Star Trek's Lieutenant Leslie Has A Sweet Connection To William Shatner
When a franchise has established itself as a pop culture favorite for as long as "Star Trek" has — currently, going on 60 years — imaginative storytellers truly have no limits when it comes to honoring such history. In 2009, J.J. Abrams went out of his way to make his prequel film "Star Trek" exist in its own alternate universe entirely, ensuring that his new franchise addition could co-exist within the timeline while never once meddling with any of what happened to Spock, Captain Kirk, and all the other heroes of the starship Enterprise. Justin Lin's "Star Trek Beyond" directly incorporated the death of Leonard Nimoy into the plot (along with an end-credits tribute to the late Anton Yelchin), paying homage to an icon in the most respectful way possible. But one of the most heartwarming examples of this tradition comes from a recurring character in "The Original Series" that most viewers likely never even picked up on.
Lieutenant Leslie first appeared in the retooled pilot episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before," played by actor Eddie Paskey in what was little more than a background role. In fact, Paskey was never actually credited as such, primarily because he served as William Shatner's double and stand-in for several scenes. But as any budget-conscious series was inclined to do, Paskey appeared in dozens of episodes throughout the three seasons — even though he'd technically died on-screen multiple times and constantly cycled through various Enterprise departments. He even got a chance to give Kirk a verbal dressing down in "This Side of Paradise," refusing to follow orders despite the captain's withering gaze (in fairness, Leslie was infected by mind-altering spores at the time).
But Shatner and Paskey shared an even closer connection — one that spoke volumes of their on-set bond.
What's in a name?
For a guy who actually appeared in more episodes of "The Original Series" than main stars George Takei or Walter Koenig ever did, it's no wonder that Eddie Paskey's role as Lieutenant Leslie has taken on a life of its own among hardcore Trekkies. Although only ever credited as an anonymous "crewman" in a handful of episodes, he received a "Star Wars" expanded universe-like treatment where his backstory and other details were expanded upon in various comic books and novels. The character was never actually named throughout his first several appearances — that is, until Shatner directly addressed Paskey several times in the season 1 episode "The Conscience of the King" as "Mister Leslie."
So where did that name come from? In a 2016 interview with Sci-Fi Bulletin, Paskey addressed the origins behind his character's name and his experiences filming with Shatner that ultimately resulted in the two becoming friends. As it turns out, the name Leslie had familial meaning to Shatner. According to Paskey:
"I was very fortunate because any time they could use us to fill the frame, they did. It was fun. I enjoyed what I was doing every day and was very lucky because I became a friend of William Shatner — I was his double and stand-in, and that was a fun deal. The character was called Lieutenant Leslie, but of course Bill called me Mister Leslie. I was named after his eldest daughter."
Leslie Shatner made two uncredited appearances as a child in a pair of "The Original Series" episodes, while her namesake would go on to appear a whopping 57 times. Paskey sadly passed away in 2021, but he'll always remain an integral part of "Trek" lore.