Exclusive Clips From William Shatner’s ‘The Captains’ + How To Watch Doc For Free Online

William Shatner’s new documentary The Captains, featuring Shatner chatting with Star Trek’s TV captains and Chris Pine, premieres on Friday on Epix. We have two exclusive clips from the doc featuring Bill and Sir Patrick Stewart for you to watch, along with compiling additional clips online with Shatner, Stewart, Christopher Plummer, Scott Bakula, Kate Mulgrew, Avery Brooks, and Bob Picardo. Plus we have info on how you can watch The Captains for free online.

 

Star Trek The Captains Exclusive Clips

Epix has provided TrekMovie.com two exclusive clips of William Shatner’s documentary The Captains, both featuring Sir Patrick Stewart.

Shatner greets Patrick Stewart

Patrick Stewart on TNG cast goofing off and learning to have fun

Captains premieres Friday – watch for free online

The Captains premieres on Epix on Friday July 22nd at 8PM. Epix also has lined up a "Shatnerpalooza" of Shatner-ific programming including all six original series Star Trek movies, the premiere of William Shatner’s Gonzo Ballet and more. All of that starts on Thursday (CLICK HERE for more details and full schedule).

But even if you don’t get EPIX on your local cable or satellite provider you can still watch The Captains and all of Shatnerpalooza for free online at EpixHd.com (if you are in the USA). Epix is offering free 2-week trials to all of their content. You can sign up for the free offer at www.epixhd.com/freetrial-shatnerpalooza.

Promo & more clips from The Captains

Here is a new promo The Captains and the Los Angeles Live screening on Monday July 25th.

Note there is also a live screening in New York on Saturday July 30th.

Some more clips from The Captains have also shown up online from Epix and provided to others via Epix. Here they are:

Patrick Stewart surprises Shatner on stage at Star Trek Las Vegas 2010 (via TrekToday)

Shatner talks to Christopher Plummer (Star Trek VI: Chang):

Plummer reveals if he always was a Trekkie and talks up Canadians on Trek:

Shatner and Plummer talk about Shakespeare in Klingon (via WilliamShatnerFan):

Bob Picardo (Voyager: The Doctor) explains how to gauge popularity of Star Trek captains.

UPDATE: More Clips

Kate Mulgrew explains the discipline needed to play a Star Trek captain. (via TotallyKate)

Scott Bakula on how “Enterprise” tried (and came up short) on trying to recreate chemistry of original “Star Trek” (via MyOuterSpace)

Avery Brooks on why he took the job on Star Trek (via NewBlackMan)

TrekMovie will update this article as more clips appear online.

 

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Spock was a Captain too! :o)

Too bad we won’t be able to watch it here in Canada (unless someone takes the geoblock off the videos or posts them on youtube or something).

US only… so all the other trek fans around the world have to search the grey areas of the internet for seeing the documentary… or youtube it in ten or more parts in gritty quality.

Not available internationally. Damn!

Trembling in rage, gritting teeth as my toupee bobs up and down:

“EPPPIIIIXXXX!” (ECHOES) “EPPPIIIIXXXX!”

Like the article mentions, you can sign up for free with just your e mail address and not only can you get to see this free, you can even watch the entire Star Trek 2009 movie streaming for FREE! The link is on the home page after you sign up. Here’s the free sign up link again: http://www.epixhd.com/freetrial-shatnerpalooza.

Thank you for showing the clips. I so want to see the whole documentary… Any clips of Bill and Chris Pine yet?

Since Netflix has a deal with Epix, I’m betting we’ll see this on netflix streaming 3 months or so after it debuts.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/10/netflix-epix-deal-is-official-paramount-mgm-and-lionsgate-mov/

I hope that Shatner makes a deal to put out on DVD or Blu-Ray in a few months.

Wow! I just saw the Shat in The Outer Limits: Cold Hands, Warm Hearts and of course he was cool as always! AND he was working on project VULCAN! It was cool to hear him in his spaceship talking to Vulcan control before Star Trek existed! And also to hear him talking about “exploring new worlds, new life” Check it out on the free trial for the shatnerpalooza!

The more I see of this, the more I want to see of it (particularly of Avery Brooks!). Good stuff.

Thanks for the link to WilliamShatnerFan.com!

Kudos to Shatner for just sitting quietly and really LISTENING to his guest. As an interviewer it is a LEARNED skill to just LISTEN. Good for him!

Avery Brooks – class act. Can’t wait to hear more from him.

DS9 was the most original of all the TV series spin offs from TOS! Why did it take 4 seasons for Commander Sisko to be promoted to Captain Sisko? Its disgusting that Rick Berman’s old writing regime never addressed that nonsense directly to both Mr. Books and DS9 fans alike. Too bad the 24th century can’t come along prematurely!

I’m in the old world, and I — WANNA — SEE — THIS — FILM!!! YES, I’M SCREAMING!

PS: Bill, what’s with that piano thing? So you like it cheesy, huh?

I met the Shat this weekend.

I was expecting him to be in his “get a life” mode (I would) when I met him, but he couldn’t have been more inviting and seemed to really take an interest in what people had to say…I don’t really get star struck (I’ve met a bunch of stars over the years) but I couldn’t stop from laughing to myself when James T. Kirk started talking/joking with me. It was surreal to say the least to be talking one on one with one of my boyhood heroes.

I know it is almost cliche to say, but the man could pass for being 60 years old in person. He truly looks amazing for a 80 year old man. Still so full of life.

I told him (kind of jokingly) that he got screwed (or something a little less harsh) by not being included in J.J. Abrams version of Star Trek…He laughed and said that he agreed with me… He also said “stranger things have happended” in respone to his future participation in a ST film giving this long time Shatner/Kirk fan a tiny glimmer of hope that we may still see him as Kirk one last time. I got the feeling he really wants to be involved.

Anyway, that was my brush with greatness this weekend…I’m such a dork : )

P.S. Bob Orci if you are out there you have to find a way to get Shatner involved. It would be great to see him as Kirk one last time. Shatner in a ST film is a no lose scenario.

I want to see this. Wonder if Plummer and Shatner will tell about how Shatner being Plummer’s understudy was what led to him being a star on his own. Interesting story. In his last bio.

And yes, I have other words in my vocabulary but yet again, I love Shatner.

#16 – “Anyway, that was my brush with greatness this weekend…I’m such a dork : )”

Oh to be a dork just like you…:) Now if I met the Shatner/prime Kirk and the Pine/alt-Kirk together in the same room, I think I would be a very dorky dork…oh dear…sigh!

Bob Orci – you do realise that George Kirk (Jim’s father) had a slightly eccentric, older brother… I just *know* Bill could play this man! No big scene, just a little family.

I’d love to see the Shat in the next Trek movie, as Kirk prime. Lets get those creative writers to come up with something good to bring him back one more time!

It occurred to me while watching Avery Brooks’ clip that Sisko to this day is probably the most clearly defined lead Trek character right from the start. We know every important past event that defines how the character behaves in the present. A war veteran, widower, single father, and (of significance to a 20th Century audience) a man of color.

For myself, the later leads (i.e. Janeway and Archer) didn’t have as great a depth established. Certainly television is meant to develop characters over time, but to me that says a lot in how well-written and prepared DS9 was.

Thanks for gathering these clips together, it whets the appetite!

Epix has a free preview weekend this weekend on FiOS in New Jersey!!!

Woah, didn’t know Christopher Plummer was on this! Awesome.

Shatner can’t be Kirk prime. Kirk prime is DEAD. Fans need to have a reality check and give the writers (and Shatner) a chance to do something different. Shatner can be a Kirk, just not that Kirk. Chris Pine is now that Kirk, a young, newly promoted Captain James T Kirk and no doubt thinking “Is this for real? Oh crap!” and remembering what that uncle of his once said, “Better careful what you wish for. It just might happen.”

Avery: “I said oh. Well. Oh. This is very interesting to me.” LMFAO!!!!!

23 well the writers have had over 3 years to write the new script allready and look where thats gotten them so far.

# 18 – It was really cool meeting and talking to Mr. Shatner. I get the feeling he really feels left out.

#23 – Sure he can. As a matter of fact they wrote a really great scene for him as Kirk prime in the last movie. J.J. Abrams has said that he would love to have Shatner in ST and William Shatner has personally told me that he would love to be included. So what is the hold up? If it were announced tomorrow that Shatner was coming back as Kirk in the next film fan sites like this would explode.

Don’t forget that this is Star Trek where nearly every major character (see Leonard Nimoy as Spock) has died or been thought dead at one point or another. Also, these new fils are based on time travel and alt universes. Surely they could slip Shatner in one way or another.

This looks like it’s going to be excellent. It’s a great concept, members of a unique club trying to tell the rest of us what it’s like.

No, this film is based on the fact that both Nero and older Spock were accidentally pulled into an artificially created black hole 129 years in the past, thus creating an alternate universe. Most things are the same, some things are not. Prime Kirk had already died by the time prime Spock “turned up” in this alternate universe. There is already a young James T Kirk, in fact born at the time that Nero emerged through the black hole. I have no problem Shatner playing a Kirk, just not James T Kirk. After all, the original prime Kirk must have developed/inherited his little quirks, speech patterns etc from someone somewhere (both genetic and environmental). In this alt-universe, he can’t have heard/seen much from his father, George, because we all know what happened to George Kirk, however…

For me, it is a no-brainer. It could also work and be believable for most of the audiences and would require very little explanation. Anything else would require explanation. I don’t want this movie to be about how they brought back a dead 60+ year old retired starship captain to life and threw him back 129 years into an alternate past universe. If they did that, then everyone everywhere will be screaming CRAPPOLA and that would be the polite version!

Yes, Keachick, but, unfortunately, the diehard fans won’t accept Shatner playing a relative. They will only settle for Shatner playing the original James T. Kirk. Otherwise, what’s the point?

I, personally, don’t see a viable way to bring him back. Not unless they spend the main brunt of the next film explaining it, and we know THAT isn’t going to happen. Leave him dead and move on.

Yes, fans can be their own worst enemies sometimes. They want to have prime Kirk back no matter what, even if the outcome is a contrived mess of a film.

Frankly, I would not be that happy to end up as some hologram sending a birthday or whatever message, so I can understand Shatner wanting to do/be more than that. Shatner needs to accept that his role can only be a small one. It is possible that he does, but his diehard fans won’t. That makes it hard for everyone. I think letting go of his role of Captain Kirk has been harder for Shatner than he, at first, thought it would be. Unfortunately, some of his fans are not helping.

Although I love him as Captain Kirk, the first Captain Kirk, “my captain”, I also know that unfortunately good things do come to an end and I suspect William Shatner knows that as well. Fortunately, his character is now in good new hands in the form of Chris Pine who, I believe, given a good script, will do the Roddenberry/Shatner created character great justice.

I love both actors, because they play my favourite character.

keacheck, iam sorry but in the write hands shatner could easly be utalized as kirk again and not some sorry relative.

“in the WRITE hands” see what i did there :)

@30

Keachick… don’t forget that a part of Kirk prime is still in the Nexus. However, I think that it would take too much explaining in the next installment for Joe Sixpack to understand that back story. But then, as the Shat was quoted as saying above, stranger things have happened.

For the record, I would like to see Shat as Kirk once again, just not in the next JJ sequel.

I signed up for the free preview of Epix online and I must say the service still seems in its infancy. The browse feature is cumbersome as the only choice is viewing some sort of icon for the movie (not very helpful on a lot of the films) or scrolling through a simple text list where you have to click to view any details on a film–again not very helpful in quickly finding a film of interest. Which brings me to the quality of films–seems most of Epix’s offerings are of the B-film quality with some newer box office releases.

I’ll give them a try for the 2 week trial (and definitely catch as much of the Shatnerpalooza as I can!) but Netflix still has a much better user interface for when it comes time to find something quick to watch and a higher level of quality. But I give Epix kudos for offering the free trial with no strings attached…now if I had only taken vacation time to watch all the worthwhile movies they have to offer!

‘Course, if you are a real socially-inept geek then Epix might be right up your alley. ;-)

This is Star Trek where things like Spock coming back from the dead had worked, or a super being like Q changing things, or whatever. That’s what great writers are for, to come up with great ideas and twists in story telling, and in the Star Trek Universe(s), there are “always possibilities” Bring back Kirk Prime one more time!

#35 et. al. – How about a shower scene where it turns out that the last movie was just a bad dream… the only reason I’d even bother to see the next one.

Just hearing Avery Brooks deep and articulate voice again after all those years is worth watching this documentary!
Bring it to Germany!!!

Im getting a 2 week subscription for epix

#29 “unfortunately, the diehard fans won’t accept Shatner playing a relative.”

I will. :-) I love Shatner dearly, but even I recognize that bringing him back as Kirk Prime right after they already did it with Nimoy would be silly. The time to bring him back was in ST 2009, and they didn’t, so it’s time to move on. I’ve said for ages that Shatner could now play Tiberius Kirk, Jim’s granddad. I’d be fine with that, and the general public would enjoy it. Along those same lines, having Takei as Admiral Nogura would be cool.

Another option would be to have Shatner & Nimoy voice Kirk & Spock (with Karl Urban as Bones?) in a kick ass direct-to-DVD animated movie. Star Wars is a hit in animation, and if WB can release an endless stream of these animated films (including Bruce Greenwood as Batman in one of them), why can’t Paramount do something similar? Bring back George, Nichelle and Walter to add their voices to it. Every Trekkie in the world would buy it. $$$ in the bank.

Switching topics … very ego-free of Bakula to admit the original cast had a chemistry that couldn’t be matched. He’s right, of course. I liked Enterprise, but TOS will always be the greatest.

As for Shatner being in the next film and for all the reasons why he should not be…… I say, why not have him in the film? Remember this, we are talking about SCIENCE FICTION where anything can happen for any reason at any time.
Must we really have some logical explaination? Its about entertainment, not real life.

Agree completely with #40!! Can’t wait to see the doc.

an honest reflection by Scott Bakula. Admire his sincerity in this interview. good work mr shatner.
Greg
UK

#31 – “shatner could easily be utilized as kirk again and not some sorry relative.”

You mean that James T Kirk had “some sorry relatives”. In the alt-universe, George Kirk (Jim’s father) did not seem at all like “some sorry relative”. Why would George’s father or brother be any different?

Prime Kirk came OUT of the Nexus. He does not belong to the race/species that Guinan belongs to, where certain things are possible for her people, but not for human beings. That was the whole point of the film – to bring Kirk out of the Nexus (a sort of dream state) into the real world to prevent Soran from destroying a sun and its planetary system in the process in order to change the Nexus natural course direction, bring it towards where Soran was and so allowing Soran to once again enter the Nexus. Kirk and Picard stopped Soran from achieving this, thus saving Picard’s Enterprise and the planets, including one that was known to have at least 230 million sentient beings living there. Kirk bought it, ie DIED. Canon. Lame story ending – but that’s another issue.

I have been/am as bigger as fan of Shatner/Kirk as anybody but I still want *my* Star Trek to have some legitimacy and make common sense.

When it comes to Trek, common sense isn’t so common!

When it comes to Trek FANS, common sense isn’t so common either!

The only way I’d like to see Shatner in the sequel is via the hologram scene that Bob Orci wrote and J.J Abrams rejected. That was near perfect. A little tweaking and it could fit in with the sequel if done right.

Any other method of bringing back Shatner, especially as one of Kirk’s relative, would come off silly, gimmicky, and smack of pandering to the fans.

All great clips. I know so little about Avery Brooks that I’m looking forward most to hearing what he has to say. He’s my favorite captain! He seems the most thoughtful and eccentric one of the bunch, but I’ve only seen little clips.

Bakula is certainly self-effacing. I’ve always liked him, but I didn’t care for him as a Star Trek captain. I think he’s right about the cast not having the chemistry. I can’t decide if it was as bad as Voyager. I don’t think so. Anyway, I have a lot of respect for him.

Patrick Stewart is class personified. So honest about himself. Awesome fellow.

I look forward to all the interviews. Bill is a fabulous interviewer.

Just an FYI if you have Dish Network they are promoting a free weekend with EPIX and the Captains Special is their main draw. So if you have Dish set your DVR

Anything of William Shatner in the sequel could be seen, come off as “silly, gimmicky, and smack of pandering to fans”. If they are going to have William Shatner at all, he should not be just a bleedin’ hologram. Grief.

It is actually best if none of the original actors appear in the sequel, including Leonard Nimoy. I was seeking a compromise between an all or nothing notion. I am not sure why I even bothered.

12. Harry

You and I are both critics of Shatner. But I agree with your comment wholeheartedly. He really lets the actors speak for themselves; without interjecting himself constantly. On the other hand, he probably has scant familiarity with the characters or shows being spoken of so he may have been obliged to keep his own side of the conversations to a minimum! : D

“Very exciting news for you, Bill, you’ve sold out.”

Love it!