Shatner snubs 'Star Trek' premiere

LOS ANGELES, May 1 (UPI) -- "Star Trek's" original 1960s Capt. Kirk, William Shatner, skipped the glittery Los Angeles premiere of the 2009 film, observers said.

With a galaxy of stars at Grauman's Chinese Theater to attend the official unveilingThursday of the Paramount feature "Star Trek," including the original television series' "Spock," Leonard Nimoy, and Chris Pine, who plays Kirk in the new movie, Shatner was a no-show, Britain's Daily Mail reported.

The apparent snub came after Shatner complained he hadn't been cast in the film by director J.J. Abrams, despite Nimoy being featured in a scene in which the old Spock comes from the future to visit his younger self, the newspaper said. Abrams had reportedly said at one point he would try to get Shatner involved in a cameo, but was worried the script wouldn't support it. Shatner, 78, never was cast.

Also attending the gala were original TV cast members George Takei and Walter Koenig; New Zealand actor Karl Urban, who plays Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy; the film's villain, Eric Bana, who plays Romulan Nero, and new movie cast members Zoe Saldana and Winona Ryder, the newspaperl reported.