Shatner thinks Paramount is “threatened” by Captain Kirk; his portrayal of the character is rarely promoted

Last Updated on January 12, 2024

After last formally portraying Star Trek’s Captain James T. Kirk three decades ago (in Star Trek: Generations), William Shatner has seen the character played by Chris Pine and now Paul Wesley. When responding to a fan on Twitter (X) (as reported on by Trek Movie) whether he might ever play the role again, Shatner said it was unlikely but also mentioned how, in his view, his version of the character has been sidelined in promotional material put out by Paramount Plus.

Indeed, Captain Kirk often isn’t featured in promotional material, with Spock typically taking his place, even in a recent ad promoting Star Trek Day, something which has clearly stuck in Shatner’s craw. When one follower posted a picture promoting the annual event (marked on September 8th due to “The Man Trap”’s premiere), it was noticeable that Shatner was nowhere to be found among the nearly dozen past and present Star Trek actors/characters, even though fellow original cast members Leonard Nimoy and Nichelle Nichols are featured. To this, Shatner responded, “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,” accompanied by winking face and crying-laughing emojis:

But Shatner continued by saying despite Kirk being scrubbed, there’s not a chance that fans will forget his contributions to the Star Trek universe. “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? It’s everywhere. It’s so indoctrinated that it will take many generations to be forgotten no matter what they do. Let it be.” As for whether or not he would ever play Kirk again, well…

It is most certainly odd that Shatner’s Kirk wouldn’t be featured in most promos since he was one of the original (and most iconic) faces of the Star Trek franchise. It’s strange that Scott Bakula’s Captain Archer is featured over Shatner. They could have dropped him or even the character from Star Trek Prodigy to make way for the franchise’s original leading man. Paramount+ also recently removed 10 Star Trek movies from its streaming service. However, this had more to do with rights issues than anything else, as The Original Series is still available (and has a channel devoted to it on PlutoTV).

What do you make of William Shatner’s comments over the studio feeling “threatened” by Kirk? Do you think he has a point? Give us your take below.