Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner

Posted by Brian C. Gibson (brian@filmschoolrejects.com) on April 13, 2007

The roast of Denis Leary was great. The roast of Pamela Anderson was legendary. The road of William Shatner was…unnecessary?

In a nutshell, a bunch of better and lesser known comedians sit around and rip into a man who has a larger fan-base, checkbook and body of work than any of them. At times the roast can seem to be in good humor, and others it can seem to be absolutely cutthroat. In the end, this roast seemed to have no point at all.

I hate to compare films to one another, and I think it would be just as unfair to compare roasts to one another. However, I am going to do it anyway. What made Pam Anderson’s roast so great was the fact that the comics had so much to work with. Not to say that Pam Anderson is just a walking punchline, but she has had relations with some of the worst names in entertainment and built her own fame on a foundation of silicone. But William Shatner?

Other than completely embarrassing himself by showing an unflinching willingness to whore himself out to various products, what is there to really make fun of? He may have a hairpiece, and he may speak…with…a bit…too much…enthusiasm. But honestly, what else can you really make fun of? Most of this roast was spent on making fun of other roasters while Shatner nearly shat himself.

All in all, there were some laughs. Not enough laughs for me though. This was one roast that should have never been done.

Read more articles by Brian C. Gibson