Writing In A New Chekov

[dswynne1]

One, this thread is tasteless. I'd wait a bit to even broach this subject.
Two, Anton Yelchin's passing should not be a "plot point". A tribute moment might be allowable, if done right.
Three, no recasting for this iteration of 'Trek. Later, if there is a reboot, sure.
Four, until then, new character, preferably a "woman of color", but one who could fill Chekov's shoes as the "geeky genius with quarks" (like a Velma type) of the group.

Anyway, I will say no more on this subject, in spite of my hypocrisy of actually participating in this discussion. FYI.

 

[SeamusShameless]

Ultimately, every character outlives the actor who portrayed them. Recast. I like to think Yelchin would have wanted Chekov to continue.

 

[dswynne1]

Why would a character associated with another actor for 40 years be retired because someone who has played him over the last 7 years passed on?

Perhaps we should retire Spock because of Nimoy, McCoy because of Kelley, Scotty because of Doohan, Sarek because of Lenard, etc...

They're fictional characters -- they live on even when their human world representatives die, don't get rehired, or opt out because of better roles.

No disrespect to Yelchin intended.

The difference is that Nimoy had passed the torch to Quinto as his replacement. And keep in mind, there is suppose to be a tribute to Nimoy of sorts in BEY anyway.

 

[Gaith]

If others want to mourn him and feel it is inappropriate to talk about where depiction of Chekov goes from here, well, I'm sorry - and I guess a thread like this isn't for you. But I also think it's kind of hateful to insist that your way of reacting to this death is the One Correct Way.

I wouldn't go so far as to say "hateful", but I also don't think it reasonable to demand an undefined hold on respectfully discussing future treatment of the character. It's completely fine and valid to feel it too soon to do so, but no one's required to participate in said conversation if they do, nor is anyone ethically obligated to mourn the passing of someone they have no actual connection to, no matter how tragic the passing. As JeffinOakland noted, thousands of people died yesterday, many no doubt younger and blessed with less good fortune in their lives than Yelchin. Tragic as his death was, his family and friends have the small but real comfort of knowing his memory will live on in for many years in the consciousness of millions in a way the vast majority of us never will, regardless of when we pass.

As for Chekov, I agree with those who say the best way to honor the character is to have him be promoted and transferred elsewhere between films, and I agree with those who say a new female character'd be nice. Maybe a happy medium would be a new officer comes on deck, is introduced as the promoted and reassigned Chekov's replacement, and it turns out she, too, has a Russian accent. "What are the odds?" someone says, and things proceed as normal from there.

 

[CassandraSaturn]

this is very nice idea, i think they would agree with this, Gaith.

 

[WarpFactorZ]

The difference is that Nimoy had passed the torch to Quinto as his replacement. And keep in mind, there is suppose to be a tribute to Nimoy of sorts in BEY anyway.

That's not a difference, it's an exception. None of the other actors "passed the torch." They were just recast. That's what happens with fictional characters. Ask Hamlet, or Romeo, Juliet, Beowulf, etc...

 

[BillJ]

Perhaps we should retire Spock because of Nimoy, McCoy because of Kelley, Scotty because of Doohan, Sarek because of Lenard, etc...

We pretty much did. This is a whole new universe. I wouldn't want Chekov gone forever, just in this version.

 

[Commander Richard]

That's not a difference, it's an exception. None of the other actors "passed the torch." They were just recast. That's what happens with fictional characters. Ask Hamlet, or Romeo, Juliet, Beowulf, etc...

Those are reboots not recasts.

 

[Ovation]

No one should feel compelled to grieve for someone they don't know. I don't think anyone here is suggesting otherwise. And yes, one can initiate an interesting discussion on how the filmmakers might deal with the character in light of Yelchin's death. Might have been nice to wait a little while before diving into the topic, though, just out of general politeness.

 

[eyeresist]

To be fair, this sort of thing is going to become an elephant in the room eventually, and we might as well start discussing the matter. Granted, the OP handled the issue in a very tasteless manner, but the subject itself is a legitimate matter to ponder.

I feel the same. As Trek fans, we are all speculating about the issue. I don't think a policy of rigorous silence will make anything better. That said, the issue could have been introduced in a better way, the thread title for a start. I thought something like "The future without Anton" would be more sensitive.

Yelchin's death is a significant loss to Star Trek. He was not featured prominently in the movies, but he had a wide-eyed enthusiasm which was endearing and lifted the scenes he was in. Arguably, he was "Wesley done right". From that starting point, who knows where the character might have gone? Now we will never know.

All this said, Star Trek still exists and will continue into the future. What will happen in that future? I imagine the people behind the movies are starting to grapple with the same painful question.

Option 1: No more movies. I think only hardcore JJ haters would ultimately go with this. If Beyond makes a profit, a sequel is almost inevitable. It's possible some actors might resist the offer, but these are interesting parts that pay well, and I think they would probably conclude that continuing and doing their best would be a worthy tribute.
Option 2: Recast the part of Chekov. The two notable instances that come to my mind of recasting after an actor's death are Dumbledore in the Harry Potter movies, and Darren in the TV series Bewitched. Looking back, I don't think many regret that this was done. But that was before the rise to dominance of internet rage and the FEELINGS! of people on Twitter. I think Paramount probably won't recast the part for this iteration, due to fear of fan reaction.
Option 3: Chekov leaves the Enterprise, and is not replaced. I think this would leave a bit of a void in the cast, and focus too much attention on the efforts the writers have gone to to explain the change.
Option 4: Chekov leaves the Enterprise, and a new character is introduced. The pressure would be on to create an interesting new character with long-term potential. This could be done, but there would inevitably be some backlash based on dislike of the unfamiliar, and of the notion that the character or actor could ever be replaced.

I think option 4 is the most likely. It would reduce the sense of loss, and perhaps update the sex/racial balance of TOS. Best case scenario: A great new character would enter the Star Trek pantheon. I am not opposed to that. And if future artists return again to the adventures of Kirk and friends, I am sure there will always be a place for Chekov on board.

 

[Shaka Zulu]

Why would a character associated with another actor for 40 years be retired because someone who has played him over the last 7 years passed on?

Perhaps we should retire Spock because of Nimoy, McCoy because of Kelley, Scotty because of Doohan, Sarek because of Lenard, etc...

They're fictional characters -- they live on even when their human world representatives die, don't get rehired, or opt out because of better roles.

No disrespect to Yelchin intended.

None taken, or should be taken. In fact, there have been two Chekovs on Star Trek: Phase II alone, IIRC, so there shouldn't be a problem for Bad Robot to cast another young man as Pavel.

 

[LtChange]

Maybe this thread should have waited a little longer but now that it is here I will voice my opinion:
First and for most I don't know if they have enough time to update Star Trek Beyond or the prints are already done and sent out, but if they aren't done as yet or sent out they should modify it with the "In loving memory off" at the beginning of the movie or right when credits start to roll. For digital projections this shouldn't be a problem but for movie prints it might be to late.

Now for the recast: don't do it. If we get a Star Trek IV I think they should just write off Chekov or with making him a hero and dying off screen, but I would prefer some other respectful way like he got a new assignment to travel to the stars or something. They have found a wormhole to the Andromeda Galaxy but sadly it turned out to be a one way wormhole and now Chekov leads a crew of humans to establish a permanent settlement in the Andromeda Galaxy The main idea remains not to recast Chekov.

As for a replacement crew on the Enterprise: why not? But do not cast a Russian wiz kid but a completely new character with different personality. Maybe give Science Officer 0718 a bigger role. I would love that.

 

[stardream]

I like the prime Chekov in the novels better than the screen Chekov (no offense to Walter Koeing, he was fine in the role) but at least they gave him interesting things to do in the novels.

I saw they had canceled a press event for the new movie. When the news of this broke I, like everyone else, first thought of the family and close friends who are directly affected by his loss but the cast is going to have a difficult time promoting this movie over the next few weeks. I saw a post on reddit mentioning being in line for autographs (with Spiner and Urban) and saw them pull Urban away. I was sad before but that was a real punch in the gut moment.

 

[eyeresist]

I saw a post on reddit mentioning being in line for autographs (with Spiner and Urban) and saw them pull Urban away. I was sad before but that was a real punch in the gut moment.

I was wondering why they would hit him with the news in the middle of a signing, but then realised it was better than some fan saying "So, have you heard about..."

 

[MarsWeeps]

I have to wonder what Anton would think about recasting Chekov. My guess is that he would want the character to continue, not killed off or transferred off screen. I bet he would want to see Chekov continue to be a big part of Star Trek.

 

[Terok Nor]

I don't think there's any need to kill the character off. Let's face it, neither version of Chekov was a vital part of TOS. He didn't even appear in the first season. I have no doubt a good actor like Anton Yelchin could have fleshed the character out if he'd had more screentime but unless he gets a lot to do in Beyond I think the Chekov character is an easy lift from future movies with little fuss. It might be a nice tribute to the actor to have it mentioned he's been promoted to a higher position on a different ship.

 

[USS Triumphant]

I wouldn't go so far as to say "hateful",

Perhaps "hateful" was a smidgen harsh. It's just that this whole thing has reminded me of times when I've heard people talking about how seemingly without emotion people were at funerals. As someone who tends to be fairly stoic at funerals (in a crisis, right or wrong, my instinct is to become "the rock"* that everyone else can lean on, and keep an eye on what is logically necessary to get through it - something I learned from another Trek character), I know that that doesn't necessarily mean that the emotions aren't there. There's no correct way to handle some things - people who handle things like I do get considered "heartless", and people who allow themselves to break down for a bit can be considered as "weak" or "useless in a crisis", and neither of those is necessarily right.

If Dryson pushed ahead with discussing Trek matters on a Trek board, that doesn't mean he didn't experience the same moment of stunned shock and loss that I did when I heard the news. And more, with no offense intended to Dryson, I think it's clear from some of his other postings here that he has some serious mental/emotional issues and perhaps doesn't respond to things quite "normally" (whatever that means). Others here are doubtlessly high-functioning autistic. And I just don't feel like seeing anyone trashed because they aren't "mourning correctly".

*As opposed to The Rock, which *would* be inappropriate, although pretty amusing in my mind's eye right now.

 

[USS Triumphant]

Sorry for the double post, but I wanted to separate getting back on topic, and make a suggestion/ask a question:

If they are going to bring in a new "main cast" person, would it be neat if they took the opportunity to "canon-ize" the character of Doctor McKennah?

Or, maybe they could bring back Gaila, who seemed to be a minor fan favorite. We never definitively found out what ship she was on, but she seemed pretty happy, so maybe that was because she was put aboard the Enterprise - which would've made her happy because it's the new flagship AND because it's where she and Uhura both expected Uhura to be at that point. We never found out her specialty, I don't think - just that she was good with computers. So maybe she'd be appropriate to do Chekov's job.

I'm not really pushing either idea. Just throwing them out there for discussion.

 

[Campe]

If they are going to bring in a new "main cast" person, would it be neat if they took the opportunity to "canon-ize" the character of Doctor McKennah?

Never in a billion years will that happen. It will, even more than the current Axanar litigation has done, legitimatize fan films. It will open up a can of worms like no other.

Plus, while I appreciate Michelle Specht, I think her character is utterly pointless and brought in just to give Vic's girlfriend a part.

Or, maybe they could bring back Gaila, who seemed to be a minor fan favorite. We never definitively found out what ship she was on, but she seemed pretty happy, so maybe that was because she was put aboard the Enterprise - which would've made her happy because it's the new flagship AND because it's where she and Uhura both expected Uhura to be at that point. We never found out her specialty, I don't think - just that she was good with computers. So maybe she'd be appropriate to do Chekov's job.

I'd be okay with Gaila. Or Ilia. Or Saavik. Or bring back Carol. Or keep Jaylah around if she makes it through Beyond. Definitely options out there.

 

[StarMan]

This is a smidgen tasteless in light of a young man having just died a gruesome death. But as these things go nowadays, someone was inevitably going to ask too soon.

I thought Walter Koeing's comments were poignant, given what he went through in 2010.

CGI Anton? Good grief. I think it would be more appropriate to fill his position with someone new and hand-wave a reason for his absence. Something doesn't sit right with recasting, IMO.