On Thursday morning, Star Trek legend William Shatner kicked off his big day at Comic-Con 2022 by being immortalized in a cement handprint ceremony. What made the event even more noteworthy is that he was joined by the latest actor to take on his iconic role of James T. Kirk, Paul Wesley of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
Shatner immortalized with the help of the new Kirk
The handprint ceremony in the lobby of Theatre Box San Diego was the first of a series of events organized by Legion M, the fan investor-funded production company behind an upcoming documentary all about Shatner which is the subject of a Hall H panel in the afternoon. Legion M promoted the handprint ceremony as a torch-passing “to a new era” between the two actors playing Kirk.
Wesley was there to introduce Shatner and he spoke about what it was like to take on the role and how he appreciated Shatner’s support:
Precious few roles in television and film present such a daunting challenge and one of them is certainly Star Trek’s James T. Kirk. This character’s place in entertainment history is indelible. It is a fixed moment in our collective memories. No matter where you go, an image of Captain Kirk brings instant recognition. Why is that? Because for nearly sixty years that role has been personified by the man equally of renowned stature, Mr. William Shatner. Attempting to recreate an iconic screen role is a tall order… That is a tough gig on any day, but for a day on Star Trek when you have been asked to take on the role of Captain Kirk, it is both a challenge and an opportunity of a lifetime. And I can’t imagine taking on such a character with everything that it means to countless fans without having the support of the man who first brought him to life. Thankfully Bill, or Mr. Shatner, the original Captain Kirk himself went out of his way to make a newcomer like me feel welcome. And for that, I will be eternally grateful.
For his part, Shatner thanked Wesley for driving all the way down from LA just for the event honoring him, calling the young actor “so sweet,” and revealing that until recently they used to be neighbors. After some jokes about preserving his hands forever, Shatner thanked the crowd along with Legion M for putting the event together, as he hyped the “wonderful company” and their upcoming documentary all about him.
Watch Wesley and Shatner
You can watch Wesley’s full introduction of Shatner and Shatner thanking him and Legion M for the event.
More to come from SDCC 2022
Today was the start of our Comic-Con coverage. There is much more happening, including the big Star Trek Universe panel on Saturday. So stay tuned to TrekMovie.com for more news from San Diego. And check out the rest of our San Diego Comic-Con 2022 coverage.
You should also keep track of @TrekMovie on Twitter for ongoing updates, panel highlights, and more from San Diego Comic-Con.
#SDCC William Shatner signing his name in cement at the @LegionMOfficial Handprint Ceremony pic.twitter.com/4tb7thc1ob
— TrekMovie.com (@TrekMovie) July 21, 2022
From earlier today at #SDCC22 William Shatner and Paul Wesley posed with some #StarTrek #cosplay fans during the Shatner handprint ceremony pic.twitter.com/u8KOakDAuR
— TrekMovie.com (@TrekMovie) July 22, 2022
Time for a time travel episode where old Kirk meets his younger self.
I’d settle to see him pop up on Picard- I know, they’ve ended filming, maybe Lower Decks or Prodigy- with some technobabble about how he survived Generations, “borrowed” 1701-A from a museum, and now travels the galaxy with a misfit crew having adventures.
And that would lead to a three-season run or so of “Star Trek: Kirk.”
The Shat must have a picture of an old man somewhere in the back of his closet.
“The Shat must have a picture of an old man somewhere in the back of his closet.”
The Picture of Andorian Gray
Good one!
Ha!
That more or less is the story of Shatners own novels about post TUC. The 1701-A is decomissioned and sold to the planet of some woman Kirk is having a romantic relationship with.
Yes indeed, they could use that as background. Something about how he was in the Nexus so long and his death was so shortly after emerging that it somehow saved him and blah blah blah.
Surprised that with all the new shows and possibly a movie on the way, that they have not had Shatner come back.
This has been asked plenty of times, what are you going to do with a 91 year old actor? Do we really need “Star Trek: Incontinence”?
Have Shatner portray Jim’s UNCLE, or else maybe George’s (Jim and Sam’s dad), Tiberius Kirk. That would be a hoot and half!
We’ll chalk that up to a difference of opinions. In live action, that would be distracting. If he wanted to do a voice over, or an animated character, there’s plenty of room for his involvement.
It would take me and I think most people out of the movie to have him in it at this point in time.
Might be a few episodes that Star Trek Incontinence would be on par with.
Or four seasons of Enterprise? :-))
Very nice. Thrilled to see this. I know it’s promotional and a photo op. and all that, but I have to hope some sentient words were passed along the way. Thank you, Christine and TrekMovie staff, once again. Class.
I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Shatner last week in Ticonderoga. He was gracious, funny, and demonstrated an insatiable curiosity that I believe is one of the keys to his remarkable vitality at 91 years young. He truly is a national treasure. It was good to see Paul Wesley acknowledge the shoes he has to fill. I thought he said all the right things about his approach to honoring the legacy of the character and the actor who originated the role.
A national treasure? Yes, we here in Canada believe that he is a treasure…..(I couldn’t resist….)
If you are really going to call it a “Kirk Summit,” then you need Pine as well.
Nevertheless, this is very cool!
PS: Is it just me, or did Shatner somehow get frostbite on his face in sunny San Diego?
I think I saw somewhere that Pine is on a new project. Not Trek 14.
Yeah, Shat is looking a little rosy in these pics.
Shatner has had rosacea for many years now.
Interesting. It must come and go then because when I saw him in person just last year there was no sign of it.
My mother has Rosacea, it’s one of those skin conditions that can be triggered by lots of stimuli including sun and heat (which I’m sure there’s plenty of in California) and certain medications. It will flare up from time to time and that’s probably why his appearance is inconsistent.
It was incredibly hot in Ticonderoga, the weekend Mr. Shatner was there… I was helping a vendor in the parking lot, but Mr. Shatner came outside to sign autographs for his fans. He is a bundle of energy, amazing….
The woman in the red uniform looks like Dr Noel from episode 9 of first season TOS. Regrettably she doesn’t wear blue.
This site is so bizarre. Is it funded by Paramount?
The takeaway from Mr. Shatner’s appearances yesterday at ComiCon was in H with Kevin Smith interviewing when, during the Q&A, a fan asked what he thought Gene Roddenberry’s reaction to the new Star Trek shows would be. Mr. Shatner’s sober response [paraphrased], “spinning in his grave.”
Wow, what incredible breaking news. Thank goodness you were able to break through the Anthony Pascal Iron Curtain of press control.
/s
Considering that Shatner has been tweaked for a while now that he isn’t actively involved in Trek, the snotty comment is completely understandable. If there’s one constant in the universe, Bill takes care of Bill.
Obviously you have some kind of problem with Shatner.
I saw him spontaneously interviewed for 35 minutes and another 40-45 in audience Q&A – I didn’t see “tweaked”, whatever that’s supposed to mean, I saw coherent, thoughtful and insightful in his retrospect – and typically off the cuff – and clearly not woke…
I found a few synopses of the referenced panel – they were all consistent in their observations that during the fan Q & A, that Shatner seemed a bit confused by some of the questioning. Take that at face value, for what it’s worth.
My “tweaked” comment refers to Shatner not being happy that there hasn’t been any effort to work him back into the franchise. That’s pretty well documented.
I’m appreciative that Shatner portrayed a character that gave life to a TV franchise I’ve enjoyed through the years. I’m also very clear eyed that the guy has a reputation for being a world class prick. Also very well documented, and we’ll leave it at that.
Plus his speaking style is zero prep and to say whatever comes to his mind. It works for him given his charm and communications skills, but you need to take a lot of what he says with a grain of salt.
You use the term “woke” like that’s a negative. People who use that term as a negative on others are really the issue — they are condescendingly saying that “alert to injustice in society, especially racism,” is something to be demeaned and ridiculed.
I also improperly use hyphens and ellipses – maybe you could pick that apart at length. It’s super offensive and upsetting to grammarians… I’m sure you can find affront and ridicule in that, right?
Glad to be of help.
Well if you are going to pitch softballs (e.g. Trekmovie is supressing Shatner quotes, Shatner isn’t woke) right over the plate here, then please excuse me if I don’t join your pity party about people obviously wanting to react to such wacky comments. :-)
I mean, I was taking you completely seriously until you used the “w” word
I think we needn’t be too generous nor too damning with Shatner. I had the privilege and frustration, in equal measures, to work with him fairly extensively a couple of decades ago. He is…surprise surprise…an actor. He can be equally gracious, fun, and spirited, as well as having a tremendous ego, and be a tremendous pain in the ass all within the same few minutes. He played a part that he sometimes embraces, when the mood strikes him, and sometimes despises, when the mood strikes him. The part brought him fame and (some) fortune – but he was also pretty much chained to that part, despite a few other successes, pretty much his whole life, so he has mixed emotions about it and about Star Trek. All, in all, he’s a good human. A nice guy who has the same personality pluses and failings that many have, and tend to be amplified in actors. Captain Kirk will always be one of my heroes, but Shatner is not Captain Kirk, nor does he want to be. He is who he is, for good and bad. We should be thankful that he brought a character that we love to life and cut him some slack, but never forget that he’s just a guy.
Perfectly put!
I agree, overall I’m on all of their sides… I can’t imagine what it’s like to be a creative contributor to an enduring billion-dollar-cash-cow like Star Trek, Star Wars, or a Marvel property – who’s financial participation ended long ago and NOT begin to have resentment.
If Shatner were making money from Star Trek, he’d have handlers and he’d have a carefully crafted legendary persona in public, but that isn’t the Industry way with the players involved and so Shatner is a guy (and a guy of a different generation, and a guy with a off-beat, sardonic sense of humor, and a guy with limited patience for falderal – he’s 91) that shows up and puts it all out there – before somebody offends and he gets pissy and then suddenly, dramatically leaves.
I’d rather spend an involved, stressful afternoon with him than I would with my always-need-to-be-handled grandmother! : )
I’ve been in his presence. too. He has a remarkable quality that allows him to be charming, egotistical and rude all at the same time. But, hey, he’s human like the rest of us.
Yeah I read that story too, but considering TNG was not Gene’s favorite and the conflict and 3-yr Dominion story arc in DS9 would have also caused Roddenberry to turn in his grave – this was not much of a story!
Btw, i agree DS9 was not like Gene’s vision, but I consider it one of best, and maybe even the best iteration of Trek since the original.
wait, Paramount is supposed to be giving us money?
Also, as noted this was a report on an event early in the day outside of comic con. we reported on the panel and his comments (with the right context and actual quotes) in a different article.
I wouldn’t take that comment too seriously. He’s on record, saying he hasn’t watched all of TOS. Shatner watched NBC screw Roddenberry out of coveted time slot for its third season. Paramount “demoted” Roddenberry after TMP, to an Executive Consultant. Rick Berman had a bust of Roddenberry, on his desk, with a blindfold on it, symbolizing what Roddenberry didn’t see, wouldn’t hurt him. Shatner turned down a private viewing of Trek 2009 from JJ, himself. Again, I think he was playing to the room.
Two Kirks
One Destiny
Paul seems to resemble, in that first image with Shatner – almost – an slightly older Chris Pine, at first glance.
I think he resembles Bob Orci in these pictures :-)
Nice.
I would like to see William Shatner play George Samuel Kirk Sr. after playing Jim and Sam in TOS.
At this point that would seem the best way to get Shatner back playing a Kirk. Give him a really meaty role as George Kirk, Sr. or as Tiberius Kirk so it is more than a cameo. It is a crime that Star Trek hasn’t figured out how to suit Shatner up one last time… Come on Mr. Kurtzman. Make it happen!
“One last time” I agree 100% I HOPE so much that it can happen.