William Shatner describes the new versions of 'Star Trek' as 'phenomenal'

The moment you say Star Trek, the character that comes to mind is Captain James T. Kirk. And, the moment you say Captain James T. Kirk, the actor who comes to mind is veteran star, William Shatner.

William Shatner featured ‘Star Trek: The Original Series’ in 1966 and since then he has been associated with the franchise. Thus, his take on every development and new chapter of ‘Star Trek’ piques the interest of the fans. However, once when, Shatner had said Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, would be "turning in his grave" because of Nu-Trek, it didn’t settle down well with the admirers of the franchise.

Shatner wanted to set the record straight and thus, in a CinemaBlend interview last year, he clarified his previous statements. He explained that he wasn’t criticizing the whole franchise or its new directions. Instead, he was pointing out that the newer Star Trek series do not follow the strict guidelines set by Roddenberry.

"I wonder why some feathers would be ruffled by my saying the guy, the gentleman I knew, Eugene Roddenberry was very strict about military protocol. So, having an intimate relationship with somebody you're working next to is verboten. You don't do that on the military thing. And they [modern Trek shows], you know, I don't know about the latest things, but the couple of things I've noted is that there are relationships, sexual relations, relationships going on between the people that would make Gene Roddenberry turn in his grave," William Shatner explained.

Fast forward to the present, recently, in an interview with US Magazine, Shatner called the latest iterations of Star Trek "phenomenal."

"It’s like [a] good seed being planted all over. It’ll be really in our lifetime, impossible to repeat, because it would take some entertainment to exist for 60 years from now to equal what Star Trek has done. We won’t be alive then,” he added.

The statement echoed the sentiments of the fans, who swear that ‘Star Trek’ is one of the rarest franchises that stood the test of time with such grace.