The world of Star Trek has given us many memorable characters, yet few remain as beloved as William Shatner’s original Captain James T. Kirk. From his 1966 debut to his final appearance in Star Trek Generations in 1994, the actor’s portrayal has remained iconic and legendary. Even now fans look up to the actor and his Captain Kirk in awe and wonder.
While Shatner is very much at ease with the work and dedication he put into the character, the Hollywood legend is not too happy with the way the franchise dealt with his character’s end. He even regrets the way he uttered Captain Kirk’s final words.
William Shatner Regrets Captain Kirk’s Death in Star Trek: Generations
William Shatner‘s iconic portrayal of Captain James T. Kirk in the original Star Trek franchise will always remain one of the most iconic performances in the franchise’s history. Despite the complexities of his character, the charismatic leader has left an indelible mark on popular culture. From his confident and bold decision-making to his positive outlook, Captain Kirk has remained an inspiring figure.
Star Trek: Generations changed the course of the franchise by bringing several elements and characters to the forefront. In the film, Captain Kirk is seen attending the inaugural journey of Enterprise-B, but soon the seemingly simple journey turns tragic when Kirk is sucked into space trying to save the ship from an energy ribbon.
Presumed dead, the actor is later revealed to be stuck in an extra-dimensional reality, and saved by Picard. However, while trying to stop Soran, Shatner’s Captain Kirk ends up injured when a bridge collapses on him. While the event of his death was already changed more than one time (see StarTrek.com and TrekMovie), Shatner still wasn’t happy with how Kirk died.
William Shatner Wanted Captain Kirk’s Death to be More Regal and Noble
While William Shatner’s Captain Kirk’s death was not exactly a disappointment for he did go fighting and saving the universe, the actor is not too happy with how his character was killed off. In an interview with StarTrek.com, the actor regretted not being more courageous to have his character’s death changed.
In another interview with TrekMovie, the actor had remarked he never wanted his character to be killed off. Forced to either appear and die or be killed off-screen, Shatner appeared and filmed his harrowing death. But even then, the actor believes he failed to give his character a proper send-off.
In another interview with ScreenRant, while talking about Captain Kirk’s last lines— Oh my— the veteran star revealed he never managed to get the line done properly.
I thought of Kirk as being so courageous in life that when he faced things that he didn’t know about, like the strange, the weird… the entities that the writers thought up, when he faced death, he would face death with a sense of adventure. ‘Oh, what’s going to happen now?’ So I ad libbed, Oh my.’
Despite the ad-lib, being prevented from having multiple takes, the actor believes nobody on set really understood his sentiment.
I wanted that ‘Oh my’ to be ‘Oh my,’ like, dreading it but, but looking forward to the adventure – somewhere in between, you know, and it would be very obvious to you what he was thinking. And I never quite hit it. I never quite got that nuance that I was looking for. I had another couple of takes, but they they didn’t understand what I was doing.
However, the actor should rest assured that fans have certainly made their peace with the way Captain Kirk was killed off. Moreover, they do understand the sentiment behind Shatner’s character’s last lines, which he professes to have messed up.
Star Trek: Generations can be rented on Amazon Prime.
