LOS ANGELES — It is going to be a huge summer for Anton Yelchin. The 20-year-old actor is starring in two big-budget movies to hit local theaters this month.
First, he plays Pavel Chekov in the new “Star Trek” movie. Then he portrays Kyle Reese in “Terminator Salvation.” That’s a big switch for an actor whose credits almost exclusively include films made for almost no money.
“Yeah, it’s bizarre,” says a smiling Yelchin during an interview at the Four Seasons Hotel. “My past experience has kind of been working on movies that take like a month and a half to shoot. Then suddenly I’m there for like six or seven months.”
Yelchin’s credit of low-budget movies include “Charlie Bartlett,” “Alpha Dog” and “Fierce People.”
Not only is Yelchin in the two big summer movies, he is taking on characters in both who have been played by other actors. Walter Koenig originated the role of Chekov in the original “Star Trek” series. Michael Biehn was Reese in the 1984 film “The Terminator.”
Yelchin says he felt the challenge was to work with that legacy and to use what the other actors had done to inform his own performance. That’s particularly the case with the way Koenig created the Russian accent for Chekov, where every V is pronounced as if it is a W.
The two Chekov actors got to meet near the end of the filming of the movie.
“I was just really worried about meeting him during the actual shooting of the scenes. He came on set once I was done with the majority of them. He was just very kind and wonderful and actually complimentary. It meant a lot to me to meet him and hear what he had to say and what he thought. I was really kind of honored by his presence,” Yelchin says.
The “Star Trek” performance ended up being so enjoyable for Yelchin he now jokes that he was born to play the role. He actually only became a fan of the original “Star Trek” series after he landed the role. Yelchin watched all of the old episodes to prepare for the part.
“There’s just something so kind of great about it, you can’t help but really love it,” Yelchin says.
A few rules are needed to help foster a feeling of community. We encourage a free and open exchange of ideas in a climate of mutual respect, but any post that violates someone's right to use and enjoy fresnobee.com is prohibited. Before you post, please read the terms of use and obey these simple guidelines.
Here are the ground rules:
Contents of this site are © Copyright The Fresno Bee. All rights reserved.
E-Mail
Print
@Nyx.CommentBody@