Christopher Pike (Star Trek)

Christopher Pike
Star Trek character
Captain Pike, as played by Jeffrey Hunter in the original pilot "The Cage".
First appearance
Last appearance
Created byGene Roddenberry
Portrayed by
Voiced byAnson Mount ("Those Old Scientists")
In-universe information
SpeciesHuman
GenderMale
Title
  • Captain
  • Fleet Captain
  • Admiral (Alternate Universe)
AffiliationUnited Federation of Planets
Starfleet
Significant others

Christopher Pike is a fictional character in the Star Trek science fiction franchise. He is the immediate predecessor to James T. Kirk as captain of the starship USS Enterprise.

Pike first appeared as the main character of the original unaired pilot episode for Star Trek: The Original Series, "The Cage", portrayed by Jeffrey Hunter. When this pilot was rejected, Hunter withdrew from the series, and the character of Pike was replaced with Kirk.[1][2][3] The series later established Pike as being Kirk's predecessor in the two-part story "The Menagerie", which extensively used archive footage from "The Cage"; the framing story included an older, scarred, and disabled Fleet Captain Pike portrayed by Sean Kenney.

The films Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), which take place in an alternate timeline, feature Bruce Greenwood as a version of Pike who acts as a mentor to the young Kirk. Christopher Pike is a main character in the second season of Star Trek: Discovery (broadcast 2019), portrayed by Anson Mount; set several years after "The Cage", the show has Captain Pike assume temporary command of the USS Discovery. The series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022–present), a spinoff of Discovery, is centered on Pike's time as captain of the USS Enterprise, with Mount reprising the role.

  1. ^ David Alexander, Star Trek Creator: The Authorized Biography of Gene Roddenberry, p. 244. Letter from Gene Roddenberry to Jeffrey Hunter, April 5, 1965:
    I am told you have decided not to go ahead with "Star Trek". This has to be your own decision, of course, and I must respect it. You may be certain I hold no grudge or ill feelings and expect to continue to reflect publicly and privately the high regard I learned for you during the production of our pilot.
  2. ^ Herbert F. Solow and Robert H. Justman, Inside Star Trek, p. 63.
  3. ^ "Interview with Jeffrey Hunter" (PDF). 7 April 1965. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-03-05. I was asked to do it, but had I accepted, I would have been tied up much longer than I care to be. I have several things brewing now and they should be coming to a head in the next few weeks. I love doing motion pictures and expect to be as busy as I want to be in them.

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