Noah Wyle and fellow cast members of The Pitt took time out Sunday from depicting the trials of working in a Pittsburgh trauma center for the highs of cruising space in the 23rd century.

Wyle, along with Katherine LaNasa, Taylor Dearden, Fiona Dourif, Shabana Azeez and Ayesha Harris performed a live read of the 1966 pilot script for Star Trek at Retro Reads, the Writers Guild Foundation‘s nifty series that benefits the organization’s writing and mentorship programs.

Attendees at the sold-out event at Highland Park’s The Lodge got to watch Wyle channel Capt. James T. Kirk, while LaNasa took over as Dr. Leonard McCoy and Dearden interpreted Spock in an entertaining read of “The Man Trap.”

“I am nervous to be here because this is such an unbelievably large set of black boots to fill and a lot of people have a lot of reverence for this show and for this character,” Wyle told Deadline before the table read got underway. “So I’m just looking not to offend and hopefully enhance if possible.” 

He and his cast members did more than that. Wyle and LaNasa brought down the house with the dated dialogue from the George Clayton Johnson-penned script, which chronicles how the USS Enterprise touched down on a planet where McCoy’s ex Nancy and her husband Robert have been maintaining an archeological research station. Dourif was a hit as the amorous Nancy, who’s really just a shape-shifting creature that craves salt for her survival. Clark Gregg (The Avengers) was a surprise guest who took over as Nancy’s professor husband.

The night kicked off with a read of the “Mudd’s Passion” script from a 1973 episode of Star Trek: The Animated Series. Nathan Fillion (The Rookie) took over as Kirk while D’Arcy Carden (The Good Place) assumed the role of Spock and Adam Arkin played the mad creator of a love potion. Other participants from the night included Iman Vellani (The Marvels), and Paul Scheer and Paul F. Tompkins, both from Star Trek: Lower Decks.

Rod Roddenberry was there to remember his dad, series creator Gene Roddenberry, and pay tribute to both the foundation’s 60th anniversary as well as the 60th anniversary of Star Trek.

“This is a good episode of Star Trek. I don’t think many people claim it as their favorite,” admitted Roddenberry about “The Man Trap.” “But it got the show on the air. I hope these guys go up there and just have fun with it. I like to be serious about Star Trek, but tonight’s not a serious night. Tonight’s a night to celebrate.”

Before the read, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds co-showrunner Henry Alonzo Meyers gifted Wyle with a stuffed Tribble, a replica of the fictional alien species that appeared several times over the course of the series. Wyle immediately recognized the furry critter since he grew up watching Star Trek with his dad.

Wyle also copped to owning a few action figures back in the day. “I had Spock and maybe Bones, but I didn’t have Kirk,” he recalled. “And pretty soon, they lost their clothes and their feet came off, but I did play with them for a while.”

The Retro Reads event was a fundraiser for WGF that was co-sponsored by CBS/Paramount+, and Deadline was the media partner. To purchase a ticket to stream the event, click here. 

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