The conflict between Star Trek actors William Shatner and George Takei remains ongoing. Recently, Shatner made comments about Takei using his name for “publicity”, adding that these repeated mentions were “like a sickness”. Takei, who was in the original Star Trek sci-fi series, has responded to The Guardian.
“He’s just a cantankerous old man and I’m going to leave him to his devices. I’m not going to play his game,” Takei said, adding that a young Shatner was “self-involved. He enjoyed being the centre of attention. He wanted everyone to kowtow to him.”
Takei claims that “none” of the original Star Trek cast really got on with Shatner. The current chapter of Takei and Shatner’s feud kicked off in earnest last year, when Takei made disparaging comments about Shatner’s trip to space.
“He’s a guinea pig,” Takei called Shatner at a press conference to Thoughts of a Colored Man, per Page Six. “So 90 years old is going to show a great deal more on the wear and tear on the human body, so he’ll be a good specimen to study. Although he’s not the fittest specimen of 90 years old, so he’ll be a specimen that’s unfit!”
Back in the ’60s, Shatner played one of the greatest Star Trek captains, while Takei was Hikaru Sulu. They shared Star Trek: The Original Series for three seasons, along with several science fiction movies. They’ve been seen as mascots of the franchise ever since, and these unfortunate comments indicate fans are unlikely to ever see them share a mission to space any time soon.
Have a look at our guide to Star Trek 4 if you want to know what’s next for the Federation of Planets.