William Shatner
Biography
William Shatner, OC (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the Star Trek franchise, from his 1966 debut as the captain of the starship Enterprise in the second pilot of the first Star Trek television series to his final appearance as Captain Kirk in the seventh Star Trek feature film, Star Trek Generations (1994). Shatner began his screen acting career in Canadian films and television productions before moving into guest-starring roles in various American television shows. He appeared as James Kirk in all the episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series, 21 of the 22 episodes of Star Trek: The Animated Series, and the first seven Star Trek movies. He has written a series of books chronicling his experiences before, during and after his time in a Starfleet uniform. He has also co-written several novels set in the Star Trek universe and a series of science fiction novels, the TekWar sequence, that were adapted for television. Outside Star Trek, Shatner played the eponymous veteran police sergeant in T. J. Hooker (1982–1986), hosted the reality-based television series Rescue 911 (1989–1996), guest starred on the detective series Columbo, and acted in the comedy film Miss Congeniality (2000). After his last appearance as Captain Kirk, Shatner's television career has embraced comedy, drama and reality shows. In seasons 4 and 5 of the NBC series 3rd Rock from the Sun, he played the alien "Big Giant Head", to which the main characters reported. From 2004 until 2008, he starred as attorney Denny Crane in the final season of the legal show The Practice and in its spinoff Boston Legal, a role that earned him two Emmy Awards, one for his contribution to each series. In 2016, 2017 and 2018, he starred in both seasons of NBC's Better Late Than Never, a comical travel series in which a band of elderly celebrities toured East Asia and Europe. Aside from acting, Shatner has had a career as a recording artist, beginning in 1968 with his album The Transformed Man. His cover versions of songs are dramatic recitations of their lyrics rather than musical performances: the most notable are his versions of the Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man", and Elton John's "Rocket Man". His most successful album was his third, Seeking Major Tom (2011), which includes covers of Pink Floyd's "Learning to Fly", David Bowie's "Space Oddity" and Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". In 2021, Shatner flew into space aboard Blue Origin NS-18, a Blue Origin sub-orbital capsule. At age 90, he became the oldest person to fly in space and one of the first 600 to do so. Minutes after the flight, he described experiencing the overview effect.
Movies (198)
The Eagle Obsession
2025
765874: Unification
2024
Aliens Among Us with William Shatner
2024
William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill
2024
Dick Van Dyke: 98 Years of Magic
2023
Full Moon's Roadshow Revisited
2023
Way of Tomorrow: The Evolution of Science Fiction Movies
2022
A Tear in the Sky
2022
Fireheart
2022
2021 and Done with Snoop Dogg & Kevin Hart
2021
Shatner in Space
2021
Expedition Unknown: Shark Trek
2021
WWE Hall Of Fame 2020
2021
Senior Moment
2021
Creators: The Past
2020
To Your Last Death
2019
Devil's Revenge
2019
The Steam Engines of Oz
2018
Aliens Ate My Homework
2018
Batman vs. Two-Face
2017
Not a War Story
2017
The Truth Is in the Stars
2017
Heroes Manufactured
2017
Star Trek: Inside the Roddenberry Vault
2016
For the Love of Spock
2016
When Elephants Were Young
2016
Range 15
2016
Koko: The Gorilla Who Talks to People
2016
They Came from the Swamp: The Films of William Grefé
2016
A Sunday Horse
2016
The Colorful Montreal Expos
2016
Just in Time for Christmas
2015
Baby, Baby, Baby
2015
Being Canadian
2015
A Christmas Horror Story
2015
Tom Felton Meets the Superfans
2015
A Star Is Drawn: Rob Simone's Look Inside Comic-Con
2014
Chaos on the Bridge
2014
To Be Takei
2014
Kelly Clarkson's Cautionary Christmas Music Tale
2013
Return to the Forest
2013
Escape from Planet Earth
2013
The Captains: Still Kicking
2013
Horrorween
2012
Get a Life!
2012
Corman's World
2011
Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen
2011
William Shatner Sings O Canada
2011
The Captains
2011
The Space Shuttle
2011
Classic TV Bloopers Uncensored
2011
Life Beyond Trek: William Shatner
2011
Billy Blackburn's Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories
2011
Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey
2010
Charles Beaumont: The Short Life of Twilight Zone's Magic Man
2010
Vancouver 2010 Olympic Closing Ceremony
2010
William Shatner's Gonzo Ballet
2009
Star Trek: The Captain's Summit
2009
Fanboys
2009
Gotta Catch Santa Claus
2008
WWE: The Best of Raw 15th Anniversary
2007
The Pixar Story
2007
Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner
2006
Over the Hedge
2006
The Wild
2006
Stalking Santa
2006
40 Years of Star Trek
2006
Merry F#%$in' Christmas
2005
How William Shatner Changed The World
2005
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous
2005
Lil' Pimp
2005
Last Laugh '04
2004
DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story
2004
The Rose Parade: A Pageant for the Ages
2004
Kiss 'N' Tell: Romance in the 23rd Century
2004
Birth of a Timeless Legacy
2004
A Carol Christmas
2003
Christmas in Hollywood
2003
Late Night with Conan O'Brien: 10th Anniversary Special
2003
Halloween: A Cut Above the Rest
2003
William Shatner's Spplat Attack II
2003
Spplat Attack
2002
Christopher Plummer: A Man For All Stages
2002
Groom Lake
2002
American Psycho II: All American Girl
2002
NBC 75th Anniversary Special
2002
Showtime
2002
Shoot or Be Shot!
2002
Star Wars vs. Star Trek: The Rivalry Continues
2002
Mind Meld: Secrets Behind the Voyage of a Lifetime
2001
Festival in Cannes
2001
Gahan Wilson's The Kid
2001
Osmosis Jones
2001
Falcon Down
2001
NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 1
2001
NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 2
2001
NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 3
2001
Miss Congeniality
2000
Atomic Journeys: Welcome to Ground Zero
2000
Nukes in Space
1999
Land of the Free
1998
Hollywood Ghost Stories
1998
Free Enterprise
1998
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Phil Hartman
1998
Trekkies
1997
Jefftowne
1997
TV Guide Looks at Science Fiction
1997
Star Trek: 30 Years and Beyond
1996
The Prisoner of Zenda, Inc.
1996
Star Trek Story
1996
Dead Man's Island
1996
William Shatner's Star Trek Memories
1996
Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie
1995
Virtuosity
1995
Science Fiction: A Journey Into the Unknown
1994
Star Trek: A Captain's Log
1994
Star Trek: Generations
1994
City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold
1994
TekWar: TekJustice
1994
TekWar: TekLab
1994
TekWar: TekLords
1994
TekWar
1994
Family of Strangers
1993
National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1
1993
Your Guide to Star Trek: Generations
1993
The Twenty-Five Year Mission Tour
1992
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
1991
Star Trek: 25th Anniversary Special
1991
Voices That Care
1991
Amazon: Land of the Flooded Forest
1990
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
1989
The Star Trek Saga: From One Generation to the Next
1988
Broken Angel
1988
Seasons
1987
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
1987
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
1986
William Shatner's Mysteries of the Way We Feel
1986
The Canadian Conspiracy
1986
T.J. Hooker: Blood Sport
1986
Super Duper Bloopers
1986
North Beach and Rawhide
1985
Night of 100 Stars II
1985
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
1985
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
1984
Airplane II: The Sequel
1982
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
1982
Visiting Hours
1982
Night of 100 Stars
1982
The Babysitter
1980
The Kidnapping of the President
1980
Hypnosis and Beyond
1980
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
1979
Disaster on the Coastliner
1979
Riel
1979
The Crash of Flight 401
1978
Land of No Return
1978
Kingdom of the Spiders
1977
A Whale of a Tale
1976
The Tenth Level
1976
Perilous Voyage
1976
Mysteries of the Gods
1976
Universe
1976
Microworld
1976
The Star Trek Dream
1975
The Devil’s Rain
1975
Mitzi & 100 Guys
1975
Impulse
1974
Big Bad Mama
1974
Pray for the Wildcats
1974
Indict and Convict
1974
Pioneer Woman
1973
The Horror at 37,000 Feet
1973
Go Ask Alice
1973
Incident on a Dark Street
1973
The Hound of the Baskervilles
1972
The People
1972
The Andersonville Trial
1970
Sole Survivor
1970
Swing Out, Sweet Land
1970
Shadow Game
1969
White Comanche
1968
Alexander The Great
1968
Star Trek: The Menagerie
1966
Incubus
1966
The Outrage
1964
Operation Bikini
1963
The Intruder
1962
Judgment at Nuremberg
1961
The Explosive Generation
1961
The Grim Reaper
1961
City Out of Time
1959
A Town Has Turned to Dust
1958
The Brothers Karamazov
1958
The Defender (Studio One)
1957
Oedipus Rex
1957
The Butler's Night Off
1951
The Atomic Bomb Collection
Keeper of the Cup
TV Shows (189)
The D-Con Chamber
2024
The UnXplained: Mysteries of the Universe
2024
Masters of the Universe: Revolution
2024
The UnXplained Special Presentation
2023
Stars on Mars
2023
Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg
2022
Piers Morgan Uncensored
2022
WWE Backstage
2019
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
The UnXplained
2019
My Life Is Murder
2019
The Masked Singer
2019
The Masked Singer
2019
Star Trek: Short Treks
2018
The Indian Detective
2017
Unlocked: The World of Games, Revealed
2016
Star Trek: The Original Series – The Roddenberry Vault
2016
Better Late Than Never
2016
Private Eyes
2016
The Shannara Chronicles
2016
WWE Breaking Ground
2015
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson
2015
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
2014
The Real History of Science Fiction
2014
The Captains Close Up
2013
Gotham Comedy Live
2012
Comic Book Men
2012
The Fran Drescher Show
2010
The Talk
2010
My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
2010
$#*! My Dad Says
2010
Aftermath with William Shatner
2010
Haven
2010
Rookie Blue
2010
Hot in Cleveland
2010
William Shatner's Weird or What?
2010
The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien
2009
Shatner's Raw Nerve
2008
Everest
2008
Murdoch Mysteries
2008
Extraordinary Animals
2008
Mars Rising
2007
The Big Bang Theory
2007
Psych
2006
The Henry Rollins Show
2006
The Reichen Show
2005
The Colbert Report
2005
Hell's Kitchen
2005
Invasion Iowa
2005
The Annie Awards
2005
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
2005
Boston Legal
2004
Atomic Betty
2004
Best Week Ever
2004
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003
Chilly Beach
2003
Comedy Central Roasts
2003
Real Time with Bill Maher
2003
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
After They Were Famous
2002
Cosmic Odyssey
2002
Bob Patterson
2001
Click
2000
The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn
1999
Futurama
1999
A Twist in the Tale
1999
Hercules
1998
The View
1997
The View
1997
Perversions of Science
1997
The Practice
1997
E! True Hollywood Story
1996
The Daily Show
1996
Muppets Tonight
1996
3rd Rock from the Sun
1996
TekWar
1994
Space Ghost Coast to Coast
1994
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993
seaQuest DSV
1993
Late Show with David Letterman
1993
Raw
1993
Raw
1993
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
1993
Eek! The Cat
1992
Eek! The Cat
1992
The Larry Sanders Show
1992
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992
Have I Got News for You
1990
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
1990
Dream On
1990
Rescue 911
1989
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
The Ray Bradbury Theater
1985
Madame's Place
1982
T. J. Hooker
1982
Police Squad!
1982
Late Night with David Letterman
1982
Fridays
1980
Little Women
1978
The Bastard
1978
The Oregon Trail
1977
Testimony of Two Men
1977
How the West Was Won
1977
Battle of the Network Stars
1976
Saturday Night Live
1975
Saturday Night Live
1975
Barbary Coast
1975
Amy Prentiss
1974
Police Woman
1974
Kodiak
1974
Police Woman
1974
Petrocelli
1974
The Six Million Dollar Man
1974
Flick Flack
1974
The Magician
1973
Star Trek
1973
Police Story
1973
Barnaby Jones
1973
Kung Fu
1972
The Rookies
1972
The Sixth Sense
1972
Columbo
1971
Columbo
1971
Vanished
1971
Hawaii Five-O
1968
The Name of the Game
1968
The Name of the Game
1968
Mannix
1967
Ironside
1967
Ironside
1967
Ironside
1967
Mission: Impossible
1966
Star Trek
1966
The F.B.I.
1965
The Big Valley
1965
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
1964
Burke's Law
1963
Channing
1963
The Fugitive
1963
The Outer Limits
1963
Arrest and Trial
1963
Miss USA
1963
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1962
The Merv Griffin Show
1962
The Virginian
1962
The Mike Douglas Show
1961
Alcoa Premiere
1961
Dr. Kildare
1961
Dr. Kildare
1961
The Dick Powell Show
1961
The Defenders
1961
The Defenders
1961
The Defenders
1961
The Defenders
1961
The Defenders
1961
Route 66
1960
Outlaws
1960
Thriller
1960
Thriller
1960
Police Surgeon
1960
The Twilight Zone
1959
The Twilight Zone
1959
One Step Beyond
1959
77 Sunset Strip
1958
Naked City
1958
Naked City
1958
Suspicion
1957
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1955
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1955
Gunsmoke
1955
Climax!
1954
The Oscars
1953
Omnibus
1952
Omnibus
1952
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
Studio One
1948
Studio One
1948
Studio One
1948
The Ed Sullivan Show
1948
Kraft Television Theatre
1947
Kraft Television Theatre
1947
Golden Globe Awards
1944
Golden Globe Awards
1944
Golden Globe Awards
1944
Have I Got a Bit More News for You
Inner Space
