On Monday Scott Bakula, Star Trek Enterprise’s Captain Jonathan Archer, begins a three-episode arc on the NBC show Chuck. We have video and image previews plus some interview excerpts from Bakula talking about Chuck and about Star Trek, including how maybe the new Star Trek movie could prove that Enterprise should never have been cancelled.
Scott and Chuck
The NBC show Chuck is about a nerdy guy (Chuck Bartowski) who is a member of the ‘Nerd Herd’ for ‘Buy More’ (like Geek Squad for Best Buy), who ends up with a secret computer program in his head, turning him into a key asset for the CIA. The show has had some connections to Star Trek in the past, none the least of which is Star Trek Voyager’s Robert Duncan McNeill who is a supervising producer for the show and has directed six episodes. The show recently had Robert Picardo (VOY: The Doctor) and on Monday Bakula begins a three-episode arc playing Chuck’s long-lost Dad.
Here is a preview showing Bakula (as well as guest star Chevy Chase).
Bakula on Chuck and Star Trek
Excerpts from interview with Bakula from SciFiWire
Bakula on preparing for Chuck:
Well, I had some inside information. I talked with the executive producers, and we had a long, almost an hour conversation with Josh [Schwartz] and Chris [Fedak] and I. And I’d seen a bunch of episodes, but there was a lot of fill-in-the-blank stuff that I needed help with. I can’t say that I knew everything about it, but I knew a lot. … It’s a great show, and they’re doing really wonderful work. It’s a great cast, very talented, and they’re extremely dedicated and hopeful about the series, and I am too. I hope they get picked up. … Bonnie’s [Bonita Freidericy, who plays Gen. Beckman] a good friend of mine. Her husband, John Billingsley, was on Enterprise with me, and I’m rooting for her. … It was fun.
Bakula on the new Star Trek movie:
I’m dying to see it. It looks like they’ve found a way to modernize it, and hopefully in a way that will [work] … I was talking to my 18-year-old son, and we were looking at the billboard, and I asked him, "What do you think of that?" He said, "When I first saw it, I was like, ‘Oh, another Star Trek movie. Those movies are so … ‘" And he didn’t have the word. I said, you know, "Dated?" And he said, "Yeah." It feels dated to an 18-year-old.
The trick is, they’ve got to bring it up to date and make it hip and sexy and fast and all the things they can do with effects now, and keep the die-hard fans in the theater. I’ll be curious to see if they’ll be successful with that. I hope they are.
We were trying to make that bridge with our series, and we had resistance. There was no question that some of the Star Trek fan base was not ready to go there [laughs]. They just didn’t want to do it. A guy stopped me, and he said, "Oh, I loved that show, I loved it, loved it, … except for the theme song" [laughs]. I was like, "Man, people should just …" But they’re not willing to give it any slack. If they don’t like it, they’re vocal about it. But if they like it, then you’re made. … The trailer looks fantastic. And, obviously, [director J.J.] Abrams knows how to make a movie. And, hopefully, he will have succeeded, and the studio will say, "We shouldn’t have canceled Enterprise" [laughs].
Much more from Scott, including talking about Quantum Leap, at SciFiWire.
Photos
And here are some images from the episode:
Zachary Levi as Chuck Bartowski and Scott Bakula as Steve Bartowski
on CHUCK — "Chuck vs. the Dream Job"
Zachary Levi as Chuck Bartowski and Scott Bakula as Steve Bartowski
on CHUCK — "Chuck vs. the Dream Job"
(l-r) Zachary Levi as Chuck Bartowski, Arnold Vosloo as Vincent, Scott Bakula as Steve Bartowski and Chevy Chase as Ted Roark
— on CHUCK — "Chuck vs. the Dream Job"
"Chuck Versus The Dream Job" airs tomorrow April 6th on NBC at 8:00 PM.
All Photos: Warner Bros Television Entertainment/Paul Drinkwater
Make more Enterprise!
We need more Enterprise, im sad IDW dont have the rights to make some ENT comics
Man, i dunno if its Star Trek actors in particular, but those guys with cancelled shows seem to get *bitter*.
I really would have like to see what would have happened in Enterprise’s season 5 and 6. Liked the show and the cast.
I will go on record saying I really enjoyed “Enterprise”, especially that final season.
I would be pleased if someone from “Enterprise” made a cameo in the new movie, just to show continuity in the way that “These Are the Voyages” tried to do (and failed at miserably). Maybe an elderly Archer or an approximately 150-year-old T’Pol. I’m not suggesting that such an appearance would have to figure prominently (or at all) in the plot, but it would be a nice nod to continuity. It could also be the movie equivalent of the pilot-episode “handoff,” which has become traditional in televised Trek, at least: DeForest Kelley in TNG, Patrick Stewart in DS9, Armin Shimerman in Voyager, and James Cromwell in ENT. But I guess Leonard Nimoy has the honor of doing the handoff this time.
Steve Bartowski……didn’t he play for the Atlanta Falcons in the 70’s and 80’s?
I loved Enterprise too (apart from the theme song which was indeed execrable!) but I do think it was still far too tied to the Berman universe, which despite big changes over the years, still felt very much like The Next Generation to me. It’s so clear that the new movie is by an entirely (or almost entirely) different production team and it sends a different message.
Well Scott Bakula seems to be a nice guy and Eterprise seems to be a bad show, it is intresti that he pinpointed with his comment on the new movie exactly the problem with enteprise.
Enterprise got really good toward the end of the second season, but I think by then it was lost on most people.
I think one huge thing was, the drab, monochrome look to the series just didn’t work. Form the uniforms to the set designs to every alien planet they visited, everything just felt so monocrhome.
Second, the overall time-travel temporal civil war storyline was just plain lost on a lot of people. It reminded me of the last few season of DS9. A great series – if you saw every episode. Otherwise, it made less and less sense for a the caual viewer.
Enterprise’s last season turned out to a season of what I’d cal really good fan fiction – which I think is what it should have been the entire time.
Pics of Pine and Quinto heading down to Australia: http://justjared.buzznet.com/2009/04/05/chris-pine-zachary-quinto-australia/
(are they sharing glasses? LOL)
We’ll get the first reviews in just a few days!! *excited*
I have recently been re-watching Star Trek: Enterprise in HD and I have to say that except for some occasional wooden acting by some of the actors, this has become my second favorite Star Trek series behind TOS. The production crew and design was absolutely perfect with a blend of today and tomorrow.
In my opinion, the early seasons were my favorite because some of the wonders of the final frontier were tackled as the crew ventured away from Earth for the first time. I remember the scene where the bridge crew answered questions from the elementary school students and how it shed new light on the characters. “A poop question?” Priceless.
Too bad the show was on UPN, a network that never really took off and one that had no complementary programming to help build an audience.
Scott Bakula and yes, even B&B, grew the character of Jonathon Archer into a believable character that became the core of the show.
I really hope that people from Paramount/CBS will make Enterprise direct-to-DVD movie (like Stargate SG-1) movies or miniseries. J.J. give us ENT miniseries please! :)
I liked Enterprise. It really sucks they stopped making the show. It was better then some stupid shows like….. Terminator the sarah connor chronicles or CHUCK. Oh well, i’m sure we’ll have another Trek series in the next 5-10 years. Can’t wait for a new tv series to follow.
As I said in the previous post, it would be really nice (and profitable for Paramount/CBS) to use ST XI as tentpoole movie for making some additional miniseries or TV movies with ENT, DS9, TNG or VOY cast. Whata heck, it would be nice to se even captain Robau miniseries. :D
It would be nice if they brought the cast of Entrprise back so they could have a proper farewell instead of “These are the Voyagers..”
Enterprise had wooden acting and writing, sadly. Stale stories, and an initial fear to be a true prequel to TOS in style and substance.
@15
Hear, hear, mate ;)
@16
Are u live in the basement?
The 4th season had shown the potential of the show but over all Enterprise was not fresh enough. The intro music was way to cheesy and the caracters boring (for me there is only one vulcan sience officer) But i liked the show more than Voyager and the special effects were really great. I dont like the show but i am not one of those Trekkies who hate Eterprise.
By the wy had anyone wonder how the next star trek Tv show will look like?
So Enterprise was trying to be new and fresh by remaking old shows with exactly the same storylines? Darn it, it only that theme song had been better…
I called my local Tampa affiliate of UPN to keep the show on the air, but the show had many problems beside that much-hated theme song.
Enterprise was a good show and did a great job bridging the gap between current-day and the TOS era. It died mostly because it wasn’t properly marketed and because there was star trek fatigue amongst the general population. No star trek series or movie can succeed if only the elderly nerds around these forums watch it – that simply is not a big enough audience.
I loved Enterprise, including the theme tune.. if you actualy took the time to listen to the words, they fit exactly the whole idea of where human-kind is by that time, and the struggle getting there..
I disliked Enterprise because I didn’t recognize a whole lot that was antecedent to TOS, instead it felt like it skipped TOS and was trying to be a prequel to only the modern Treks. Also, Bakula’s portrayal of Capt Archer was one of constantly being exasperated- it was like he was so insecure and afraid of new things that he would shout at everyone, not just T’pol. That final year they were on, it finally felt like they got the balance right, especially that show where Archer was on Vulcan and he finally seemed centered and balanced, I was really sad to see that show end. Another thing, that finale was atrocious, they should’ve fired whosoever suggested that idea and killing Trip in that lame ass last second way was a travesty. The only thing out of that finale that was of any value was the last 30 sec with the various Ent’s flying by.
The problem with Enterprise was always the story writing. The cast was good, sets and CGI were great, but the writers were weak. If they had concentrated on key trek cannon points, the Romulan War and through it the creation of the Federation, the show would have been better. They only gave the cannon centered story lines a few episodes, a squandered opportunity. The Romulan shape shifting ship was real bad, but not at bad as devoting an entire season to the Xindi, poor poor scifi. Maybe they could have explained the world that Capt. Kirk inherited. Now there were some excellent episodes which are just as good as any in the franchise, ie-when the Vulcan chick takes Archer back to early Vulcan and he sees the Vulcans nuking each other, and meets that Vulcan who brought them logic.
like a lot of fans i missed Ent when it was first around as id tuned into season 1 and 2 and didnt like it at all(like VOY and DS9)…then there was a lot of fan buzz about season 4 so i bought it and watched it and yes it was very good – “In A Mirror Darkly” 2 parter was better than Insurrection and Nemesis put together and the Augments 3 parter with Dr Soong was great…like a remake of Space Seed and TWOK but at the same time a prequel..the Khan alike Malik is an absolute PSYCHO…totally on the same level as khan
id have kinda liked Enterprise to continue. season 1/2 were pretty dire apart from the pilot and the borg ‘Regeneration’ ep but season 3 was pretty good in parts (kinda like watching a 20hr Star Trek movie) and season 4 was really great thanks to Manny Coto being brought in and its foreshadowing TOS (which is what ENT shouldve been doing all along instead of acting like prequel to TNG as in season 1/2)
i get the impression had it continued for the whole 7 seasons (finishing last year) wed have seen Shatner in an episode (there were always rumours but im sure itd have eventually worked out)…and maybe the last ep wouldve been a flash foward to seeing Archer and Tpol at the NCC 1701 launch under Capt Pike or even April (Archer was supposedly present at the launch – info on Mirror Darkly screen)…but then if itd had continued there probably wouldnt have been any new movie!
i think we’ll see a few ‘Enterprise’ homages in the new film (more so than any DS9/VOY)..the kelvin uniforms and ship look a little ENT inspired…There was also one ep in the 1st or 2nd season about a rival of Archers and there was a cool fight in a NASA style Starfleet bar that was kind of similar of the Kirk bar fight in the new film….also in the Vulcan 3 parter in S4 about Tpau, Surak etc i noticed that the Vulcan HQ FX on planet vulcan is (i think) the same one seen in the 2nd trailer of the new film (the bit where Sarek is saying ‘you will always be a child of 2 worlds…’) i mean obviously the FX in the trailer look better but i really think its the same
Enterprise had potential, but still had too much of Braga’s garbage in it: from the insipid temporal cold war to ‘bitter beer face’ Vulcans to putting iguana pituitary glands into puppies. There was a lot of crap in Enterprise. It started getting better toward the end but it was too little too late.
Or some of those Andorian episodes, and the mirror universe two parter, really great TV. Every great civilization is born of conflict, the Punic Wars established the Roman Empire, the Revolution established the USA, WWII created modern China, we could have seen first hand how the Earth-Romulan War created the Federation, instead of just the few episodes we got. All in all, it was a good series, better then most Scifi, not nearly as great as great as the greatest Scifi show of all time now, Ron Moore’s Battlestar Galactica.
Also in regard to the new film bringing Trek more into the real world abit – ENT felt like that at certain times (like in the pilot and that Archers rival episode) …much more than any of the other series
#5
Believe it or not, there will be an Enterprise reference in the movie. On the planet Delta Vega, Scotty confesses that he accidentally scrambled “Admiral” Archer’s prized beagal in a transporter beam. I mean, we won’t get to see any Enterprise characters, but diagloue references are always fun!
I liked Enterprise and especially it’s theme song, it gave the franchise more relevancy in my opinion. I didn’t care for the bridge though, it should’ve looked more retro, as in a precursor to the NCC-1701.
I also didn’t care for John BIllingsley. Why do actors think they always need to alter their voices to sound like a geek when playing an alien?
I for one liked Enterprise but that’s just me. Now let’s get back to the new movie only 32 days before we can see it
The first couple of seasons of Enterprise were on par with the first two of TNG, average storytelling. I much enjoyed the final two seasons and it should’ve not been cancelled.
I remember hearing something that there will be mention of an Admiral Archer in the movie…
I really liked “Enterprise”……..Whoa good thing Spell check was on otherwise it would’ve said Eterprise, which would have been a whole other all together.
Enterprise could come back,,
It would mix well with ST : TFB, theres alot of storylines they could blend together.
:o)
I’m surprised I’m the only one, so far, who has noticed Arnold Vosloo in the “Chuck” screencapture – most of you would know him from “The Mummy” movies starring Brendan Fraser!
35 — “most of you would know him from “The Mummy” movies starring Brendan Fraser!”
That may be why nobody noticed…. :D
Wasn’t there a report that Scotty mentions an Admiral Archer and his dog in the new movie?
ok people theres one reason Enterprise was cancelled, and it wasnt show quality, or ratings: UPN, a network aimed at guys, was morphing into the CW, a network aimed at girls…the new suits axed Enterprise for THAT reason…just as the WB axed the Buffy spinoff Angel before the WB merged with UPN to become the CW… ironicly symbiotic, you see, because in the final season of Angel, an ‘Old One’ proto-demon named Illyria killed Amy Acker’s character Fred and took over her body…while simultaneously, in Enterprise’s 3rd season, the episode ‘Damage”, specifically, the alien race Archer stole the warp coil from was called the Illyrians… LOL…the irony is had both series been relocated to the Scifi Channel, theyd probably both still be running today :)
#37–Scotty meets Kirk on Delta Vega because Archer used his pull to get Scotty transferred to Delta Vega after one if Scotty’s transwarp beaming experiments killed Porthos 11, Archers most recent dog…
correction…thats one ‘of’, not one ‘if’ (LOL)
Hi, Everyone.
I have missed ” Enterprise” for quite a long time. There were some rumors what episodes of “Enterprise” would be showing.
The rumours were visiting stratos, the city on the clouds, from the original TOS episode “The Cloud Minders”. Which in our point, it is our second visit. For the NX-01 crew, it is their first. Simular when the NX-01 crew visit Organia for the first time on season four.
Second rumour was the KilKenny Cats will show up. These catlike predators are from the animated series “Star Trek”, episode – The Slaver Weapon- and they are known as the Kzinti. They had a stolen pink(!!!) vessel named “The Traitor’s Claw”. It was a former police ship.
Third rumour was a return trip to the mirror universe. Long live Empress Sato. I wonder if Mirror T’Pol would hijack the Defiant and take it to Vulcan.
Your guess is as good as mine.
Here are a couple of YouTube.com addresses if you want to visit:
1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-XV5Yvm7ZI&feature=related
2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nle8VFQoqps&NR=1
Thank you, everyone for reading my message. I hope it was helpful.
Take Care. Long Life and Happiness to you and your loved ones.
Sam
I’m a Enterprise fan and It is sad that Enterprise was cancelled.
It is good to read this board and see how many like Enterprise now.
Back in 2001-2005, people were attacking the hell out of it.
I’m happy to see the change of heart for Enterprise.
I think Enterprise was a good prequel to The Cage and that is how should look at it. Enterprise all way made me smile with their hidden canon in the show. It took more deeper research into trek-canon to find out the links. For me, ENT, TOS and TNG form a trilogy. With change of heart for Enterprise maybe one day we’ll see Enterprise: The Motion Picture.
PS: I call Enterprise just Enterprise because it is set before Star Trek (aka TOS). Enterprise, Star Trek and then Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Also Hey, DST make more Enterprise Figures and Ships.
Enterprise had potential, but for me the biggest issue was Bakula. I love the guy in nearly everything else I’ve ever seen him in, but he was so wooden/borderline corny in Enterprise. As were a lot of the other actors. I’m sure it was a matter of material, and the fact that the audience felt we’d seen so much of it already. Maybe if they’d waited to do the series, instead of picking up right after Voyager (and Voyager would probably have done better had it waited for DS9 to go off the air. Why they decided to always have two shows running simultaneously always baffled me). If they’d at least put together a different production team, instead of wringing yet another show out of the same group.
Still looking forward to seeing Scott & Chevy on Chuck, though. Great show, lots of fun and never boring. And Quantum Leap will always be a classic.
#38
Angel was canceled in 2004, well over a year before Enterprise. The CW wasn’t created until 2 1/2 years after Angel’s cancellation, and nearly a year after Enterprise’s cancellation. Trust me, TV networks do not think that far in advance (if they did, they wouldn’t be so quick to cancel as many shows as they do). According to David Fury, Joss was actually at fault because he insisted they give Angel an early pickup, and the network declined.
The sad thing about Angel’s cancellation was that it was actually outperforming most of the shows on that network, in terms of key demographics. Lord knows it was miles beyond the crap they were shoveling out on Smallville.
I have a personal affinity for Enterprise as it was the only Trek series I saw from the very beginning. It lost me during Season 3, and I’ve never really gone back to it despite the opportunity to do so. I may pick it up again one of these days.
I could have gone with a theme song for Enterprise, if they’d invested a little more budget to get something less cheesy rock anthem Bryan Adams-ish.
“Faith of the Heart” borders on parody and wouldn’t sound out of place in Team America: World Police. Probably turned away a lot of audience right at the opening credits.
Enterprise was really a big failure. It started off with two terrible seasons. I don’t know of any really good episodes from those seasons. By season three, the team new they had to change something, so they decided to go the whole “story arc” approach, which sort-of worked, sometimes better than others. Season four, however, was really, really good. In fact, I think its one of the best Trek series seasons ever.
I had started watching Enterprise during its first and second season run, but I got really tired of it really quickly, and before long, I found myself saying, “Enough Trek. Its time to move on.” And that’s what I did. I saw bits and pieces of season three, and none of season four. Only recently have I gotten both of the later seasons on DVD after I saw a few episodes in syndication.
I am looking forward to the new move more than I have any other movie before. Despite the fact that the time incursion by Nero changes the timeline, allowing for a new story and rebooted visualization of the Trek universe, Enterprise is still, I suppose, a prequel to this movie. I would love it if the studio made a couple more seasons, but that won’t happen, mainly because it had a crappy start and nobody watched it, and also because of Trek’s new direction. As I said before, its time to move on, but now, its time to move on to more Trek!
I really loved ENT from the Begining and they were really starting to feel like the other Treks by the time the last eposdoe came out….I hope they make a mini-series for ENT or TV movie…I hope they can do the same for DS9. I want some better Closer on that show.
Today’s Outpost Gallifrey Doctor Who News points to an interview with Russell Davies at the UK Times where he says the following:
RTD I would have loved to have done a Star Trek crossover. The very first year, we talked about it. Then Star Trek finally went off air. Landing the Tardis on board the Enterprise would have been magnificent. Can you imagine what their script department would have wanted, and what I would have wanted? It would have been the biggest battle.
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article6022914.ece?token=null&offset=12&page=2
Wow!
Nice to see a few Enterprise fans here.
I loved the show; my second favorite after DS9. And it was totally cut down in its prime…the show was only getting better. (Well, until ‘These Are the Voyages…’ anyway….)
I almost wonder if it wasn’t that third season that totally polarized people on the show. Personally, I loved the Xindi arc, but maybe a lot of fans weren’t appreciative of a season-long arc, or the shift from exploration to a mission to save the planet. (Admittedly, that is the one thing about season three that totally changed the spirit of the series.)
With Manny Coto running the show in season four, they were doing some spectacular things. I can only believe that season five would have been one of the best seasons in all of Trek.
I miss Enterprise!