Strange New Worlds’ Paul Wesley Fondly Remembers Meeting William Shatner When He Won the Role of James T. Kirk on SNW

Summary

• Paul Wesley, star of The Vampire Diaries, has the honor of playing the live-action role of James T. Kirk on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, a role originally portrayed by William Shatner, making him one of the few actors to have enjoyed this privilege.
• Wesley had a nerve-wracking encounter with Shatner on a flight right after he got word that he would be playing Kirk. Despite feeling like he came off poorly, Shatner was gracious enough to take a selfie with Wesley, and eventually, he sent him a supportive tweet, making Wesley feel redeemed.
• Wesley and Shatner had a reunion at San Diego Comic-Con, where Wesley spoke before Shatner during a handprint ceremony, and Wesley described Shatner as lovely. While Wesley didn’t appear in the season two finale, it’s likely that Kirk will return in season three.

Boldly going where only a few actors have gone before. The Vampire Diaries’ star Paul Wesley won the coveted role of James T. Kirk on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (SNW), and he has popped up several times in seasons one and two. Playing the live-action role of Kirk, which was brought to life originally by William Shatner, is an honor only Chris Pine and Wesley have enjoyed. And Wesley remembers vividly bumping into Shatner right after he landed the part.

As chance would have it, Wesley and Shatner were on the same flight after Paramount told The Vampire Diaries’ alum he’d be playing Kirk on SNW. And, oddly enough through some sort of serendipity, the two Kirks were sitting next to each other on the plane. Wesley had talked to Shatner on the phone once before, and when Wesley sat down the original captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise was cordial. But Wesley was very nervous, and even though he wasn’t supposed to tell anyone he’d been cast, he wanted to share the news with Shatner without outright saying it. Wesley said in an interview on the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum podcast:

“I’m like trying to allude to the fact that I’m playing this role without saying it, and I honestly think he thought I was like some deranged [fan]. I was stuttering. I was just in between — you know, it was just a disaster.”

Related: Star Trek: Captain Kirk’s 15 Best Quotes, Ranked

William Shatner Sent Paul Wesley a Very Cool Tweet

Paramount+

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Paul Wesley felt he came off very poorly when he bumped into William Shatner on a flight that they shared right after The Vampire Diaries’ alum got word that he’d be playing the new James T. Kirk. Despite the nagging, sinking feeling that he’d come across “deranged,” Shatner was still gracious enough to take a selfie with Wesley on the plane. Wesley discussed asking Shatner to take a photo with him in the same interview:

“I felt terrible, but I said, ‘I gotta capture this moment.’”

Wesley and Shatner’s meeting came and went, and then Paramount eventually made the official announcement regarding the casting of James T. Kirk on SNW. The original commander of the U.S.S. Enterprise then took to Twitter to congratulate Wesley on winning the role. Wesley recalled it was the “sweetest thing” and a “supportive tweet” during his sit-down with Michael Rosenbaum. Wesley recounts Shatner writing:

“Take care of my ship.”

Wesley added:

“It was such a beautiful moment. But it was like, I felt redeemed because I really — for those few months — thought, you know, he thinks I’m this deranged lunatic who’s like a hardcore Trekkie who couldn’t find his words.”

Shatner and Wesley would reunite at San Diego Comic-Con when the new Kirk was invited to say a few words prior to the original captain of the Enterprise during a handprint ceremony. “He was so lovely,” Wesley told Rosenbaum.

Even though Wesley didn’t appear in the season two finale of SNW, James T. Kirk will likely return in season three to continue the journey toward his future captaincy. And check out Shatner’s “congratulations” tweet to Wesley in its entirety below:

You can view the original article HERE.