Out of all the things that a person could still learn about Captain Kirk and the Star Trek franchise, hearing that William Shatner, the guy that was said to be such a male diva and that overshadowed so many people on the show, didn’t watch a single episode is kind of interesting, but also kind of insulting in a way. I’ll explain that in a moment, but to think that Shatner, who a lot of people still idolize as Captain James T. Kirk, has never sat down to watch a single episode of the show that he helped to make famous, is something that might make a few jaws drop. The insult isn’t so serious that it would be unforgivable since he’s not the only person to star in a show or movie that’s never really managed to get into what they were doing. Plenty of people that have starred in fictional shows and movies have never really been into what they’re doing apart from their role, as they’ll do the best they can to act out the character and promote the movie or TV show as much as possible. It’s mildly insulting since to the fans, Shatner is a legend within the Star Trek franchise, and many might expect him to know just about everything possible that took place during his tenure on the show and in the movies. But the truth is that he really doesn’t know that much since he doesn’t particularly enjoy what he did back then, despite the fact that he made certain that he was the big man on the set now and again.
Seriously, after all the stories that have been told regarding Shatner’s behavior and how he was a problem to work with sometimes, one might think that he knew something about the franchise that helped to boost his career in such a way. But to hear that he has little to no real desire to watch the original Star Trek franchise from his firsthand experience is kind of amusing, but also hard to believe. Demanding that an actor knows everything about the show or movie they’re starring in isn’t always bound to be possible since the truth is that some folks do sign on to get paid and not much else. But there are plenty of those that do come to the show with the knowledge of what’s going on, or at least do a bit of research to make it clear that they know what they’re doing, they understand the story, and that if asked, they could answer certain questions about the project. Shatner is amazing since for so many years he’s been banking on the fame that has come from this show and the movies and he’s never watched a bit of it since he didn’t care for his performance. He did have to watch one of the movies since he directed it, but apart from that, it would appear that he’s kept his attention elsewhere when it comes to watching his own performance. The thing is, a lot of actors don’t care to watch their own performances, and there are a few reasons for this, either they don’t believe they did that good of a job, or they’re not vain enough to need the continued ego boost that might come from watching their part in a certain movie. Whatever the reason is, a good number of actors won’t watch their own movies.
Shatner has done so much over the course of his career that one might assume he would be known for something other than Star Trek at some point, but this is the idea that has stuck with him for so long, and it’s how people choose to know him. For the most part, it would appear that Shatner has taken this in stride and hasn’t really allowed it to bother him. The man has an ego that has managed to get him noticed and even in trouble from time to time, but it’s likely also kept him from trouble as well. Thinking that an actor should watch their own movies is something that people may or may not agree with, but the fact is that a look at their work every now and then might be a wise move simply because it might address issues they need to work on, or perhaps prove as good learning material when they see the end result. But sitting down to every movie they’ve made would be a bit extraneous, if only because the actors are there when the action is taking place and the whole ‘been there, done that’ mentality is hard to argue against. It’s much different on the other side of the camera obviously, but it’s still a conscious choice by many actors to avoid watching their own performance and to be certain, Shatner has gotten by just fine without watching himself over the years.
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