Summary

• William Shatner is open to AI recreating him as Captain Kirk, but only if he's already dead. He doesn't want AI to do it while he's alive.
• If Shatner is deceased, he advises his family to give permission for AI to recreate him as Captain Kirk, as long as they are paid well.
• Star Trek has already hinted at resurrecting Captain Kirk using AI and deepfake technology, as seen in an Easter egg in Star Trek: Picard season 3.

William Shatner says he's open to A.I. recreating him as Star Trek's Captain James T. Kirk - if he's already dead. At 92 years old, Shatner remains prolific, juggling multiple projects and appearing at numerous events, including Star Trek conventions. Mr. Shatner's latest endeavor is a new documentary about his extraordinary life, titled William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill.

In an interview with Star Trek: The Original Series' cast revealed his specific conditions for Shatner to be okay with being deep faked. Read Mr. Shatner's quote below:

It's an interesting question... The strike was all about getting permission to do that. And so if I'm alive, I don't want A.I. to do that, but if I'm dead, and they ask my family, and they're going to pay my family very well to sound like me, I would advise them to say yes.

Star Trek Has Already Hinted At Resurrecting William Shatner's Captain Kirk

Kirk could come back using A.I. deep fake technology

The version of Captain James T. Kirk that William Shatner originated in Star Trek: The Original Series and portrayed from 1966-1994 was killed off in Star Trek Generations. Since then, Shatner has not canonically returned as Kirk, while other actors like Chris Pine in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movies, and Paul Wesley in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, have played younger versions of the Captain of the Enterprise. However, Star Trek: Picard season 3's Easter egg where James T. Kirk's body is in Starfleet storage hints that the Captain could be brought back one day, and this would likely be via A.I. and deep fake technology.

Star Trek has already deep faked the late Leonard Nimoy's Mr. Spock back to life in a short film titled "Regeneration" made for the Roddenberry Archives. Strange New Worlds' co-showrunner Akiva Goldsman told SFX Magazine last year that while the Star Trek franchise has no plans to use A.I. to resurrect William Shatner's Captain Kirk, he would "consider" using the technology since he was not satisfied with how Star Trek Generations killed Kirk. It may only be a matter of time until Star Trek does use A.I. to bring back the original Captain Kirk, but it's quite likely it won't happen until, as William Shatner wishes, he has already ed on into the final frontier

Star Trek: The Original Series is available to stream on Paramount+.

Source: ComicBook.com