STILL THE CAPTAIN
William Shatner doesn’t consider himself retired from Starfleet
William Shatner is comfortable with standing in front of thousands of people now, but it took a while.
Shatner, who portrayed Capt. James T. Kirk in the original Star Trek TV series and in seven movies, will be appearing on Saturday and Sunday at the Fan Expo Regina convention.
Shatner regularly appears at conventions to sign autographs and answer questions, but he was initially hesitant about the idea.
“I was very skeptical. I mean, serious actors didn’t do that kind of thing,” said Shatner during a telephone interview from Palm Springs, Calif.
Shatner eventually decided he should meet the demand to make appearances, although it was still daunting.
“There’s nothing more nerveracking than standing in front of 15,000 people and not knowing what you’re going to say,” said Shatner.
Shatner will likely get asked all sorts of questions about Star Trek, despite not having appeared in the franchise since the 1994 movie Star Trek: Generations. Although more than 20 years have passed, he still doesn’t consider himself officially retired from the role. He’d be willing to put on a Starfleet uniform again, provided it was a meaningful return.
“I’m perfectly fit and ready to put on some makeup… The problem, I guess, is what do you do with an aging captain whose youthful existence is already there?” said Shatner, now 86.
Fan questions at conventions have gone beyond the standard “What was your favourite episode?” Shatner now gets more meaningful queries that bring up subjects such as environmentalism.
He has a keen interest in the topic, especially as it relates to climate change.
“I’m a passionate environmentalist in that we’re all going to die from these effects if we don’t do something about it right now. Not even soon, right now,” said Shatner.
He specifically called out Canada’s own role in the fight against climate change, and said the country could be doing more.
“Canada should be the leader in this and they’re not,” said Shatner, who pointed to regulation changes concerning salmon production and the oilsands as examples of the country’s environmental shortcomings.
Shatner has signed on as a spokesperson for Solar Alliance, a Vancouver company that provides residential and commercial solar power installations. Part of the public awareness campaign will involve the installation of a solar system at Shatner’s own home.
“I’m anxious to be a part of it,” said Shatner.
In return for his support, Solar Alliance will issue Shatner 750,000 stock options in the company. The options have a term of five years and an exercise price of $0.195 per share.
For Shatner, climate change isn’t a problem that lies in the far future, nor is the stuff of science fiction.
“All the coastal cities will need work. I mean everything ’s going to need arranging in the very near future,” said Shatner.
And contrary to a popular local rumour, Shatner said he did not spend any of his youth in Regina.
“My entire youth was spent in Montreal, with occasional forays out to Ottawa and Toronto,” he said.
Shatner will be available for autographs and photo ops on Saturday and Sunday during the convention. His Q&A panel is taking place at 11 a.m. on Sunday.
Fan Expo Regina will be held at the Canada Centre East building at Evraz Place. Tickets may be purchased online or at the convention.