William Shatner Says Shooting Star Trek's Worst-Ever Fight Scene Was Also Incredibly Painful

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Although "Star Trek" may have had a bigger budget than other '60s shows, its unique requirements really stretched that cash, which sometimes resulted in rather unconvincing alien aesthetics. While the Klingon makeup is lackluster compared to later Trek series, it's a far better look than the Gorn, a rubbery, human/reptile hybrid with disco ball eyes. The Gorn famously stars in the Season 1 episode "Arena," battling Captain Kirk (William Shatner) in a fight scene often considered the worst-ever in the franchise.

The combat takes place at California's Vasquez Rocks, a popular location for film and TV crews. While it wasn't as hair-raising as encountering a real Bengal Tiger in "Shore Leave,"  Shatner recalled how damaging it was to fall on the ground, comparing the terrain to lunar regolith — an abrasive, glass-laden dust. "The guy was in this rubber suit; it's 120 degrees in the desert," Shatner explained at New York Comic Con 2026 (via Reddit). "I have to roll in the regolith and get all dusty. And when you go to brush it off, you get blood."

Despite the heat, Bobby Clark, the actor inside the Gorn costume, had to limit his liquids since there was no easy way to take a bathroom break. In addition, the repurposed scuba suit wasn't breathable, and the Gorn's uber-large footwear wasn't suited for hiking. "That was hell," Clark informed Famous Monsters of Filmland in 2025. "In that costume, my feet were this long, and I'm walking in sagebrush and bushes."

As fight scenes go, the battle between Captain Kirk and the Gorn is pretty anticlimactic. Some of the staging is due to limitations of the suit itself. Since the costume's mouth can't be manipulated, the creature doesn't bite Kirk, even though the Gorn comes inches away from the captain's neck as they grapple. Looking back, Bobby Clark was also perplexed the scene didn't include at least an attempt at biting, since the Gorn mask had plenty of visible, dagger-like teeth.

Dramatic chomps aside, much of the corniness of the scene stems from the slow, deliberate movements, which make it feel more like a rehearsal rather than a dramatic face-off. On one hand, visibility was likely not great through the Gorn costume's eyes, which were made of rhinestones. On the other, Clark reported that the show's director told him to play up the fact that the Gorn is a cold-blooded reptilian dependent upon the sun for energy. "I was supposed to be cumbersome, I was supposed to be awkward and I was supposed to be slow," Clarke informed the official Star Trek website in 2011.

However, at the end of the day, this memorable "Star Trek" moment is just a small part of the action. Instead, it's Kirk's decision to show the Gorn mercy that's meant to be the lesson of the episode. Luckily, despite the skin-shredding dust, this fight scene wasn't an instance where Shatner permanently damaged his body on the "Star Trek" set.

While the Gorn fight scene might get frequently panned, it's only one "Star Trek" episode. The special-effects company that made the costume was still building its skill set, which quickly became apparent when it wasn't up to the challenge of making Spock's ears look sufficiently realistic.  Compared to the Gorn, the stakes were much higher for Leonard Nimoy. "As an actor there's a very thin line between using those ears as a device aimed at broadening your character and just looking silly," William Shatner explained in  "Star Trek Memories," co-written with Chris Kreski. After a lot of arguing about funds, the production team eventually sought the services of an MGM makeup artist with the experience to craft a convincing pair of ears.

Then again, some of the economizing the show required had a positive impact on storytelling. For instance, since Gene Roddenberry didn't have the funds to create a convincing landing, the Enterprise remained in space, and the creative team developed the iconic transporter. As a bonus, this device also allowed for tighter pacing (excepting slow-mo Gorn battles).

Fortunately, "Star Trek" is able to laugh about its worst fight scene. In 2013, Shatner and the Gorn had a rematch for a "Star Trek: The Video Game" promo. Their rumble even included some of the goofy moves and punches from the original. Fortunately, this time all the action occurred in the comfort of a dust-free living room.