Star Trek’s Robin Curtis Blames Leonard Nimoy For A Widespread Saavik Grievance

In Leonard Nimoy’s 1984 movie “Star Trek III: The Seek for Spock,” the Vulcan officer Saavik (Robin Curtis) was tasked with exploring and mapping the Genesis planet, a brand-new world that had been instantaneously fashioned by the Genesis Gadget, a terraforming widget launched within the earlier film. The Genesis planet, she discovered, was evolving at too speedy a tempo, rotating by way of seasons at an hourly price. It was scorching and muggy one hour, then snowy the subsequent. By the top of the film, the Genesis world will show to be unstable, crumbling from inside. It was too good to be true. 

The deterioration is just one of a number of tragedies that happen all through the movie. Throughout a rescue operation, Admiral Kirk (William Shatner) has to destroy the united statesS. Enterprise, and his son David (Merritt Butrick) is murdered by Klingons. Saavik, being an impassive Vulcan, witnesses these tragedies with a stone face. She tries as an alternative to view them with indifferent mind. Robin Curtis gave a mature and stony efficiency, wholly applicable for the character. 

However this was a change for Saavik, as within the earlier movie — when the character was performed by Kirstie Alley — she was much more emotional. She was confused by people and even shed tears on the funeral of Spock (Nimoy). Someway, Saavik grew to become rather a lot much less emotional from “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” to “Star Trek III,” a change that many Trekkies have observed and complained about. 

Curtis, in fact, has been requested in regards to the character modifications she made to Saavik in “Star Trek III,” and he or she has a easy reply. Plainly Nimoy merely directed her that manner. Nicholas Meyer directed “Star Trek II,” and Kirstie Alley had a special strategy to the character. Curtis, in distinction, trusted that Leonard Nimoy, basically a co-creator of Vulcans, would inform her the easiest way to behave. Curtis talked about Saavik lately on the SciFi Diner Podcast. 

Curtis was nonetheless within the early years of her profession when she made “Star Trek III,” so she needed to strategy Nimoy throughout manufacturing and admit up entrance that she did not know something about Vulcans; Curtis was no Trekkie. Nimoy, fortunately, put her thoughts comfy and directed her very carefully. When requested about Saavik’s change, Curtis credited Nimoy, saying: 

“I admit it was very a lot path. However it was my desire to be that actor who simply put herself within the arms of the King Vulcan. Who was I to enter the franchise and go, ‘Effectively, you realize, that is what I feel a Vulcan girl would do and say.’ I shook Mr. Nimoy’s hand the primary day of labor, and stated, ‘You appear to assume I do know what I am doing, however I actually do not.’ And he stated, ‘Robin, I am going to take you each step of the best way.'”

So Curtis wasn’t actually involved in regards to the grand arc of her character from one movie to the subsequent. She made herself aware of Saavik, in fact, however had the troublesome job of reprising the function of one other actress whereas nonetheless making the half her personal. She additionally felt that the creation of a brand new Saavik was a collaboration. Certainly, the creation of any character is an amalgam of insights supplied by the author, the director, and the actor. Curtis noticed her craft as one in every of cooperation. 

After all, Trekkies do not have a look at characters fairly the identical manner. Trekkies are sticklers for continuity and like to hyperlink distant items of the franchise again to the current, searching for references and — only for enjoyable, thoughts you — continuity errors. As such, Trekkies will typically ask Curtis about in-universe causes as to why Saavik went from wanting like Alley to wanting like Curtis. The actress, in fact, has needed to rein in a number of enthused followers, reminding them that she is simply an actress working a job. However, in fact, by no means in a condescending manner. Curtis famous: 

“When folks touch upon the delicate variations or maybe a number of the extra apparent variations between the 2 portrayals, I’ve to remind them I feel it’s extremely a lot a collaboration between the artist and the director, for certain. Clearly, Nicholas Meyer and Kirstie form of went to the sides of the emotion and the flirtation, and so they introduced some nuances to the character that Leonard Nimoy would haven’t any a part of. He did not need me to breathe within the unsuitable place, as a lot as I attempted to inject that little layer of emotion. It wasn’t occurring. He wasn’t having it.” 

Personally, I favor Nimoy’s strategy. Vulcans are extra fascinating to me once they retain their composure, not once they “break” and present their feelings. Spock has all the time been a greater character the much less human he was, serving as a logical counterpoint to the passions of Captain Kirk or Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley). The identical precept needs to be utilized to all of the Vulcans in “Star Trek.” The franchise is already awful with people, and a further emotional viewpoint is not mandatory. By making Saavik colder and fewer emotional, Nimpy improved the character. 

And Curtis, in fact, dealt with his path with aplomb.