Chaos on the Bridge (2014)

The story of the struggle to create the television series, Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987).

Director:

William Shatner

Writer:

William Shatner

Stars:

William Shatner, D.C. Fontana, David Gerrold

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Shatner	...	Himself - Host
D.C. Fontana	...	Herself - Writer & Script Consultant, Star Trek: TOS (as Dorothy 'D.C.' Fontana)
David Gerrold	...	Himself - Writer, Star Trek: TOS
Maurice Hurley	...	Himself - Television Writer & Producer
Rick Berman	...	Himself - Vice President, Paramount Network Television
Jeffrey Katzenberg	...	Himself - Executive, Paramount Pictures
Richard Arnold	...	Himself - Research Consultant, Star Trek: TNG
Jeffrey M. Hayes	...	Himself - Television Producer, Paramount Network Television
John Pike	...	Himself - President, Paramount Network Television
Susan Sackett	...	Herself - Secretary to Gene Roddenberry
John de Lancie	...	Himself - Q, Star Trek: TNG
Denise Crosby	...	Herself - Lt. Tasha Yar, Star Trek: TNG
Patrick Stewart	...	Himself - Capt. Jean Luc Picard, Star Trek: TNG
Ronald D. Moore	...	Himself - Writer, Star Trek: TNG
David Livingston	...	Himself - Producer, Star Trek: TNG

Storyline

Canadian acting legend William Shatner takes viewers inside the creation of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the bold attempt in 1986 to recreate the success of the original television series, in which Shatner played Captain James T. Kirk. The documentary, directed, written and presented by Shatner reveals the drama, chaos and controversy behind the scenes as producers tried to make lighting strike twice. Not only were the beloved original characters of Kirk, Spock and McCoy excluded from the new series, the studio also attempted to block the involvement of the creator of the original series - Gene Roddenberry. Few believed it would work including those closest to the production. Yet Star Trek: The Next Generation went on to enormous success lasting seven seasons and spawning the multi-billion dollar Star Trek franchise, which continues to the present day. Now, more than 25 years later, William Shatner brings together the cast, crew and fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation to present...

---

Plot Keywords:

trek | star trek | next generation | captain | writer | 

---

Taglines:

The Untold Story Behind an Iconic Sci-Fi Franchise

---

Genres:

Documentary | Biography | History | Sci-Fi

---

Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 August 2014 (Canada)

Also Known As:

William Shatner Presents: Chaos on the Bridge

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wacky Doodle Productions,Ballinran Entertainment,455 Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

59 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to an interview with Larry King, William Shatner's original title for this documentary was "Wacky Doodle". He heard the phrase used by one of the show's writer-producers, to describe the intensity of the conflicts that occurred during the making of "Star Trek: The Next Generation".

---

Quotes

William Shatner: Did you realize that the Next Generation it possible to characterize it as Gene Roddenberry's dream of Heaven?
Brannon Braga: I would never have thought that at the time, but now that we're talking, with his conception of the future and human beings in the future and Q, Q is GOD. Just look at the character, look at everything about the character

---

Connections

References Star Trek: Enterprise (2001)

User Reviews

The hurried pace doesn't help, but it's still worth a look

"Chaos on the Bridge" has a story worth telling (the creative staff disorder during "The Next Generation"'s nascent years), but it suffers from that reality TV editing that ruins everything. You know the kind: the rapid cuts and frenetic pacing, like the producer (or Shatner in this case) has a deathly fear of slowing down. It's the last thing a Star Trek documentary needs. I know it's not comprehensive, but even at a mere 60 minutes, surely there's some room to let the thing breathe.

That said, there's enough here to entertain even the ardent TNG fan. I was surprised to learn that Mitchell Ryan and Yaphet Kotto were among those actors considered for Captain of the Enterprise for Paramount's glitzy new Star Trek series. And that the revolving door creative staff was due to a leadership vacuum.

I genuinely like the spirit of this thing, and would love to see someone tackle a broader documentary down the road (one that covers the series as a whole). Shatner's onto something here, if he wants to shed light on Star Trek shows.

Just stop cutting it like a reality show.

6/10