When it comes to celebrities being associated with brands, William Shatner and Star Trek is like Mark Hamill and Star Wars. Say either the name of the celebrity or the franchise, and one is instantly reminded of the other. So it’s natural that William Shatner couldn’t stay away from Star Trek for long, and now the star has hinted that we might see a virtual reality (VR) or CGI rendition of himself in future Star Trek movies.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Shatner spoke about how he was shown a way for him to return on screen as a younger version of himself, reprising the role as Captain James T Kirk. A VR company showed him their technology which would essentially allow the actor to appear as a younger version of himself so he can return to the screen in the iconic role.
Shatner expressed his interest in the technology; “I recently connected with a virtual reality company Ziva and they have virtual-realized me in 240 cameras all around shooting me. So they can now produce my body and my face in any way, shape, or form – including what I was like 50 years ago.”
Though this certainly shouldn’t be taken as confirmed. Current Star Trek film director J. J. Abrams has previously ruled out the idea – though that hasn’t stopped Shatner being hopeful, and he believes the new technology could be one way to sway the tide and step back onto the Enterprise. On being much older than his character now, Shatner said; “I don’t know how you would do that 50 years later and how would you rationalize my present appearance, as compared to what I was like 50 years ago.”
This isn’t the first time Star Trek has collided with VR technology of course, as we’ve already seen Star Trek: Bridge Crew, which is fantastic when playing in a group of friends.
Die hard Star Trek fans would undoubtedly welcome Shatner appearing in a new movie, though taking the role away from the current James Kirk, actor Chris Pine, might upset some fans of the new movie continuity. Whether Shatner jumps into acting thanks to VR or not, you’ll be sure to read about it first on VRFocus.