Timothy Olyphant Was Almost Captain Kirk in "Star Trek"

When JJ Abrams revived “Star Trek” for modern audiences in 2009, his casting choices were a definite plus. Chris Pine as James T. Kirk, Zachary Quinto as Spock- perfectly cast as frenemy coworkers who eventually become friends. But we ALMOST had a very different captain for the Enterprise.

Apparently, Timothy Olyphant (“Deadwood,” “The Mandalorian,” “Justified“) was in line to be Kirk before Pine!

Timothy Olyphant as Joel Hammond. Netflix

Olyphant had nothing but good things to say about his audition experience. A process that is both stressful and difficult for most actors. “Here’s what I can tell you about ‘Star Trek’: I went in and auditioned not for Captain Kirk, but I remember reading with J.J. Abrams and he’s just a lovely, lovely guy,” Olyphant told the Happy, Sad, Confused Podcast. “And just a lovely, lovely audition process. Somewhere in there, I was auditioning for Doc, he’s like, ‘I already got a guy for Doc, so I don’t need you for that, but I don’t have a Kirk.'”

Chris Pine as Captain James T. Kirk, “Star Trek” (2009) Paramount Pictures, Bad Robot

Chris Pine nabbed the starring role, as Abrams had already been on the lookout for someone younger than Olyphant. Someone who could encapsulate Kirk’s cockiness and lack of experience while also looking the part. “I believe it was one of those things where it’s like they might have been prepared to hire me, but they wanted somebody younger, and [Abrams] was having a hard time finding somebody younger,” Olyphant said. But he holds no grudges. After all, that’s show business. He’s also an admirer of Pine’s performances, and greatly enjoys his company.

“I have since then met Chris Pine and I am a huge fan of him both on and off screen. I love that guy…He’s a good dude. This sounds very show business-y, but I had the honor, we’re going to say honor, to go to the Golden Globes one year…and I spent most of the evening at the bar with Chris Pine. Just really adored him. What a good guy. I really like his work. He’s one of those guys who makes it look simple and easy.”

Timothy Olyphant “Deadwood” Photo by WARRICK PAGE / HBO

[Editor’s note: We have to say, while we LOVE Timothy in pretty much everything (but especially in “Deadwood“), we think he would’ve been a better Bones than Kirk. No knocks to Karl Urban, who was fabulous in the JJ Trek films.]