Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin Will Fly William Shatner To Space

Aerospace company Blue Origin will fly famous Star Trek actor William Shatner into space. As a result, the 90-year old William Shatner has a chance to become the oldest man to travel to space. 

RELATED: Bezos Thanks Amazon Workers for Paying for His Space Flight

William Shatner Will Boldly Go… to Space

Blue Origin, the space travel company owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, announced that their next scheduled flight to space is on October 12.

William Shatner will fly along with Audrey Powers, Blue Origin Vice President of mission and flight operations. In addition, two paying customers will join them on the flight. 

In a statement, William Shatner showed excitement for going into an actual mission. “I’ve heard about space for a long time now. I’m taking the opportunity to see it for myself. What a miracle,” he said. “I’m so proud and humbled to fly on behalf of Team Blue, and I’m excited to continue writing Blue’s human spaceflight history,” he added. 

William Shatner Is The Star From Star Trek

Throughout his career, Shatner played Captain James T. Kirk in the long-running popular science fiction series. He played the part of the ship’s captain in the original TV series and seven feature films. Unlike the missions he flew aboard the fictional USS Enterprise which lasts five years, his Blue Origin travel will take minutes. 

The flight, which will launch from the company’s West Texas launch pad, will be Blue Origin’s second manned mission. In the inaugural flight, Bezos joined the flight crew, which included his brother and two others. 

William Shatner Supports Billionaires In Space

Earlier in July, Shatner appeared in an interview with NBC News. He dismissed criticisms against billionaires flying into space such as Bezos and Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson. He doesn’t see any problems with people using their fortunes on space travel when they could be doing well here on Earth. 

Ultimately, William Shatner believes that Bezos and Branson could spend their money however they want. “It’s their money. They can do what they want with it,” he said.

Then, he dug into another billionaire owner. However, he poked fun at the Owner and CEO of SpaceX, Elon Musk. “What’s his name wants to colonize Mars? That’s ridiculous,” Shatner said. “It takes a year and a half to get there. People will think it’s like we’re on a trip, on a cruise line. No, man! You’re in zero gravity and it’s hotter than hell and the air is putrid. ‘Help me, I’m dying, but I’m dying slowly!' What a terrible fate.”

William Shatner Turned Down Richard Branson’s Offer In 2013

BBC reported that in 2013, Shatner turned down Branson’s offer to fly him into space aboard a Virgin Galactic spacecraft. Branson himself went to space during a recent Virgin Galactic flight.

Branson said that at the time, the Star Trek actor had a fear of flying. However, Shatner said he refused because Branson wanted him to pay for his flight. “He wanted me to go up and pay for it and I said: ‘Hey, you pay me and I'll go up. I'll risk my life for a large sum of money.' But he didn't pick me up on my offer,” Shatner told reporters.

Many think that Shatner will be the first Star Trek original cast member to go to space. In fact, he will be the first living member of the original crew to leave Earth.

In 2008 astronauts smuggled the ashes of actor James Doohan aboard the International Space Station. Doohan played Montgomery “Scotty” Scott in the original series. 

Watch the CNN Video reporting that William Shatner is headed to space:

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What do you think about a Star Trek actor going into space? Also, did you enjoy watching William Shatner played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek series and movies?

Tell us what you think now that he’s about to really fly into space. Share your comments below.