The premiere of “Star Trek Beyond” at Comic-Con was bittersweet for the film’s cast, who were still reeling from Anton Yelchin’s tragic death.
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“As wonderful as this is to be here with all of you and to be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Star Trek, there is something wrong tonight”, the producer said.
Abrams added: “There is something missing tonight, there is someone missing tonight”.
“Star Trek Beyond” opens in theaters Friday.
Anton portrayed the role of Chekov in three Star Trek films.
LOS ANGELES, CA – MARCH 04: Director/producer/writer J.J. Abrams, actor Anton Yelchin (L) and guest attend the 5th Annual “Oscar Wilde: Honoring The Irish In Film” held at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre on March 4, 2010 in Los Angeles, California.
Filmmaker JJ Abrams is paying a lovely tribute to late actor Anton Yelchin by retiring his “Star Trek” character.
Anton’s death from a freak automobile accident outside his San Fernando Valley continues to weigh heavily on the hearts of Star Trek fans and his fellow actors. “There’s no recasting. I can’t possibly imagine that, and I think Anton deserves better”. And his parents are here tonight, Irina and Victor.
The Star Trek Beyond world premiere was a night of firsts.
The strongest connection between classic “Star Trek” and the current rebooted set of movies was Spock Prime, Leonard Nimoy’s beloved Vulcan character who was the only member of The Original Series to appear in 2009’s “Star Trek” and its 2013 sequel, “Into Darkness”.
“I Just want to take a moment to honour him, to acknowledge him, to celebrate him and to love him”.
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John Cho, who plays Sulu, said “I just thought it would be appropriate to show our unity in regards to his passing, how much we love him….”
