William Shatner’s Captain James T. Kirk replaced the originalCaptain of the Starship EnterpriseinStar Trek: The Original Series, Captain Christopher Pike, who was played by Jeffrey Hunter.Hunter starred in the firstStar Trekpilotthat creator Gene Roddenberry wrote and produced for NBC studios, “The Cage”.Star Trek’s original pilot featured Captain Pike as a prisoner of the Talosians, highly intelligent aliens intent on keeping Pike on Talos IV as a mate for Vina (Susan Oliver), whom they’d rescued from a downed starship 18 years earlier. The Talosians would provide for Pike’s every need and want through their impressive telepathic skill, but Pike would be trapped in the fantasy with Vina.
According to NBC execs, “The Cage” was"too cerebral"for 1960s audiences, with a focus on the questions raised by a difficult morality play, instead of the pulpy, sci-fi action-adventure series -“Wagon Train to the stars”- that the network was expecting. In fact,producers thought little aboutStar Trekactually worked.Leonard Nimoy’s Spockwas"demonic", with his pointed ears and brows. Majel Barrett’s Number One, the USS Enterprise’s First Officer, was too serious - and a woman. Most importantly, Jeff Hunter’s Captain Pike didn’t seem like the right kind of leading man forStar Trek. Instead of scrappingStar Trek, however, NBC ordered a second pilot, with one caveat: the entire cast needed to be replaced.
Susan Oliver: Star Trek’s First Captain Love Interest Explained
Susan Oliver’s Vina began the long-standing tradition of the Star Trek captain’s love interest, and the TOS character continues to make an impact.
Why Jeffrey Hunter Was Replaced By William Shatner as Star Trek’s Captain
NBC Executives Wanted Roddenberry To Retool Star Trek’s Pilot
Jeffrey Hunter’s Captain Christopher Pike was replaced by William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk as part of NBC’s bid to completely revamp Gene Roddenberry’s originalStar Trekconcept. In exchange for another shot at makingStar Trek, Roddenberry agreed to most of NBC’s terms. Captain Christopher Pike was out, andTwilight Zoneactor William Shatner was brought on asStar Trek’s new leading man, Captain James T. Kirk.The studio allowed Roddenberry to keep one of the original characters, and since it was important to the theme ofStar Trekthat an alien be among the Starship Enterprise’s bridge crew, Leonard Nimoy’s Mr. Spock got to stay.
Freed from Star Trek, Jeffrey Hunter pursued movie roles instead of languishing on a television series.
Besides being asked to leave, Jeffrey Hunter simply didn’t want to doStar Trekafter the first pilot.Jeffrey Hunter was convinced by his wife, Barbara Rush, that he was a movie star,so Hunter refused to return to TV. Freed fromStar Trek, Hunter pursued movie roles instead of languishing on a television series. Pike’s stint as the Enterprise captain was explained as preceding Kirk’s inStar Trek: The Original Seriesin season 1, episodes 11 & 12, “The Menagerie”. TheTOStwo-parter interspersed footage from “The Cage” with new material that featuredSean Kenney as Captain Pike, now disfigured by a tragic accident.
It Took Over 50 Years For Captain Pike To Return To Star Trek TV
Anson Mount Plays Captain Pike In Star Trek: Discovery And Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
It took over 50 years for Captain Christopher Pike to return to aStar Trektelevision series. Captain Christopher Pike was little more than the answer to a trivia question untilAnson Mount’s version of Captain Pike debuted inStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2,which also featured Ethan Peck as Lieutenant Spock, Rebecca Romijn as Number One, and brand-new USS Enterprise sets. AsCaptain of the USS Discovery, Anson Mount’s Christopher Pike was a full-fledged character and a compassionate captain. Pike and his original USS Enterprise crew generated demand for the show thatStar Trek: The Original Serieswould have been if Hunter’s Pike hadn’t been replaced with Shatner’s Kirk.
J.J. Abrams’Star Trek(2009) rebooted the franchise with Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) preceding Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) as captain of the USS Enterprise, but Kirk is unquestionably the lead of Abrams’Star Trekmovies.
Anson Mount’s Captain Christopher Pike leadsStar Trek: Strange New Worlds,in what may be the longest time ever between a show’s pilot and its series order, asRoddenberry’s original concepts are updated for theStar Trek: The Original Seriesprequel.Captain Christopher Pike, Number One, and Mr. Spock are all present in thecast ofStrange New Worlds, joined by other familiar characters fromStar Trek: The Original Serieslike Jess Bush’s Nurse Christine Chapel and Celia Rose Gooding’s Ensigh Nyota Uhura. ButStar Treknever would have launched or become a phenomenon without Jeffrey Hunter’s Pike being replaced by William Shatner’s Kirk as the Enterprise Captain inStar Trek: The Original Series.
