james doohan Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Doing a six-movie (Kirk-and-Spock) Star Trek marathon in a weekend can shed a lot of light on Stockholm Syndrome. I did a great deal of laughing and scoffing and eye-rolling, which I insist is the proper response for any reasonable person watching these films for the first time today. And yet, as the final credits rolled for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country -- fashioned in the style of the cast members' signatures -- I found myself wiping back tears.

As I explained in this motivating post last Friday, my goal was to bone up on my Star Trek in anticipation of J.J. Abrams' reboot, due May 8th. I had seen the last four films, plus most of The Next Generation and all of Voyager (which I love, damn you), but virtually nothing from the original series. The Castro Theatre in San Francisco was screening all six of the original-series films over one weekend. This seemed perfect -- if arduous. I committed (publicly, no less) to the full complement.

Hopefully, one day, space will actually be the final frontier for James Doohan, the actor who played "Scotty" in the Star Trek series. Three years after his death from Alzheimer's disease, all of his ashes have still not reached their intended destination. Back in December 2006, some of Doohan's remains were to be rocketed into space, but the launch was delayed, and new plans were made for the actor's ashes, along with more than 200 other people's remains. According to Doohan's Wikipedia page, the ashes' first mission went as planned, as they were blasted into space for four minutes in April 2007 and then were parachuted back to Earth. This past Saturday, they were all set to again be shot into space and to remain there this time, but the launch failed.

Now BBC News reports that following the failure of the mission, Doohan's ashes have gone missing. It's unclear what the details of the disappearance are, but it's fair to assume that much of the rocket's contents went missing during the botched launch, which took place from the island of Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. In that case, it would seem the ashes will not actually be recovered. One of Doohan's sons wrote a message posted on BoingBoing, in which he stated that he'd like to "finish saying goodbye," and that "every launch attempt is like reliving his funeral." Apparently, according to the NY Times, another launch will happen in the future and that any unrecovered ashes will be replaced with backup ashes.

Simon Pegg is going to be in trouble! Even he says so. When asked about Star Trek by AICN, he was extremely wary. "There is very little I can say, because there is a Paramount sniper trained on the back of my head as I speak. He's on a building and I'm not going to look, because he will know I know he is there."

But he talked anyway. You need to head over to read (and listen to!) the entire interview, where Pegg talks about everything from Run Fatboy Run, to Spaced, to Hot Fuzz, and, of course, Star Trek. I will post the best bits here, though, because I know you're dying to read them.

Pegg elaborated on taking on the iconic role and stressed how conscientious he was to play the part with the utmost respect. "One thing I didn't want to do is an impression of James Doohan, because I wouldn't want anyone to think I was making fun of him, you know? If I started doing an impersonation of the actor that played Scotty, that would be doing the part and the actor a disservice, so my intention was to take it as James did when he first picked up the script, and just say 'Okay, he's a physics genius, he's an engineer, he's from Scotland ...' and approach the character like that and to have my interpretation of it."

Has there ever been a set more tightly guarded than J.J. Abrams' Star Trek reboot?
Even Eric Bana was twitchy and guarded on Jay Leno about his shaved head, as if we don't already know who he's playing.

I respect it. It's nice when everything isn't spoiled right off the bat, but it doesn't seem as though your actors should fear you.

But Empire managed to get Simon Pegg, who's playing that famous Scottish engineer, to talk a bit. He revealed he had finished his scenes and that he thinks the movie is going to be "fantastic." A Star Trek geek himself, the biggest moment for him was "just being there on the Enterprise, it was incredible."

It should hearten any Star Trek fan to hear Pegg's devotion to the original Scotty, James Doohan. "Everything is just a tribute to James Doohan and it's his role. I'm just very honoured to be able to step into his shoes. I just hope I do him proud." He's borrowing his wife's "merry [Scottish] accent" for the part, but isn't at liberty to say whether she's a Highlander, a Lowlander or of that special Glasgow variety. "I'll get sued," insists Pegg. (That means it is Glasgow and fans will be angered. Just kidding. Now I'll be sued.)

Star Trek will be released May 8th, 2009. And we'll all be sued for talking about it until then! Why, this post could be yanked before any of you read it. . .

I'm still holding out for the surprise announcement that William Shatner will indeed appear in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek. In the meantime, though, I expect to hear another complaint from the original Captain Kirk after reading this juicy bit of goodness: George Takei has a cameo in the upcoming movie*, which will be a prequel-ish reboot of the TV and movie franchise. According to a Starburst magazine interview with the actor, Takei will feature in a flash-forward scene that will also showcase original Spock, Leonard Nimoy. From the sound of it, he will be returning to his iconic role as an older version of Sulu. Best guess is that Takei and Nimoy will be sitting in futuristic rocking chairs reminiscing about their beginnings at the Starfleet Academy, and this scene will be the prologue to the rest of the movie. Playing the younger versions of Sulu and Spock throughout the rest of the film are John Cho and Zachary Quinto, respectively.

Well, if Shatner doesn't put up more of a fuss, the fans should. After all, as long as we're getting two of the surviving original cast members, why can't we get the rest? Sure, it would be a sad scene, considering DeForest Kelley (Bones) and James Doohan (Scotty) aren't around to be a part of such a reunion, but the Trekkies would certainly appreciate seeing Nichelle Nichols (Uhuru), Walter Koenig and of course Shatner together again. Am I right? They could all have a few laughs while yelling at the kids to get off their damn lawns. And we could all feel better about having to accept all new actors as these beloved characters. So, who is going to start the online petition? Oh wait, that's already been done.

*UPDATE: Apparently this is just another rumor, one that has been debunked. According to TrekMovie.com, Takei will not have a cameo in the new Star Trek.

Let's see now, we've got a Spock, a Uhura and a Chekov. We still need a Kirk, a Scott, a McCoy ("Bones") and a Sulu. I feel like I'm collecting trading cards, but really I'm just anxiously awaiting more Star Trek news. The new sorta-prequel (aka Star Trek XI) is set to begin filming soon, so it's about time J.J. Abrams finds the rest of his cast. Or, if he's already found his stars, it's about time Paramount announced them. At least the rumors and unconfirmed choices continue to float around the net. In fact, this morning we have two fairly reliable sources reporting new names to place in the Kirk and Scott slots.

The investigative team over at IESB got word that Mike Vogel (Poseidon) is the front-runner to fill William Shatner's shoes in the role of James T. Kirk. The site attempted to confirm the rumor with both Paramount and Vogel's agents, but obviously neither would comment. But IESB did get a hint of nervousness from the latter, Gersh Agency, which was curious about where this news had come from. The way IESB's Robert Sanchez relays the encounter, it does sound like a slight, accidental confirmation. But we'll see. Vogel (who makes me think of Superbad's Fogel) is also co-starring in the Abrams-produced monster movie coming in January -- you know, Cloverfield, 1-18-08 or whatever it will be titled -- so at least we know the actor has an in with the director.

I don't know where he came from but I'm sure glad he's here. James McAvoy that is -- recent lead opposite Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland and star of Starter for 10, a film about a college boy who falls in love with the girl he wants versus the girl he is 'meant to be with.' I never saw The Chronicles of Narnia and wasn't particularly interested in seeing Wimbledon, but I'm glad his films are currently getting notice. The rumor mill has also been giving McAvoy a lot of notice lately -- particularly the Sci Fi part of it -- as there's been a lot of recent talk about him playing Scotty in the upcoming Star Trek film, Trek XI.

Those rumors have pretty much been put to rest now, as McAvoy has taken the trouble to call them "rubbish." All the talk began when IGN first reported hearing Paramount contemplating McAvoy for the role formerly played by the late James Doohan, and it's been growing since then. McAvoy's statement, while not exactly slamming the door shut forever, does come pretty close to being a 'no thank you' with regards to the role. Rotten Tomatoes has a full report on what the Scottish dreamboat had to say about being considered for the role. I have to say that I'm surprised by the self-proclaimed Trekkie's statement on Trek XI. I know a few true Star Trek fans that would kill for the opportunity to play a role in the space land dream world, and if he really wanted to be considered, he probably shouldn't have dissed the rumors. Perhaps he needs a talking to by his fan club counterparts.

How easy could it be for Paramount to cast the new "young" Star Trek movie? Hire the kids of the original stars. That is what Chris Doohan suggests, anyway. On his MySpace blog (and in the comments section of a previous Cinematical post), he claims that he should at least be considered for the part of young "Scotty", the character originally played by his late father, James Doohan. He even gives a few good (to him) reasons: "1. I kind of look like my dad. 2. I can do a great Scottish accent. 3. We share the last name. 4. I like money."

He isn't sure how to go about auditioning for the part, but he's attempting a write-in/call-in campaign. On his blog, he supplies an address and phone number (that might not work, he says) for Paramount Pictures. If he can't get the Scotty role, he would at least like a walk-on role, something he also had for Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I think it would be funny if Paramount went completely against Chris' wishes and instead cast his twin brother, Montgomery, but it isn't likely producers would consider either brother. They are more likely to go with somebody with more acting experience than appearing as himself on Breaking Bonaduce. They may not cast a rising star like James McAvoy, but if Chris thinks he has a chance, he's dreaming.

[via Fark.com]

Last year, Martha reported that the ashes of actor James Doohan, who played Scotty on the original Star Trek TV show as well as in seven of the Star Trek films, were to be blasted into space on December 6, 2005. Unfortunately, the launch was delayed, as Space Services, the "space burial firm," had to put their rocket through more testing. Now the date has been reset, only with some odd new arrangements. In October, a capsule carrying Doohan's remains will indeed be carried into space, but it will then be brought back to Earth. Then, in December or January, the capsule will again be carried into space, where it will finally be emptied out. But wait! Space isn't Doohan's final frontier! See, eventually his ashes will, after orbiting the Earth a few years, fall into the atmosphere and burn up into nothing (this last bit makes the procedure seem not worth the effort).

Again, a memorial service for fans is being planned by Doohan's family. Hopefully there weren't any clueless geeks who showed up in costume last December for no reason. And hopefully the "burial" will go as planned this time. It isn't like ashes can sit around and wait forever.