Chris Pine was in an unenviable position when he took on Captain Kirk. On one hand, it’s an major coup for any actor, but you’d run the risk of being stereotyped, as well as the withering heat from the geeks if you don’t deliver.
Nevertheless, Pine has done very well for himself, and as the Hollywood Reporter asked, “Is Pine a movie star? The answer, tentatively, in the age of Hollywood’s A-list defict, would be yes.” Now he’s taking over another big franchise, Jack Ryan.
In the Reporter, JJ Abrams recalled that he wanted an unknown to play Kirk. “Frankly, having seen so many people at that point, watching his audition was the definite confirmation that he was the guy,” Abrams said. “He was a great-looking guy but was a complete goofball. He was willing to be ridiculous.”
Pine almost took a role in a James Ellroy noir detective film, but once Trek came along, Pine said, “You know, I was really looking forward to a long career as a character actor, and I know that’s just not going to happen now.”
As for Pine taking on another big role, producer Lorzeno di Bonaventura told the Reporter, “I think we had a moment when we said to ourselves, ‘Does the fact that he’s Capt. Kirk create a problem for us? And our conclusion was no. I think the audience is savvy enough to see the difference.”
The role that Pine is dying to play? Frank Sinatra. We know the guy can do action and genre, but can he play Ol Blue Eyes? Talk about taking on a role that will come with intense scrutiny…
