Star Trek: William Shatner Has Two Very Specific Conditions To Return As Kirk

There is no shortage of "Star Trek" stories that make us love Captain James T. Kirk, and thanks to "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," the franchise continues to drop more of them — albeit with actor Paul Wesley rather than original Kirk actor William Shatner. But that doesn't mean some fans aren't still praying for a reprisal of the O.G. Kobayashi Maru-hacker, especially since for many, including Shatner himself, Kirk's death in "Star Trek: Generations" didn't ring true to Kirk's legend.

But in the world of science fiction, dead doesn't necessarily mean gone forever — and in the age of anti-aging software, the possibilities for bringing a long-memorialized captain back into the canon are limited only by writers' imaginations.

When asked by The Hollywood Reporter whether he would consider reprising his role for Paramount+, the nonagenarian actor said it's something he would be open to considering, but only if it's done the right way. Referencing Leonard Nimoy's brief prime universe Spock cameo in the Kelvin timeline film "Star Trek Into Darkness," Shatner opined, "He's there for a moment, and it's more a stunt that Spock appears in a future." But for Shatner, Kirk's return would need to be more meaningful — and he has one more condition. According to the veteran actor, "If they wrote something that wasn't a stunt that involved Kirk, who's 50 years older now, and it was something that was genuinely added to the lore of Star Trek, I would definitely consider it."

As it currently stands, the relationship between Shatner and Paramount is hardly warm enough to indicate an O.G. Kirk revival is in the cards. Like many fans, the actor feels the studio has done Kirk dirty by leaving him out of their recent promotional material. One of the most glaring examples was Paramount's front page banner for Star Trek Day 2023, which featured the faces of many iconic figures including Benjamin Sisko, Jonathan Archer, Nyota Uhura, Jean-Luc Picard, and Seven of Nine, among a handful of others. Notably absent was the captain who helmed Enterprise through most of "Star Trek: The Original Series.

When fans pointed out the obvious snub on X (formerly Twitter), Shatner replied, "It's not the first time it's been going on for years. It makes no difference to me that a group who think they are "enlightened" (or whatever they think they are) obviously feels threatened by the Kirk character. It's a character from a 1960's TV show- get over it.😉🤣" Not-so-subtly implying that Kirk's snub is due to the "Original Series" captain's lack of political correctness amid culturally sensitive times, Shatner added in another post, "It doesn't bother me in the least. A bunch of self righteous strangers thinking they are sending a message by erasing the past? Who is going to forget?"

While the shirt-ripping space playboy that piloted Enterprise in the late 1960s may not be what Paramount execs want to plaster on promo materials, many fans feel Kirk should get another shot. Others point to Paul Wesley's appearance as the younger Kirk on "Strange New Worlds" — and his warm reception from fans — as an example of Trek at its best and a reminder that there's still room for the beloved Starfleet figure in the franchise's modern storytelling.