How long until... SHATNER?

[F. King Daniel]

Nobody expected Sir Patrick Stewart to play Jean-Luc Picard ever again. But now it's happening. So, how long until William Shatner returns to Star Trek? We know it's something he's wanted for decades, coming close to appearing in Star Trek: Enterprise's fourth season, having a cameo written for him in Star Trek (2009) which he claimed he was never offered, and having a substantial role in Bob Orci's unmade Star Trek 3 script.

Place your bets, people. Pigs are flying. Hell has frozen over. It's actually plausible. What could they do with him?

 

[Khan 2.0]

Should've done the ST09 cameo which would've worked as a foreshadow to his eventual role in Orci's Days of Shatner Past movie for the 50 anniversary (instead of Beyond Fast&Furious )

Now? Maybe they planning to work him into ST4 somehow? (as its part based on the Orci ST3 script and just Hemsworth alone seems abit bland) in which case the Trek V photo at end of Beyond could work as a foreshadow

or maybe a guest spot in 'Star Trek: Picard' (but then Shatner returning as Kirk is probably too big for tv)

 

[Danlav05]

This conversation ain’t gonna die, is it?

He write a novel about Kirk's resurrection a couple of years later; he was mooted to play Kirk's mirror counterpart in Enterprise (one of the writers also pitched a story where Kirk's ancestor, Enterprise's unseen Chef, would be plucked out of time to stand in for Kirk at a major historical event) but Shatner wanted a million dollars; and Movies XI and XIII both had written appearances that remain unfilmed (or in XIII's case the whole script - though saying that I enjoyed BEYOND very much :P ).

I admit to getting obsessed with the idea, I blogged about it:

https://dannylavery9.wordpress.com/2...ck-kirk-prime/

I have a feeling that the ship may have sailed, the man is 87 now but still very active - a part of the problem as well as money is apparantly he'd rather have a full role than a cameo.

Shatner hasn’t really stopped working In the past 20 years, yes he is larger but still very active, doing anything and everything as well as touring the world for conventions

I still think the most logical place for him to return as Kirk himself right now is in a Kelvin Timeline movie or an animation.

I’d rather see him as Old Pine or revived Prime than an ancestor or even mirror

Mind you there is talk that Kurtzman and crew are developing animated content

 

[Mirror Tuvix]

The buzz of a Shatner animated series would be truly sky-piercing. Naturally to be set before Generations and to address Kirk aiding Azetbur to liberalize Klingon society with the help of Megas-Tu while a Putinesque Klingon endeavors to seize control of the High Council so as to eventually wage war against the Federation's social media networks.

Would be a wonderful opportunity to lasso talent such as Kirstie Alley, Catherine Hicks, BarBara Luna, Alan Ruck, and Robert Hooks. For oldies, an audio recording crew could come to their homes to record dialogue.

What probably would happen is Kirk would have a half-Vulcan child (with Saavik possibly) and this would cause audience delight for Kirk to be raising a half-Vulcan child, just like his friend Spock, who also is half-Vulcan.

There would be a few in-jokes and meta moments where Kirk's child would remind him of Spock. If any dialogue in Generations seems to contradict this, no matter, it can be explained away with a waving of the hand.

 

[Phil123]

Really don't see it happening. The character died, alright it wasn't great but he died, and Shatner is very old. Picard was always a very contemplative character, Kirk was more of an action guy, which you can't be in your late 80's.

Pus without Nimoy, to me whatever they did would seem incomplete. Picard, although he had friends and quasi-relationships with his fellow crew was more of a lonely at the top type captain, he works in isolation.

Kirk without Spock, and to a lesser extent McCoy I can't really see working.

 

[Terok Nor]

I could only see Shatner playing a future version of Kelvin Kirk at this point. It wouldn't be the Kirk he played all along but it's probably the best we could hope for. Sadly, Kirk Prime died decades ago and Shatner has aged. That version of the character is gone.

 

[dahj]

If Shatner does anything it might be a short voiceover cameo at most.

A young lieutenant Kirk though, that's way more probable.

 

[SPCTRE]

Nobody expected Sir Patrick Stewart to play Jean-Luc Picard ever again. But now it's happening. So, how long until William Shatner returns to Star Trek? We know it's something he's wanted for decades, coming close to appearing in Star Trek: Enterprise's fourth season, having a cameo written for him in Star Trek (2009) which he claimed he was never offered, and having a substantial role in Bob Orci's unmade Star Trek 3 script.

Place your bets, people. Pigs are flying. Hell has frozen over. It's actually plausible. What could they do with him?

oh no

 

[Relayer1]

I don't care how hokey it is, how fanservice it is, I just want Generations reversed. Seeing Shat as Kirk again's all well and good in my book.

Just don't kill him again. Leave him alive and well in whatever version of the Litverse happens post 'The Picard Show'.

There's a possibility I may have felt different if I'd liked Generations, but I didn't.

 

[Phil123]

Generations had it's moments, but its handling to Kirk's death wasn't one of them. But it happened, and I honestly don't think Shatner has the mass (outside Trek fans) appeal that Stewart has. I love Kirk and Shatner, but I think that ship has sailed. Wish the Enterprise role had happened though.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

He might appear in a vision to Picard. Imagine if the Q absorbed Kirk into the Continuum.

 

[Abi Smith]

I can see it now... SHATNER!... the musical

The shirtless 87 year old strides about the stage 'singing' Rocket Man for two and half hours interspersed with moments from behind the scenes of TOS played out by younger actors but Bill still playing himself.

 

[Ovation]

I’ve mentioned before that his return could work as follows: Cold open on Kelvin variation of final 15 minutes of The Deadly Years where Kirk has to perform an important act in his elderly condition to save the ship. Gets his heroic moment, it’s a key element of the story, it’s more than a cameo and it doesn’t distract from rest of the movie. He’d have as much screen time as Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs. Post opening credits, Pine is back in the chair. Simple.

Not something I particularly want, but if it’s going to be done, I can’t imagine a more plausible scenario.

 

[Push The Button]

If Shatner does anything it might be a short voiceover cameo at most.

A young lieutenant Kirk though, that's way more probable.

I’d like to hear him read the mission statement one last time, at the end of the next JJTrek movie.

 

[unimatrix7]

He might appear in a vision to Picard. Imagine if the Q absorbed Kirk into the Continuum.

I really hope not

 

[Four Lights]

I'll admit I'm biased being an 80s/90's kid but Kirk always seemed such a hopelessly dated, misogynistic, ridiculous character to me, I'd have trouble seeing how modern audiences could relate to him. The only way Kirk could return now is if Shatner stopped seeing it as a pay day and accepted whatever reasonable creative pitch for the part he played that Kurtzman made to him.

 

[Tenacity]

The only way Kirk could return now is if Shatner stopped seeing it as a pay day

The other actors don't get paid?

I honestly don't think Shatner has the mass (outside Trek fans) appeal that Stewart has.

When Abrams (for better or worse) rebooted Star Trek, he went to Kirk, and not Picard.

"Captain Kirk" is a minor cultural icon to the general public and is know to people who've never seen Star Trek, Picard simply isn't. William Shatner is Captain Kirk .

Stewart is a better actor, but outside of fan circles Picard is all but unknown.

 

[WarpFactorZ]

Nah. Stewart can still pull off Picard. He doesn't look significantly different than 15 years ago. Only his voice is wavering, which fits into the theme of the show (Picard 15-20 years later).

Shat looks nothing like Kirk anymore. He's become something different. To be honest, I prefer watching Shat play Shat these days. If you haven't seen Better Late Than Never, find it. It's pretty funny, and does for the Shat what the Picard show will do for Picard: show him as an aged guy doing something completely different than Starfleet.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Better_Late_Than_Never_(TV_series)

 

[Four Lights]

The other actors don't get paid?

I meant in the more general sense of expecting huge amounts of cash beyond the merit of the popularity of the character now. 60's Shatner groupies are a diminishing demographic.

 

[LutherSloan]

Abrams wanted to have Kirk appear as a hologram in ST09 but Shatner said he would only do that if he got full pay, and that was the end of that.