By GustavoLeao / 05:20, 29 September 2008 / Feature Films

• Beam story to friend
• Join our newsletter
• Syndicate news
• On Screen forum

The new issue of SFX magazine, just out in the UK, features a new interview with Star Trek star Zachary Quinto and here are more excerpts.

With Sylar you're right there playing a part in the character's evolution. But when you got to play Spock you are taking on 40 years of backstory. How challenge is that ?

With Sylar I am the actor who originated the role and that occasions a different kind of space in which to work. But in many ways my experience of Star Trek is such that I am creating another version of Spock. There will never be another Leonard Nimoy - this is an incredible man and an incredible actor who endeared himself to millions because of his portrayal of this character. And in a lot of ways that takes the pressure off me, because I cant compete with that! I simply have a relationship with this character based on my understanding of where he is, in his perspective and his point of view, and that's supported by the script that Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman wrote - it moved me immensely the first time I read it, and again subsequently as I immersed myself in it. So I dont really feel like I have a lot to prove. Leonard was very supportive of me from the very beginning and I was in the most capable hands I could possibly be in.

Did you find yourself adapting your performance to accommodate how Leonard Nimoy portrays him ?

Never. In fact I did the opposite - to make sure my experience was my experience. It's the only way stepping into such an iconic role is ever feasible. You have to acknowledge where it came from and Leonard was an enormous resource for me - incredibly generous with his time and his energy if I ever had a question or just wanted to talk about the experience or what he went through as an actor. But in terms of playing him ? No - I think that would be a trap, to try and shade my performance with echoes of his. I got the job because there is a physical resemblance between myself and Leonard when he was my age, but more than that I think I got the job because I brought a strong point of view to it, Merging that point of view with the echoes of where he came from and how he approached it from the beginning will hopefully add a new texture, but also have a little bit of the same fabric.

How are you fiding the Star Trek fans ? Have you met many of them ?

I have been to three Trek conventions - two with Leonard. So I have met the fans and they've been incredibly supportive. Really excited, lovingly enthusiatic. There is an energy of 'dont mess this up for us, we believe in this and have for a long time!' But that's also the place from which J.J. [Abrams] is coming from, so it doesn't really seem we're going to disappoint them. At least that's our goal.

The full article can be found on the latest issue of SFX Magazine, now on sale.