Interested in knowing how William Shatner might have been incorporated into Star Trek? Well - if you haven’t seen the movie yet, don’t read any further. The details involve an alternate ending for the film.

In an interview with MTV, the prequel’s two writers - Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman - explain that the ultimate decision to leave out Shatner was a difficult one. In fact, the two even disagree on whether the idea could have worked.

“We did write a Shatner scene,” Orci revealed. “But we didn’t want it to be a gimmick. We didn’t want it to be….to really bring him back in the right way would have required an entire movie to devote itself to that plot similarly to The Search for Spock (Number 3).” He added, “But we did write a scene and I think ultimately we all decided internally that it….We were split. But I think the decision was that it wasn’t quite enough to justify wasting [Shatner’s] time.”

According to Kurtzman, William’s face would have appeared in hologram form during the moment with the two Spocks (Zachary Quinto and Leonard Nimoy). Fans would have seen the elder Kirk in a “Happy Birthday” message recorded before his death. The actor’s voice would have also been heard over the movie’s final scenes.

And though some felt the inclusion would have felt a bit too contrived, Roberto admits that was in the minority. “I think it could have worked, personally,” Orci said.

But would Shatner have agreed to small role in the film anyway? I guess we’ll never know…