“THERE’S A LOT MORE MCCOY IN THIS MOVIE”

Karl Urban is back as Bones

You were a big fan of the original Star Trek. How thrilling is it to be in the 50th anniversary film?

Obviously Simon and Justin were huge fans of Star Trek from long ago, and I had a long-standing deep appreciation for it. We wanted to make sure we got the balance right between paying respect and homage to what had come before and making it fresh. Delivering new material that new audiences can appreciate, and that Star Trek audiences hadn’t seen before.

How did you make Bones more dynamic?

There’s a lot more McCoy in this movie than probably in the last two movies combined. My relationship with Captain Kirk is not inferred — it’s there, you see it. You see him being a supportive friend, a consigliere, even a psychologist in a way. Also, for a huge part of the film, I get to spend time with Spock, which is something new. To see these two characters, that traditionally don’t see eye to eye, thrown into great jeopardy and have to depend on each other to survive.

How does the tone of Star Trek Beyond compare to that of its predecessor?

It’s a lot more fun. There’s a lot more humour, more character development and depth. It’s a few years into the mission, we’re all a bit older. Kirk is losing his hair. McCoy has prescribed him Propecia. It’s making him impotent, so McCoy’s had to treat him for his impotency [laughs]. There’s a wonderful subtext that Simon’s imbued in the script. Joseph McCabe