By Quinn Bender
Chris Pine, who plays the young James T. Kirk in the latest Star Trek film, confessed to a Hollywood press conference that he was never much a fan of the series. The actor went on to say it was the franchise rival Star Wars that captured his childhood imagination.
“I think watching the original Star Trek series as a kid, it was a little campy, the effects were kind of absurd. I just wasn’t able to get into it,” Pine said.
“Growing up in the Star Wars generation, there’s just something kind of visceral and fun about that world– it’s more about the effects.”
Later Pine said he studied the Star Trek history rigorously since landing the famous role of Captain Kirk. He lauded the series’ commitment to positive themes, calling the deck of the Enterprise a miniature United Nations, a place of cooperation, free of sexism and racism.
“The world that Gene Roddenberry created was… this grand allegory that explored all these deep social issues. As a kid I had no concept or clue of what was going on,” Pine said. “Watching the original series now, you get a great sense of how really radical what Gene Roddenberry was doing back then. I have a great appreciation for that now. Speaking of the positive vision, this really wonderful vision of what we are capable of, is quite a wonderful thing in today’s age.”
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