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William Shatner thought Star Trek 2009’s use of Leonard Nimoy was gratuitous

By Chad Porto

LOS ANGELES - AUGUST 9: Actors William Shatner (L) and Leonard Nimoy (R) promote the "Star Trek" 40th Anniversary on the TV Land network at the Four Seasons hotel August 9, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Episodes of the show will air September 8. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - AUGUST 9: Actors William Shatner (L) and Leonard Nimoy (R) promote the "Star Trek" 40th Anniversary on the TV Land network at the Four Seasons hotel August 9, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Episodes of the show will air September 8. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) /
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William Shatner was not happy that Leonard Nimoy was Spock in the Kevlin Star Trek films.

Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner will forever be remembered as two of the best characters in the history of Star Trek and will be seen as one of the best duos in all of entertainment history. Nimoy as Spock and Shatner as James T. Kirk were the two most popular characters in the original Star Trek series. They were long-time friends, until they weren’t, and lasted a long time with the franchise.

Speaking to Express.co.UK about his newest film, Senior Moment, Shatner lamented about Nimoy being in the 2009 J.J. Abrams helmed Star Trek films, also dubbed the Kelvin Universe. In the film, Nimoy’s Spock goes back in time and causes an event that creates a new timeline. Nimoy is playing the same Spock from the 1960s series (and subsequent movies). Despite this plotline, Shatner still found Nimoy’s involvement to be anything but natural, telling the website;

"Leonard Nimoy was in some of those films, but it was totally gratuitous. …They just wanted to put Spock in there and I didn’t admire that."

William Shatner isn’t wrong about the 2009 Star Trek film

Unfortunately, one of the biggest issues with the 2009 Star Trek film, and its sequels, were the lack of depth and heart at the center of the stories. The film tried to shoehorn a plot involving Kirk and Spock who were originally rivals to some extent. This was where Nimoy’s Spock came into play.

Shatner isn’t wrong that his involvement felt gratuitous, as most of the film did at times. It felt like Paramount’s answer to the bombastic Star Wars prequels and the Transformers franchise. Many fans had issues with the film, its style, and its lack of substance. An issue the franchise has faced ever since.

That’s not to say the films and new shows aren’t without their own unique charm. There are certainly people who have enjoyed the films and series ever since, even myself. That doesn’t mean that these two thoughts can’t both be true at the same time.

The new stuff isn’t like the Star Trek of the first 40 years, but that doesn’t mean it’s not enjoyable for what it is.

Next. Star Trek The Motion Picture launched 3 awesome ships. dark

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