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‘Star Trek’ feud between William Shatner and George Takei continues to live long and prosper
Bold words, indeed.
More than one member of the Star Trek: The Original Series cast has voiced their dislike for their captain, William Shatner, over the years. Perhaps the biggest rift, however, is between Shatner and George Takei.
The feud became extremely public in 2008, when Takei, who played Sulu on the series, got married and allegedly didn’t invite Shatner (who played Captain Kirk) to his wedding. "There is such a sickness there,” Shatner said at the time when asked about the snub in an interview. “It's so patently obvious that there is a psychosis there. I don't know what his original thing about me was. I have no idea [...]. There must be something else inside George that is festering, and makes him so unhappy that he takes it out on me, in effect a total stranger."
The feelings haven’t simmered down over time either. In a recent interview with The Times U.K. to promote his new memoir, Boldly Go, Shatner had more choice words for his Star Trek co-star.
“I began to understand that they were doing it for publicity. Sixty years after some incident they are still on that track. Don’t you think that’s a little weird? It’s like a sickness,” he said. “George has never stopped blackening my name. These people are bitter and embittered. I have run out of patience with them. Why give credence to people consumed by envy and hate?”
While Shatner calls out Takei specifically in this statement, he also suggests that there is more than one person who has negative feelings about him. Who those other people may be isn’t clear, but it's already tough enough to see he and Takei fight so publicly. Given the feud appears to have been going for decades, it also seems like there’s little hope of the two resolving it in the near future.
At least the two actors get along in the fictional Star Trek universe. That may be all we get, sadly, as the two continue to say not-so-nice things about each other as the years pass.
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