Bill, and it seemed to me like he wasn’t really smiling when he ripped on Nimoy (the “fat chicks” comment) and asked fans to basically go after Abrams to get him cast in the new movie. That’s where I read bitterness from Shatner. Taking stories of his demeanor on the set from the past 40 years, he can act like a prima donna at times. Don’t get me wrong, I adore the man and his work, but his constant “half-joking, half-serious” schtick about not being in the new movie is kind of sad to watch for me. I remember Shatner being a bit more professional in public. I give Nimoy credit for his graciousness though this– he is definitely a gentleman.

I would think we would get some casting announcements in Septemeber. Wouldn’t the actors need time to prepare for the roles before shooting starts in November?

#11–with all the talk, all the hype, and all the hope, Abrams needs to deliver Shatner. The reaction to Shatner’s original announcement was extremely negative. It will be a bad move for the movie.

Not saying no one will see it, but starting off by ticking off a large contingent of fans is not the brightest move, especially with all the teases.

Kirk didn’t die, modern trek never happened.

Sequels, Possibly a trilogy? The first deals with Spock and the Second Kirk. Shat will be in the second.The third one both Nemoy and Shatner will appear.Or Maybe they could CGI Deforest Kelly, Or NOt !

Shatner seems to be disappointed. And a little serious. Not his usual clowning around. And yes… Shatner killed Capt Kirk. Lets hope JJ Abrams knocks our socks off with his movie and everybody ends up being happy. Gotta love the Shatner.

Shatner’s been trying to bring the character back for a long time. He made a mistake–but after all he’s done for Trek, it shouldn’t be a lifetime ban.

Maybe shat cud appear as a lounge singer at the starfleetbar beltin out rocket man as the young spock watches in awe

I know it’s been mentioned before, but I think Shatner’s leading us on. He’s being too public about his not being in the film.

Shat’s not in it because there’s no role for “old Kirk” in the same way there’s not going to be an “old Spock”. I still think Nimoy is playing Sarek.

That said — and I’ve said it before — I think Shat should play a Klingon warlord in full makeup.

………….so does that mean we should start the letter writing ?

wouldn’t it be funny if this movie turned out to be really, really bad after all of the hype and speculation?
maybe Abrams will really kill star trek.
he’s even confessed to being a non-fan.
here’s hping that it will be brill though with or without the Shat.

and at #14 “You are quite mistaken! How many people actually watch Boston Legal? No. Shatner IS Captain Kirk.”

Boston Legal is one of the highest rated TV shows in America and Britan, with millions upon millions of devout viewers in America and arpund the world.
to those people, becuae of the Shat’s truely brilliant ability as an actor,
he is now Denny Crane.

please, don’t kill me!!!!!!

Maybe they should do a Shatner as Kirk TV movie to appease the trekkies.Shatner’s a TV actor again so that’s not unrealistic.As for the upcoming movie…Nimoy is enough(too much in my opinion-let’s see how it’s handled).If the general audience smells another Trekkie film(Which is what the movies were)they’ll stay away.Please!No Shatner as Kirk.Trekkies need to separate the actors from the roles and let the crew be depicted in their prime as was the original vision.

I will be truly disappointed is Shatner is not in the film as Kirk.

There has to be a way to get him in it.

Vodoo,Irish Trekkie,etc. Why don’t you do a letter writing campaign to do a TV movie that resolves the”Generations”Kirk death thing.From my perspective Shatner and the next genners killed Kirk .It’s up to the Next Gen bunch to go back and fix it.You can have your next Gen reunion too in a TV MOVIE and fix canon.(I can’t believe I’m writing this).Anyway…I don’t feel bad that Shatner’s “dissapointed”.He’s the one who saw the the end of original Trek with “Undiscovered Country” being the finale and jumped in with the studio’s plan to bury TOS (and kill Kirk)in favor of Next Gen.So stick with the Next Gen Bill.It’s not fair for You to burden the screenwriters and use fan pressure to get into this one.No disrespect.But what do You expect?Really.

I think we are debating in a vacuum. We don’t know. Has Abrams said no Shatner or just Shatner saying it?

I think JJ knows how much most of us want wild Bill in the film. I lean towards the conspiracy theory.

Les Nessman

21 – Adam, that is just Shatner being Shatner. He likes getting the attention.

35 – Would love to see a TV Movie with the living TOS members in it, but I don’t see that happening. Abrams reportedly was given control of the entire franchise (in terms of official productions), and he’s not going to spend what little free time he has on that.

As for the letter writing campaign, I think Shatner was being serious. Abrams went out of his way to calm all down with his statements at Comic Con. So for that reason, I don’t think many people have written or pestered him. If he doesn’t come through on that, then I say he’s fair game, although I don’t think that will accomplish anything.

In hindsight i think it wud have beenbest had TNGs 1st film hadnt included any tos cast & had beena stand alone tng film like FC. After all TUC was a sorta cross over film with the peace with the klingons story, worf & kirks final log entry. Kirks fate should have remained a mystrey…..

Snake, I would agree, except we wouldn’t have had a chance to see (what in my opinion is the most beautiful Enterprise model) the Enterprise-B. If they had just had the ending be Kirk getting thrown back into the nexus, while Soran falls to his death, and then Kirk climbing out of wreckage on 1701-B to Scotty’s delight, I would have called it the best Trek movie of the 90’s.

#13

More people than have been watching Star Trek in the past 15 years! Haha. Oooh I’m mean, aren’t I?

#19

Being fair, very few people have followed Nimoy’s photography career. On the other hand, millions are familiar with Shatner’s self-parody.

Honestly, for all the clout people think Shatner might bring, I can see what the reservations might be on the part of the filmakers. Shatner is well-known, but he HAS been parodying his self-image for the passed 15 years. In the public perception, he’s seen in a generally comedic light. If Abrams is going for a serious tone (and given most of his work, I’d say he probably is) then Shatner might be seen as a liability. I don’t say that with malice towards Shat. He’s hilarious on Boston Legal (and about the only tolerable aspect of the show any more).

#30

It’s been blatantly stated by Abrams, Quinto and Nimoy himself that he’ll be playing Spock, not Sarek.

This has been brought up a few times, but IMO, anyone who has concerns that Shatner might not fit into this new film because of Boston Legal and his other humorous roles just doesn’t grasp the whole concept of acting very well!

SO WHAT if he’s done more comedy than drama over the last 10 years? He’d established himself for 4 decades prior to that as a dramatic actor. And no matter how popular BL or Priceline ads are, Captain Kirk will always be his signature role. If a viewer seriously can’t enjoy a well-scripted, well-directed performance by William Shatner as Captain Kirk in Star Trek 2008 without being reminded of Boston Legal – that’s the viewers problem, and no one else’s.

I can see how, to the filmmakers, Kirk being dead might be a bit of a problem (not unsolvable though). But the fact that Shatner the actor is known these days for a comedic role shouldn’t even enter the equation!

I would prefer Shatner NOT be in it. He will hog the screen and divert from the whole effort of starting fresh. Even if it’s not really a reboot but a restart we need a break from the old!

And unless Shatner was made to get back into some sort of shape he will only serve to remind us that those glory days are gone!

I choose to remember Kirk at the top of his game!

#44 … I respectfully disagree, sir. You are right of course in the literal sense – the role will be assumed by a new man. But as of this moment, Shatner has been Kirk for 41 years, still is, and likely always will be. I really hope the right actor is chosen for the role. I want this to work, and I look forward to seeing what he does with the part. But it would be quite a stretch to assume that whoever this new actor is, he will surpass Shatner as THE definitive Kirk. At this point, we can only hope the new actor will play the role at least 3 times.

I’m going to have to respectfully disagree as well. Shatner IS, was, and always will be Kirk. James Bond was created in books. People had their image of Bond well before Connery. Shatner made that character.

Anyone else will be the next Kirk, a replacement, but will ALWAYS be in Shatner’s shadow.

And it will be far worse if Shatner isn’t involved to pass the torch.

No matter how good the actor is, and I hope they make a great choice, the character will always be associated with Shatner. Same with Spock/Nimoy.

That said, I believe it IS certainly possible for another actor to have success with the role, but Shatner iwll never be reduced to some guy who used to be Kirk.

Shatner(& TOS actors) were lucky.In that they had a very vocal fan base who equated them with the Characters (Could not separate?).As a result of this they had the(unheard of) opportunity to portray the characters into middle age and retirement and death(Kirk).These characters were meant to be portrayed in thier prime.Very rare circumstances.Actors being so closely identified with their roles.I think this was chiefly driven by trekkies and the actors who were able to stoke them.But for Trek to continue and appeal to the audience in general it has to go back to depicting the characters as they were originally written,in their prime.The general audience will smell a trekkie film if they see Shatner coming back from the dead (again, gee,just like Spock)and stay away.They could care less about some convoluted plot about bringing him back from Veridan 3 .

#42

“If a viewer seriously can’t enjoy a well-scripted, well-directed performance by William Shatner as Captain Kirk in Star Trek 2008 without being reminded of Boston Legal – that’s the viewers problem, and no one else’s. ”

If enough viewers can’t seperate the two, then it becomes the filmakers problem too. In fact, if too many people have an issue and it effects the box office, then it’s the fans issue because you don’t get any more Star Trek.

Being pigeonholed may not be fair, but it’s a real issue. For the same reason people might have a hard time with say, Will Farrell in a serious role, some might have a difficult time with Shatner. In fact, the Trek stigma followed Shatner for a long time to the point where few people could look at him and not think Kirk. He worked so hard to shed that particular image that now the reverse seems to be in place.

I’m not saying Shatner can’t do drama anymore – in fact a recent episode of Boston Legal featuring footage from an old movie Shat did as a youngster (can’t think of the title right now) showcased the fact that he does know how to walk the line quite well. I think what worries me (and others) is the fact that last time Shat put on the uniform in Generations, he seemed to play the role totally OTT. Now, I don’t know if that was partly due to the fact that he believed that was the last time he’d be playing the character or not, but I def don’t want to see that overblown version in this movie.

god the shatner worship is so tiresome…and that ‘bond started in books’ argument is so incredibly weak. What percentage of Bond film goers read the books…same with Superman and Batman movie goers….Probably less than 10%. To everyone else Connery was bond, Keaton was Barman, Reeve was Superman. And guess what? In each case people embraced the people that followed.

I love Shatner as much as the next girl, but he hasnt been Kirk for 15 years. I am ready for the new one just like I was ready for the new Superman as much as I love Chris Reeve

I think the worshipers need to let go. Just like batman, superman, bond and other franchises…they are bigger than one man. This cult of Shatner does not do any good for Trekdom and really makes us look bad

49 I think they’re afraid to let go because it will make them feel obsolete.Sorry if that’s a little tuff,but chew it slowly.

49. RandyYeoman … “god the shatner worship is so tiresome…”

Then you might consider looking elsewhere than a Star Trek website’s latest Shatner thread! Just a thought, if it bothers you so. And I don’t think StillKirok’s point was weak at all. He was saying that because Shatner has been the only actor associated with the role of Kirk for 40 years, he is naturally much more indelibly linked with the character than all the Bonds and all the Batmen. He’s absolutely right. Michael Keaton or Adam West didn’t create Batman. Batman had existed since the 30’s. Shatner as much as the creators and writers of TOS is responsible for the creation of Kirk.

“And guess what? In each case people embraced the people that followed.”

And we’re hoping that’ll happen in this case. StillKirok and I both said that. All we’re stressing is that the new actor will never replace Shatner as the definitive Kirk. That’d be next to impossible, unless he continues playing the part for decades. And that … probably isn’t going to happen.

“This cult of Shatner does not do any good for Trekdom and really makes us look bad”

Right. Because as Star Trek geeks discussing these old shows online, we’re already SUCH a cool bunch. Sorry to spoil that rep for you!

50. Jon “I think they’re afraid to let go because it will make them feel obsolete”

Speak for yourself. I am not afraid, and it would take a lot more than an entertainment franchise to make me feel obsolete. We’re passionate about it because we love it. Try to wrap your head around that.