Shatner was intimiated by Montalbán?
- Thread starter Ronin'sCreamyCandle
- Start date
That's my understanding as well; he watched all of them and decided which lent themselves most readily to a sequel. I've always wondered which other ones he considered. "Wink of an Eye" would be one that would have intrigued me, but then that's one of my favorites.
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Better movie.
Would have been! 
Although the Enterprise hiding from a Klingon ship in a nebula could have been the same story all over again! 
I never understood how Khan knew of Klingons in the film? If he had of met any why wouldn't they have offered him a passage off the planet or why didn't he just take their ship?
JB
Although the Enterprise hiding from a Klingon ship in a nebula could have been the same story all over again! I never understood how Khan knew of Klingons in the film? If he had of met any why wouldn't they have offered him a passage off the planet or why didn't he just take their ship?
JB
Would have been!
I never understood how Khan knew of Klingons in the film? If he had of met any why wouldn't they have offered him a passage off the planet or why didn't he just take their ship?
JB
Khan had lots of opportunities to learn about Klingons from the Enterprise historical data banks or Marla. It would make sense for him to do some quick lookup on "current adversaries" just out of habit.
...as most anti-Shatner statements tend to be. What I see as the level of jealousy and insecurity (from a few bitter former co-workers and some gaggles of ST fandom) about Shatner--or the image / presence he projects has been and will forever be quite pathetic.
Of course, Meyer probably felt like he lucked out, since he noted in the DVD commentary that Montalban tended to do his best stuff in the early takes, while he had to modulate Shatner down a bit over several takes to get him to a less theatrical and more cinematic bandwidth.
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I think I remember hearing at the time that Montalban was not in good health when filming WoK, and that was a reason Khan and Kirk were never together in the movie. I thought Montalban would not have been able to do a fight scene with Shatner, for example. Montalban physically doesn't do much during the movie.
Khan was going to fight Kirk with some weird psychic powers in one of the drafts or at least Harve Bennett's outline, according to Fifty Year Mission. Whether it's true or not about Shatner intimidated by Montalban, from the way people talk about Shatner's ego in that book I could easily believe it.
He’s Ricardo Montalbán. I’m intimidated just watching him on the screen
I mean, seriously, he’s an imposing guy. And he has gravitas.
I mean, seriously, he’s an imposing guy. And he has gravitas.
He did work out enough to prepare for the role. (Those are his real muscles.) So he couldn't have been THAT sick...
As for fight scenes, when they DID fight in "Space Seed" Khan should have kicked Kirk's ass! Khan's a freaking augment, for crying out loud. They're supposed to have superior strength! Khan should have killed Kirk with one blow to the head.
I don't see any real reason why Kirk and Khan would even NEED to meet or interact during TWOK..
Sometimes it's more interesting if the good guy and the bad guy never meet. Like Korben Dallas and Zorg in The Fifth Element. Not only do THEY never meet, I don't think they even know about each other! (Although Korben's cab company is owned by Zorg...it's on the termination notice Korben gets in the mail.)
Sometimes it's more interesting if the good guy and the bad guy never meet. Like Korben Dallas and Zorg in The Fifth Element. Not only do THEY never meet, I don't think they even know about each other! (Although Korben's cab company is owned by Zorg...it's on the termination notice Korben gets in the mail.)
Eh, this is the original series before the over the top acrobatics and superduper strength or the term "augments." Khan in Space Seed looked to have no more than Spock's level of strength. Khan didn't land a punch, Kirk's agility was his saving grace. But Khan's superior ability didn't save him from a blow to the breadbasket.
The "Enterprise" trilogy and STID made them practically Kryptonian. TOS is its own thing and always will be.
From Jack Soward's 'late February 1981' "Project Omega" script:
"As Enterprise approached the planet, its engines were badly damaged, and Spock sacrificed his life to get them back online in time for Kirk to fight the Reliant. Later Khan and Kirk would fight a psychic battle in a variety of exotic locations, using quarterstaffs, whips and swords. Khan, who had acquired impressive mental powers during his isolation, eventually won, but Kirk survived because he understood that the weapons were only illusory. The film ended with a pitched space battle in orbit around the planet in which Kirk defeated his enemy with his superior tactics."
https://www.forgottentrek.com/the-wrath-of-khan/writing-the-wrath-of-khan/
I think it was something more long-lasting than the flu. Like maybe something related to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardo_Montalban
Khan backhanded a security guard, sending him flipping off of his feet and into a wall, crushed a Phaser with his hands (I assume the weapons were supposed to be made from some sort of metal), and used the pressure in his fingers to force a sealed door open. I'd say he was fairly superhuman (more on the Captain America level, rather than the Hulk), but Kirk--despite being a normal human--was an advanced strategist of many stripes, leading him to outthink Khan, so to Mr. Laser Beam's point, no, Khan was not going to kick Kirk's butt if Kirk used his own superior knowledge to overcome enhanced, brute strength.
...and that was ridiculous.
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