When Shatner Says Paramount is ‘Erasing’ Captain Kirk, It’s Just Part of His Ongoing Temper Tantrum
Original series star’s relationship with the franchise has been fraught from the start
“The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few” (or “the one”)
— Spock (Leonard Nimoy)
William Shatner’s been in the news lately, and not for particularly flattering reasons.
The actor is accusing Paramount of “erasing” his original portrayal of Captain James T Kirk.
The complaints have become so noticable that they’ve slipped beyond the genre and fan press and been picked up by such mainstream media as Fox News.
At issue is Shatner’s grumble that the studio didn't include his likeness as Kirk in a recent promotional graphic for the franchise.
He was reacting to a social media user’s posted question: “But will we ever see Captain Kirk again?”
Shatner continued, pointing out how this lack of Kirk in promotional imagery has been “going on for years,” suggesting that perhaps there are people “threatened by the Kirk character” from the 1960s.
To be honest, this sounds like just another case of Shatner thinking that the world — or at least the Star Trek franchise — somehow revolves around him.
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The truth is that Shatner was the face of the franchise, for a very long time.
But it’s just as true that it’s been decades since he made his final appearance on-screen as Kirk, in 1994’s Star Trek: Generations.
And Star Trek only has grown dramatically in the years since. It would simply be unwieldy to try artfully represent each and every big star in the franchise in publicity artwork especially given that there now are about a dozen or so captains alone to be highlighted.
Considering the way that he has long lamented the way that his relationship with Leonard Nimoy ended before Nimoy’s passing in 2015, one might think that Shatner might have been big enough to celebrate his late co-star’s inclusion as the face of the original series in that artwork.
But that, apparently, would be too much to expect of Shatner, who long has had a history and reputation of being small and churlish towards his erstwhile comrades.
To the point where his feud with George Takei is the stuff of legend.
It’s a shame, because the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation proved that co-stars on a series could not only cooperate professionally but become close friends and chosen family in the process.
So much so that Patrick Stewart personally played a significant part in getting the fired Gates McFadden rehired for the third season of TNG.
Star Trek has grown to become this vast tapestry, something that now connects literally hundreds of actors and other creatives.
The point of Star Trek writ large itself is, in some ways, for we as people to not only stretch beyond ourselves — but to celebrate, and revel in, that stretching.
The franchise would do well to hire more actors and creatives who really understand that truth.
And it’s truly a deep shame that, as many times as Shatner was on-screen for that unforgettable line, “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few,” that he’s never really been able to take it to heart.
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