Karl Urban On Trek, Spocks and Charity December 1, 2008
by TrekMovie.com Staff , Filed under: Celebrity, ST09 Cast, Star Trek (2009 film) , trackback
Kiwi actor Karl Urban, Dr. Leonard McCoy for the new Star Trek, is probably the biggest Trek fan of the film’s new cast and so far his performance as Bones is getting rave reviews for how it honors the original actor, DeForest Kelley. Today the actor showed off his enthusiasm for the film and his part while appearing on a on a New Zealand morning chat show. See below for video.
VIDEO: Urban talks Trek and charity
Urban appeared on New Zealand’s Channel 3 morning show to promote a Christmas chairty (more info at 3news.co.nz).
CLICK to see Urban at 3news.co.nz
[NOTE: 3 News actually used a Gabriel Koerner design for Urban's backdrop.]
Some select quotes:
On the Star Trek film:
This is going to be wicked. They are throwing more money at this thing than probably the last five films combined [Editors note: more like the last 2 1/2 films].
On Zachary Quinto and Leonard Nimoy:
It was freaky working with him. It was like watching an original episode and being face to face with Leonard Nimoy as Spock. I actually got to see Leonard doing his very first day of putting on the ears and the eyebrows and becoming Spock after 17 years and it was one of those iconic pop moments.
Urban also talks about working on historic sets at Paramount, being on set while Stephen Spielberg was there and more.
Urban also promoting the Christmas promotion for New Zealand’s KidsCan Charitable Trust. See the official site for more on the KidsCan Christmas Cracker Appeal.
Karl Urban as Dr. Bones McCoy in "Star Trek"
UPDATE: Urban talks Trek fandom and differences at Cloverfield premiere
If you haven’t seen this before, here is an interview given by Urban back in January while they were filming the movie. Urban talks about what a big fan he is and how his portrayal of Bones differs than that of DeForest Kelley. (thanks Spockboy).
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Comments»
Now, I have my serious doubts and peccadillos regarding what this movie will be…
but from what little I’ve seen Karl Urban is the real deal when it comes to McCoy!
First?
He’s a doctor not an actor!
Karl Urban is a terrific actor. And based on the reviews, he’s probably gonna deliver another great performance. May 8, please hurry!
God bless!
Foist!
I think.
Karl is one of those character actors who truly BECOME the person they’re portraying.
Unlike, say, Tommy Lee Jones, who seems to always be playing the same role. Himself.
Let the vilification begin….
I’m really looking forward in seeing Urban’s performance as McCoy…. Urban’s Bones and Pegg’s Scotty… big expectations!
By the way… notice Gabe Koerner’s Enterprise on the screen behind Urban? LOL!
I love Karl Urban. He’s just a really likable actor, even when he’s playing a vicious Russian hitman. I think this movie will put Karl Urban into the stratosphere. And I think Spielberg was on set to poach some of the considerable talent working on this movie..
Did anyone else notice that in the background of the interview, the ship is Gabriel Koerner’s Enterprise and not the actual one from the movie. I find it kinda funny.
Gawd, he looks so much like Gary Mitchell in that one pic with the red shirt on…
Wow! Gary Mitchell! :)
Not sure, but that still of UrBones next to PineKirk looks less airbrushed, hence less creepily homoerotic, than previous posts of the same still, especially after EW did its thing with the pic.
Anyway, looking forward to May.
#6 – I totally agree!
I love this man… :-D
For me, Karl Urban wasn’t the first actor I had in mind to play McCoy. When I heard that he was announced to play the part, I was intrigued. Than the more I watched his movies, the more optimistic I got. As Tom Servo observed during his experimenting on the “Good and the Beautiful”
“Hmm. Yes..yes..yes. Yes. Yes. YES. YES. YES!!”
Now he’s number one of the new original crew member I’m really looking forward to see!
McCoy was always my favorite from the series and with Urban playing the part, I couldn’t be more satisfied with the choice in casting.
Too bad the other two, Pine and Quinto, couldn’t see it in themselves as actors to bring more of the original actor’s mannerisms to the roles. They might have won more acclaim also. See, it never hurts to be more like the character you are playing!
#10. CmdrR
…UrBones… heh, that’s great! You need to trademark that!
In general, I do have to say that the cast as whole really strikes me as a potentially strong group of performers.
And I finally did have my first first.
Not my First FIRST, if you know what I mean, but I’m sure you know what I mean…
It’s really funny; despite my love for Urban after LOTR and Bourne, his was the casting I was most concerned about when all the actors were first announced. I could see Pegg as Scotty; I could see Greenwood as Pike; Pine was a completely unknown entity to me. But I just couldn’t picture Urban as Bones.
I couldn’t be happier to hear that he really seems to have done a good job! And now, he’s the one I most want to see come May!
Cinema in general could use a lot more Karl Urban. I watched a stinker of a film from 2005: ‘Doom’, based on the video game. It’s not saying much, but Karl Urban was the best thing about it; his was the one character in the whole thing that seemed halfway human.
Anyway, I love this guy!
Is it May yet?
#13 – Fred
I’m glad to hear that Urban’s De Kelley impression seems to be working, but frankly, I don’t think that, in general, it’s the best way for the actors to go about this.
If Chris Pine were to try and do a Shat impression, it would be suicide, and it would destroy the movie.
I’ve been a fan of Urban since he was Julius Caesar on Xena… I was rather taken aback when I heard he was playing McCoy, but after hearing several interviews talking about how he petitioned for the role, I was intrigued. He is definitely one of the things I think will shine about this movie.
I think he is going to be great in the new movie! The more I hear from and about him the more confidant I am.
:-)
The brightest thing we’ve seen so far.
I can settle with bad Uhura or Chekov, but not with bad McCoy. They’ve done a great job with Urban.
Although I’m the last person to make a judgement based on so little footage, from reports, I wonder if Karl and Chris are going to ‘get’ the characters of McCoy and Kirk so well compared with Zachary Quinto’s Spock that Kirk and McCoy’s relationship will become the neo-Trek equivalent of the old Trek’s Kirk/Spock relationship!
13 – Fred
Doesn’t know what he is talking about. Yes he is entitled to his opinion. However wrong that may be.
I want to see more of him and Simon Pegg. Bones and Scotty need to be done with a lot of care, so they don’t become parodies. Chekov too.
#20 Dom
I have found it a touch surprising that the early reviews seem to be just a touch cool on Quinto as Spock while very enthusiastic about Pine. I wouldn’t have neccesarily expected that, but there are always surprises, eh? Urban’s apparently strong performance, though, intrigued me from the first casting reports.Well, the proof shall be in the pudding.
@13
I don’t know if I really want to see Pine employing Shatner’s “Pause-Acting” method and his softball-pitcher arm swings as he speaks. You know the ones I mean.
While I know some of the hardcore fans will vehemently disagree, I don’t consider Shatner’s mannerisms key components of Kirk as a character. His personality, yes, and that’s something that can be projected by Chris Pine’s version of Kirk without the need for “Shatnerisms”.
Spock’s and McCoy’s, on the other hand, are very much key components of their respective characters, because they’re reflections of the characters’ backgrounds.
I’ve always thought since I first saw the red-suit still that Urban looks a heck of a lot like 60s’ era Doohan.
Weird.
Folks, don’t forget Urban did an elegant turn as a Southern-accented Woodrow Call in the Lonesome Dove prequel Comanche Moon. He was convincing there with the accent…
And it gives him the “cred” even more to follow in De’s footsteps. Westerns are the heart and soul of the character of Dr. McCoy. That’s exactly why Gene cast De.
I love how the picture of the Enterprise in the background of this interview is the one that faked everyone out earlier this year and NOT the actual Enterprise from the movie. It make me LuLz.
wow that pic showing Urban & Pine looks straight out of DCs Annual 2 from 1991 – the Kirk Academy issue…only in that it was Kirk and Mitchell
What a cool Christmas tradition. :-)
Karl Urban was the casting choice I liked the best. Despite a lot of infatuation with Quinto, Urban just seemed right to play McCoy. He was a character that I had trouble casting in my head and once Urban’s name started floating around, it put all fears to rest.
Definitely looking forward to more interviews with him the closer we get to release time!
23. earthclanbootstrap
Yeah, funny about Quinto, isn’t it? Of course, he’s the one person who’s been hired for his resemblance to his predecessor. Time will tell, I guess!
“For Lord, and land, fulfil your promises Rohan Riders!”
Karl, legend. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWSEQeBLFz4
Urban is a triple threat.
He has looks, brains and TOS cred.
Great interview. The hosts weren’t very impressive, though. Clearly not up on Star Trek beforehand….
#4 ‘Beach
Right there with you regarding Tommy Lee Jones! Always thought that guy was overrated, or at least, supremely obnoxious.
But I’m very excited to see Urban’s McCoy.
#5
“By the way… notice Gabe Koerner’s Enterprise on the screen behind Urban? LOL!”
Ooops! I find that ship quite appealing. I wonder if Gabe will get some residuals from that shot ;) Just goes to show what a great job he did on that ship.
Urban is going to be an excellent McCoy! In fact, I think JJ did a great job assembling such a great cast.
I’m only waiting for the answer to ONE question: when did McCoy and Kirk swap their eyes (: ?
I’m only waiting for the answere to ONE single Question:
When did McCoy and Kirk swap their eyes (: ?
I was always excited by Urban’s casting (and Simon Pegg’s – who I would’ve assumed was the ACTUAL biggest Trek geek among the new cast, no?). I thought he was great in the Lord of the Rings films and the Bourne Supremacy (albeit, a fairly silent part). I haven’t seen Quinto’s work on Heroes, and it remains to be seen if Chris Pine is going to be anything other than a coffee table. But if it doesn’t happen in this movie, then it’s comforting to know that, because McCoy and Kirk were such close characters the first time ’round, that Urban will be getting a decent amount of screen time in the previous films as those characters’ relationships develop. And it pleases me, too, that people say he’s “nailed” McCoy in the preview scenes, as he’s my personal favourite Original Series character.
had to Google search what a Christmas cracker was. it seems as if they’re kinda like fortune cookies of the British Empire.
anyway, what scene (do we know yet?) did Mr. Spielberg sit in on?
p.s. but unlike fortune cookies, you don’t eat Christmas crackers.
long live the Queen!
*next films, not previous, as stated above.
Christmas crackers are sort of… decorated paper tubes with a little banger inside when they’re pulled apart by two people. They usually have a cheap, crap prize inside, along with a paper crown and some equally cheap and crap jokes. And they look like this:
http://wwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI/223/1613/PreviewComp/SuperStock_1613R-10077.jpg
And they do exist outside of the British empire…
I was lucky enough to stumble upon a pilot that Karl Urban did for a science fiction TV show at one point and it really nailed home the idea that Karl Urban loves science fiction. It was campy, corny, and cliched, but it was hilarious and fun to watch. He’ll be a great McCoy.
#4-
You forgot BATMAN FOREVER… where Tommy Lee Jones was essentially playing Jack Nicholson’s Joker.
#43 Well, mostly they don’t exist outside the empire. However, we’ve done them for several years. For me the trick is to get the darned things to actually make the “bang” when they’re pulled apart. I usually have to pull the explosive strip again once the cracker is open.
Urban is one of the few that I can actually begin to accept as the character he’s supposed to be. I can look at the pic of him in his Starfleet blue uniform and figure out who he is, same with Quinto as Spock. The rest, not so much, especially Yelchin and Pegg.
Score, I got post #47! Lol
Jack Nicholson would have been an awesome McCoy
I’m entirely enthused about Karl Urban, and still hold out hopes that this movie will be worthy of the care he’s given his work on it.
If they were casting the characters at the same age as they were in TOS, there’s no doubt that Gary Sinise should have been McCoy.
Oh, and I agree with whoever said Tommy Lee Jones is always playing himself. I feel that way about Kevin Costner too. Overrated actors, IMO.
Uh, how could you possibly know they’re playing themselves? Have you met them?
Wow. I used to go to Star Trek fan club meetings with Gabe when I was a teenager in Bakersfield. Nice to see we are all taking over the world, I mean popular culture! Props to Nemesis club in Bako!
Urban is awesome.
re: 2nd video
I’m very glad the interviewer get a rise out of Urban for using the term “trekkie”. You could see the aversion in his face though. And that he knows for a start that the eye color is different … color me impressed!
I’m very glad the interviewer *didn’t* get a rise …
The ENT in that photo behind Urban looks terrible!
I am concerned about Trek XI with each passing day, but as a McCoy fan (my favorite character) I also give the thumbs up to Urban. I think he will pull it off. As for J.J. . .
Is it sad that every state and every country has it’s own morning show?
Man, can’t escape that Koenerprise! They actually think that’s the movie ship???!!! Hilarious!!!
Urban will be amazing.
The “Official” Star Trek Bebo page has Gabe Koener’s rendering as the movie ship, too.
http://www.bebo.com/PhotoAlbumBig.jsp?PageNbr=1&MemberId=5884530334&PhotoAlbumId=9459430782&PhotoId=9478244634
And whatever about Kevin Costner – he’s been in some pretty craptacular films, granted (including some that were more successful than they should have been such as Prince of Thieves), but he’s actually done some good stuff too. JFK and 13 Days were both good performances, credit where it’s due.
And the one Tommy Lee Jones performance I *really* don’t get is No Country For Old Men. In fact, I just don’t get that film in general, and I’m a HUGE fan of the Coen Bros. Why was it so popular? I’m *still* waiting for something to happen in it.
Apologies for consecutive posts, but looking at Koener’s design and comparing it with the actual movie design – there are a lot of very similar elements. Makes me wonder if he actually did work on the movie? Or do we already know who designed the XI Enterprise?
There’s been some interesting remarks made about the age of the new cast over multiple threads on this site, yet if you look in to it there’s not a great deal of difference in new casts ages and the ages of the original TOS cast at the time they started filming TOS. I’m not quite sure how long before TOS this new movie is set but it could be somewhere between five to ten years?
Karl Urban is 36 now and DeForest Kelly was 46 in 1966 when TOS started that kind of fits.
Zachary Quinto is 31 and Leonard Nimoy was 35, Chirs Pine is 28 and the mighty Bill Shatner was 35.
(in fact Nimoy and Shatner may well have been 34 at the start of TOS)
Zoe Salanda, 30, Nichelle Nichols 34, Simon Pegg, 38, James Doohan, 46, John Cho, 36, George Takei, 27.
If anything, the new cast are a little old but hardly the “90210” that they keep being accused of.
63 – I don’t think they’re being called “90210″ based on age, but on what is being perceived by many as the glossiness of much of the new cast and a pre-judging perception of shallowness to the approach of the material — an “Aaron Spelling-ization” of “Star Trek,” if you will. And even if you won’t.
FWIW — I’m sure Mr. Urban will do a good job with the role, but for this decades-long fan, DeForest Kelley will always be “the real McCoy.” Sorry … couldn’t resist. It was inevitable from someone, wasn’t it?
Urban seems like a cool dude. He’s shown a lot of respect for De, and love for TOS, so he’s ok in my book. :-) I’m looking forward to seeing him as our favorite ol’ country doctor.
#24—”While I know some of the hardcore fans will vehemently disagree, I don’t consider Shatner’s mannerisms key components of Kirk as a character.”
Absolutely. Shatner’s mannerisms are his, not Kirk’s.
“Shatnerisms” (inexplicable pauses, excessive scenery chewing, the occsional inaudible mumble, etc.) are something Bill Shatner claims to be unaware of himself (according to his own commentary on A&E’s “Biography”) in his delivery. That (”Shatnerian”, as Kevin Pollack calls it) acting style may be endearing when executed by Bill, but when executed ‘intentionally’ by another actor, it is difficult to imagine it being interpreted by the majority of audience members as anything but parodic (IMO).
I think that critics would burn Pine, Abrams, and the entire project at the stake if they had gone that route with their leading man, and I would fully expect audiences to have a difficult time taking any of this seriously…I know I would.
66. Closettrekker
I agree. In the minds of non-fans, that over-the-top style that has been endlessly parodied would likely be their characterization of Kirk. If Pine were to play Kirk “Shatner-style”, people would not take him seriously.
I also realize it bothers some people here that Urban and Quinto are sticking a little closer to Kelley and Nimoy than Pine is to Shatner, but there’s something to consider: Neither McCoy nor Spock have been so endlessly parodied as has Shatner’s Kirk. Thus, Urban and Quinto have a little more leeway on being closer to the original performances because the minds of the viewers haven’t been informed by a endless string of over-the-top impersonations of their respective characters.
#44 – Sean
That pilot was for a scifi show called “The Privateer”, in which Walter Koenig had some kind of role as a villain, I think, and I believe he did have a few lines with Karl… :)
Seems to me they have a great Kirk, a great Spock, a great Bones and a great Scotty.
:)
I just hope this movie is able to give all this cast a chance to do lots of nice character work amid all the action. I hope there are plenty of quieter moments and lots of dialogue, not just a flimsy action film.
Karl : That’s not our ship you have there on the wall…..
Interviewer : Beg pardon ?
Karl : That ship was designed by Gabe Koernor, a Star Trek fan, it’s not the ship in our movie.
Interviewer : You are such a Nerd….
Karl : Look, I’m IN the film, I think I should know what our ship looks like.
Interviewer : Oops.
The Koerner ship really does look so much better. Pity…
Truth be told Karl Urban will probably show he was the best casted!
#72—-Thusfar, the bulk of the praise in the reviews of the 20 minutes of footage shown seems to be for Pine’s performance.
Most of what we’ve heard about Karl Urban’s portrayal is that he is “dead on McCoy”, but the word on Chris Pine has been that he is “phenomenal” and “fantastic” as Kirk. Some of the critics have gone as far as to say that he “owns” the role from the start.
While, for those of us older fans, Kirk will always be remembered as a young William Shatner, Pine may be every bit as good in the role as those fortunate enough to see it this early have indicated.
If he is, I won’t deny him his due praise. He doesn’t have to be William Shatner. He has to be James Kirk.
While George Reeves was the original Superman/Clark Kent, I would certainly argue that Christopher Reeve was an even better one. Pine may not be better than Shatner (especially for those of us older fans), but he could certainly be just as great in his own right.
Great interview and i love the way he mentions his two boys Hunter and Indy….you go baby!!!
It’s fun to listen to the difference in accent from the new ZEDland interview to the hollywood.com interview.
He “americans” up real good.
#44 You mean the Privateers?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=926icFvL4Y8
I’m not sure that role proves he would be a great McCoy, more like he would be an poor Kirk. The sad part about it is that you see it as “campy, corny and cliched” and “hilarious”, when in fact it was a serious attempt to sell a dramatic sci-fi series. Urban’s performance is weak at best and highlights the difference in an actor’s early career and later. I guarantee Urban would not be caught dead in a project this weak again and has gained enough experience since to avoid such an amateurish performance.
Walter Koenig did indeed play the evil station commandant, which further proves he should count his blessings he had those two seasons on TOS.