Chris Pine tells KALEEM AFTAB that his new take on James T. Kirk owes more – the sacrilege! – to old Star Wars than vintage Star Trek
This year, Chris Pine is being asked to boldly go where no man has gone before, or perhaps should ever even dare to go: the 28-year-old has been given the astronomical task of filling William Shatner’s space boots in Lost creator J.J. Abrams’ reworking of Star Trek.
Pine plays Captain James T. Kirk and as with most remakes, the world expects him to pale in comparison.
The role is the equivalent of a warp drive for the Los Angeles-born actor. His biggest parts to date have been playing Lindsay Lohan’s love interest in the 2006 romantic comedy Just My Luck and starring as Bill Pullman’s errant son in the film Bottle Shock, based on the true story of a blind wine-tasting between Californian and French wines in 1976 in which the American vintages had the audacity to win.
When I jest that he recognizes that European wine is actually better than American, Pine retorts: “If you want to fight we can.”
He is not a man you’d pick a fight with. Standing just over 6ft tall, he has lines stacked like building blocks on his abdomen. He’s every inch the action hero with more than a hint of his parents, veteran actors Robert Pine and Gwynne Gilford, about him.
Indeed, there are a couple of scenes in Bottle Shock where Pine’s character Jim can be seen in a boxing ring playfully sparring with his winemaking father, Bo. His James T. Kirk can also be seen picking a fight in a bar. And both films have a father-son theme – Pine plays the second Captain Kirk, the first was Captain George Kirk who apparently went down with his Starship.
