One of the most important decisions a “Star Trek” series can make is choosing who will captain each of the franchise’s many ships. Some of the most memorable roles in television history are occupied by people who sat on a “Star Trek” bridge. One of the biggest inflection points in “Star Trek’s” modern run was the launch of “Enterprise.” The creators of that series knew there was only one man who could join this crew: Scott Bakula. However, the creative team behind “Star Trek” feared that their hand-picked Captain Jonathan Archer actor might pass on the project at the last minute.
James L. Conway, who directed the pilot of “Star Trek: Enterprise,” later shared how nervous the creative team was heading into the table read. Talking with Den of Geek, Conway said Bakula’s involvement was still unresolved just days before production began. The director began, “Scott Bakula was the only actor ever discussed for Archer. The problem was, his deal wasn’t closed until the table read of the script three days before production began.” While this kind of uncertainty is not uncommon in Hollywood, it was still a nerve-wracking situation. UPN, the broadcast network on which “Star Trek: Enterprise” premiered, was banking on having the new show available as quickly as possible.
Pushing things back just a few days would cause a ripple effect. A week lost translates to more time in post-production, which then pushes back the “Star Trek” release date further on the calendar. That’s something that would have benefited no one. Neither the creative team nor the network executives wanted that outcome. Luckily for them, Bakula had no intention of ghosting this team and would come through despite the unease of the folks in charge.
Scott Bakula was the final piece Enterprise needed
As Conway said, Bakula was basically a variable in the network’s plans for “Star Trek: Enterprise” just a few days from production beginning. There was no time for a fallback plan, and the show needed its captain in place to stay on schedule. A similar situation had already occurred with “Star Trek: Voyager,” and avoiding another public casting shake-up was a priority for UPN. As fate would have it, Bakula would come in the door with the kind of clutch performance that put the entire production at ease.
“We had never met him, talked to him, or heard him do the material,” Conway recalled. “All during the casting process, the casting director was the only one to read Archer’s dialogue. So it was a relief and pleasure to hear Scott brilliantly bring Archer to life at the table read.” Having everything in place except the captain for a new “Star Trek” series would be nerve-wracking, so the relief in the room when he finally walked in and sat down must have been immense.
But, miraculously, the entire situation with Bakula seemed to go off pretty well. He performed admirably, which means that he was probably locked in on his role as Archer, and that the rumors about that CBS project were just whispers that added some drama to proceedings. “Star Trek: Enterprise” reviews from that period specifically praised Bakula’s performance as Captain Archer. Sometimes, everything falls into place, and you just have to be thankful that things that could have gone wrong didn’t.