Star Trek Officially Recasts Captain Kirk for New Release

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Published Aug 6, 2026, 1:48 PM EDT

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

Star Trek turns 60 this year, and so does the Writers Guild Foundation, the charitable arm of the Writers Guild of America. Now, the two are coming together with a very special celebration to celebrate both anniversaries, and to help the latter continue to thrive well into the future, if maybe not the future of the 23rd century. The cast of one of the hottest shows on TV is uniting for a script reading of one of the most important Trek episodes of all time.

"The Man Trap" was the first Star Trek episode ever broadcast, although it wasn't shot as either of the series' pilots. It opens with the USS Enterprise visiting the remote planet M-113, which is inhabited solely by Professor Robert Crater (Alfred Ryder) and his wife, Nancy (Jeanne Bal). In her youth, Nancy had been romantically involved with Enterprise physician Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley), and seeing her again sparks warm feelings for McCoy. However, the Enterprise crew eventually learn that Nancy is long dead, and in her place is the last living native of M-113; a shapeshifting alien predator that leaches the salt from its prey. Even the cunning of Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and the alien strength of Spock (Leonard Nimoy) might not be enough to stop the creature from making the Enterprise into its new feeding grounds.

The cast of The Pitt are set to recreate "The Man Trap" in a new reading to support the Writers Guild Foundation. Star Noah Wyle will read the part of Captain James T. Kirk, while castmates Katherine LaNasa, Fiona Dourif, Taylor Dearden, Shabana Azeez, and Ayesha Harris will also participate, although their roles have yet to be revealed. It will be produced by Ben Blacker and Heath Corson, and will feature live scoring by Philip Krohnengold The reading will take place on August 30 at 7 p.m. at the Lodge Room in Highland Park. Tickets to the event are available at the Lodge Room's website; the event will also be livestreamed online.

What Is 'The Pitt'?

A medical drama set at the fictional Pittsburgh Medical Trauma Center, The Pitt follows a day in the life of the emergency room's staff and patients. Each fifteen-episode season covers a single event-filled fifteen-hour shift in the ER; patients come and go as the doctors, led by attending physician Michael "Robby" Robinavitch (Wyle), deal with both the imminent crises of the afflicted and their own personal crises.

The cast of The Pitt will perform a reading of the Star Trek episode "The Man Trap" on August 30. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.

Release Date 1966 - 1969-00-00

Showrunner Gene Roddenberry

Directors Marc Daniels, Joseph Pevney, Ralph Senensky, Vincent McEveety, Herb Wallerstein, Jud Taylor, Marvin J. Chomsky, David Alexander, Gerd Oswald, Herschel Daugherty, James Goldstone, Robert Butler, Anton Leader, Gene Nelson, Harvey Hart, Herbert Kenwith, James Komack, John Erman, John Newland, Joseph Sargent, Lawrence Dobkin, Leo Penn, Michael O'Herlihy, Murray Golden

Writers D.C. Fontana, Jerome Bixby, Arthur Heinemann, David Gerrold, Jerry Sohl, Oliver Crawford, Robert Bloch, David P. Harmon, Don Ingalls, Paul Schneider, Shimon Wincelberg, Steven W. Carabatsos, Theodore Sturgeon, Jean Lisette Aroeste, Art Wallace, Adrian Spies, Barry Trivers, Don Mankiewicz, Edward J. Lakso, Fredric Brown, George Clayton Johnson, George F. Slavin, Gilbert Ralston, Harlan Ellison

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