Abrams Open to Using Shatner in 'Star Trek' Sequel

William Shatner raised a stink when he wasn't in the recent Star Trek reboot, which of course featured Leonard Nimoy as an older version of Spock. Some of it was good-natured, but you could tell The Shat felt slighted by director J.J. Abrams. But Abrams now says the door is wide open for the return of the original James T. Kirk.

"It was a foregone conclusion we wanted him in the movie," Abrams told reporters in Australia.

"The problem was his character died on screen in one of his Trek films and because we decided, very early on, that we wanted to adhere to Trek canon as best we could...the required machinations to get Shatner into the movie would have been very difficult to do given the story we wanted to tell and also to give him the kind of part that he would be happy with."

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It Had to Happen: The 'T.J. Hooker' Movie is a Go

I don't even know why the producers of movies like this even feign excitement about the idea anymore. Instead of acting like there's some untapped gold mine, I wish one of them would just come out and say, "It was either make this movie or let some other idiot have it."

And so...we're getting a T.J. Hooker movie. Astonishingly, the Shatner cop show lasted four years on the air at a time when there were only three networks. But because someone else was sure to grab it, David Foster, Ryan Heppe, and series creator Rick Husky will bring Hooker to the screen, with Chuck Russell (The Mask) in talks to direct. Variety says it's being positioned as an action comedy centered on the relationship between the beat cop and his father. We don't have a star yet, but it's not necessarily a young man's game. Shatner was in his 50s when the series began, so if they're serious about the comedy, Bruce Campbell should be the first person they call.

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Abrams Doesn't Rule Out Shatner in 'Trek' Sequels

A lot of people who didn't like the new Star Trek pointed directly to one thing: It broke from the canon, changing the timeline around both in the introduction of a character here and there and also altering enough of the history that it's no longer required to follow the chronology of the original series. If you fall into that category, I've got bad news for you: That was the point.

Discussing potential sequel ideas with MTV, director J.J. Abrams explains that the entire Trek universe is now open to interpretation. "The fun of this [new alternate reality] is that the destiny of these characters is in their hands — it's not constrained by the pre-existing films or TV series," says Abrams. "Believe me, whether it's William Shatner or Khan...it would be ridiculous to not be open to those ideas." Writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman and producer Damon Lindelof recently commented on how cool it would be to see Javier Bardem as Khan, and how could you not agree with that? Ditto the Shat, although I didn't love the way old Spock was handled in the current film.

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Watch Shatner Watch the 'Star Trek' Trailer

William Shatner has not remained silent about his belief that he should be involved in the new Star Trek movie. It's been a rather lengthy but good natured public spat between Shatner and J.J. Abrams, although Abrams hasn't really engaged The Shat at any point. It's really just Shatner wanting to be in it because Leonard Nimoy is.

So now, Shatner has his first opportunity to see the Star Trek trailer, or so he says. I mean, does he not have a TV? This stuff's been everywhere. But as a guest on Access Hollywood, Shatner watches the whole thing and you can watch him watching it.

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Happy Shatner Day, Everybody

Happy birthday to the original James T. Kirk and so far the only T.J. Hooker. We don't generally mention celebrity birthdays here at The Big Picture, but since we are talking about the Priceline Negotiator, I figured we could make an exception. William Shatner is 78 years old today, and you can make fun of his weight if you want, but if I look that good and if I'm that hip at 58, I'd take that action. Shat's first notable role was as Ranger Bob on Howdy Doody 55 years ago, and since then, despite the overacting and all the rest, he continues to get plenty of work and rack up nominations for Boston Legal. But he'll always be linked to Star Trek and Captain Kirk, so because it's his birthday, please enjoy the worst fight scene ever: