This is a spin-off to a comment I made in the "2 months till filming - still no Kirk?" thread.
Over the last few years we've seen the eruption of "X is not Y" websites put up by disgruntled fans who disapprove of a creative decision in the making of a movie or TV series. A variation of this was the Kill Enterprise website-based movement that dogged that show's every step. More recently, there was the whole "Daniel Craig is Not Bond" movement that garnered quite a bit of publicity when he was cast as James Bond for Casino Royale (their prime argument, apparently being that he was blonde and short.
) .
Obviously such websites never really accomplish anything. Although they'd like to claim credit, there is no indication Kill Enterprise had anything to do with UPN cancelling the show, and despite their efforts CINB was unsuccessful in getting Daniel Craig sacked from Casino Royale, which went on be arguably the most acclaimed Bond film of all time, and he became the first Bond actor to actually generate Oscar buzz.
Now we come to Trek XI. Surprisingly I've heard very little complaint about the casting of Zachary Quinto as Spock, probably because of the endorsement from Nimoy, and the fact Nimoy will also play Spock in the film. These two factors probably diffused any sort of serious backlash that might have otherwise occurred.
But now we come to the casting of Kirk, with no one really sure who will get the role. Much like Daniel Craig - who came out of nowhere - I expect the casting of Kirk to be a surprise to everyone. Unlike Bond, however -- or even Spock if you count the young Spocks in Trek III -- Kirk has never been played by another actor other than William Shatner. This is uncharted territory without equal in popular entertainment -- never has an iconic pop culture figure, with more than 40 years of equity behind him, all associated with a single actor, ever been given to another actor. Try to find any character as iconic as Kirk, who has only been played by one actor (Turnabout Intruder doesn't count!
) and who has been associated with that actor for so long as Shatner has. You won't find anyone, with the possible exception of Spock, as I say, but Trek XI is cheating by having Nimoy also play, so it's not a handing off in the same way as will happen with Kirk.
I personally think the odds are even money that some faction of Trek fandom will start an "XYZ is not Kirk" campaign along the lines of the anti-Craig movement, especially with the release of the film a year away. Conditions are also ripe for this based on the indications that Shatner will not appear, and as such we lack the implicit endorsement that Nimoy gave Quinto.
So let's be honest and put our cards on the table: is there anyone out there with their typing fingers at the ready, poised to upload the inevitable "We don't want Actor X as Kirk" websites?
Or, perhaps taking the lesson of Craig is Not Bond -- which ultimately saw its supporters humiliated when Casino Royale was finally released -- do you expect the casting of Kirk to be created with a bit more of a sense of IDIC by the fanbase?
Cheers!
Alex
Over the last few years we've seen the eruption of "X is not Y" websites put up by disgruntled fans who disapprove of a creative decision in the making of a movie or TV series. A variation of this was the Kill Enterprise website-based movement that dogged that show's every step. More recently, there was the whole "Daniel Craig is Not Bond" movement that garnered quite a bit of publicity when he was cast as James Bond for Casino Royale (their prime argument, apparently being that he was blonde and short.
) .Obviously such websites never really accomplish anything. Although they'd like to claim credit, there is no indication Kill Enterprise had anything to do with UPN cancelling the show, and despite their efforts CINB was unsuccessful in getting Daniel Craig sacked from Casino Royale, which went on be arguably the most acclaimed Bond film of all time, and he became the first Bond actor to actually generate Oscar buzz.
Now we come to Trek XI. Surprisingly I've heard very little complaint about the casting of Zachary Quinto as Spock, probably because of the endorsement from Nimoy, and the fact Nimoy will also play Spock in the film. These two factors probably diffused any sort of serious backlash that might have otherwise occurred.
But now we come to the casting of Kirk, with no one really sure who will get the role. Much like Daniel Craig - who came out of nowhere - I expect the casting of Kirk to be a surprise to everyone. Unlike Bond, however -- or even Spock if you count the young Spocks in Trek III -- Kirk has never been played by another actor other than William Shatner. This is uncharted territory without equal in popular entertainment -- never has an iconic pop culture figure, with more than 40 years of equity behind him, all associated with a single actor, ever been given to another actor. Try to find any character as iconic as Kirk, who has only been played by one actor (Turnabout Intruder doesn't count!
) and who has been associated with that actor for so long as Shatner has. You won't find anyone, with the possible exception of Spock, as I say, but Trek XI is cheating by having Nimoy also play, so it's not a handing off in the same way as will happen with Kirk.I personally think the odds are even money that some faction of Trek fandom will start an "XYZ is not Kirk" campaign along the lines of the anti-Craig movement, especially with the release of the film a year away. Conditions are also ripe for this based on the indications that Shatner will not appear, and as such we lack the implicit endorsement that Nimoy gave Quinto.
So let's be honest and put our cards on the table: is there anyone out there with their typing fingers at the ready, poised to upload the inevitable "We don't want Actor X as Kirk" websites?
Or, perhaps taking the lesson of Craig is Not Bond -- which ultimately saw its supporters humiliated when Casino Royale was finally released -- do you expect the casting of Kirk to be created with a bit more of a sense of IDIC by the fanbase?
Cheers!
Alex
