A source to IGN claimed "Star Trek" director J.J Abrams is keen to have Tom Cruise as Captain Pike in cameo appearance.
- Aug 8, 2007
AceShowbiz - Is it possible for Tom Cruise to shift from being a good Nazi to a USS Enterprise captain? Well, according to IGN, that just may happen as its trusted source has brought in report stating "Star Trek" helmer J.J. Abrams is wooing the mega-star to take the cameo role of Captain Christopher Pike in the anticipated movie.
Cruise initially was speculated last fall to be a possible cast member in the flick, but his spokesman Arnold Robinson quickly denied the tidbit by telling TrekMovie.com that the story "is not true." This can be understood since there was still tension between the actor and studio producing the film Paramount Pictures at that time following the latter's decision to cease collaboration with the former's production company Cruise/Wagner.
However, as time goes by, it looks like the door for reconciliation is open for Cruise to enter in so that the idea of him joining "Star Trek" seems probable; moreover, the cameo part is likely to be more of a favor to Abrams than to Paramount judging from the good relationship the two have established since last year's "Mission: Impossible 3."
As for the character, Pike is known among Trekkers to be James T. Kirk's predecessor and Mr. Spock's first commanding officer who was first featured in the pilot episode of the original "Star Trek" series, "The Cage." The pilot sadly was rejected and the character was then dropped during development of the second pilot after Jeffrey Hunter, the actor portraying it, decided to not continue with the series, prompting NBC to create a new one that was none other than Captain Kirk.
