I am looking for alternate contemporary actors that you think would have made the original series even better.
I’ll start with James Coburn as James Tiberius Kirk. I think he would have interacted with the crew even better than Shatner ever did, and the show might have lasted at least two years longer.
He was, what, twenty-one with no acting credits? I’m not sure that’s good a fit for a high-ranking guy with a thick Scottish accent as, oh, say, Sean Connery…
Nice choice, but note that this would lead to endless nitpicking, speculation, and fanwanking about his missing eye. (Then again, the same thing happened with James Doohan and his missing finger.)
“Get me a Davy Jones type”
“I can get you Davy Jones…”
“uh…PERFECT!”
“Stand up, Mr. Chekov.”
“I im standeeng up, Keptin.”
Chekov would give Kirk too much competition for the space babes. Chekov would look at them, and little stars would appear in his eyes, and it would be all over.
.
*aren’t you a little short for a starship trooper?
Kirk – Alan Hale, Jr
Spock – Russell Johnson
McCoy – Jim Backus
Uhura – Dawn Wells
Orion Slave Girl - Tina Louise
Spock’s Mom - Natalie Schafer
Red Shirt #17 - Bob Denver
Klingon Crew - Harlem Globetrotters