william shatner Loves to use NSFW language and isn’t afraid to admit it.
After giving a keynote at the South by Southwest festival, Shatner spoke with producer Tim League about where his fondness for a certain four-letter word originated.
When asked what he thought of disruptive electronic gadgets, the 91-year-old “Star Trek” star said, “Shut the f— up. I understand that f—ing is ugly to you. But It’s a juicy word.”
He even turned to the sign language interpreter and joked, “Shut the f— up,” before asking to teach him the F-word in sign language, which made the crowd laugh.
William Shatner speaks onstage during the “Keynote: William Shatner in Conversation with Tim League” during the 2023 SXSW Convention and Festivals at Austin Convention Center on March 16, 2023 in Austin, Texas. (Lorne Thomson / Redferns)
Shatner was also at the festival to support his new biopic documentary, “You Can Call Me Bill,” Following his six-decade career as an Emmy-winning actor, writer, singer and activist.
During the panel, Shatner reflected on his acting career, while sharing stories about his more memorable moments in show business.
He explained that he got into acting while attending summer camp and was supported by his father, Joseph.
“There was boxing, but then we put on a play. And I made the audience cry, and I thought, ‘Look at that, I made them cry,'” he recalled. “My father, who had come, said, ‘My boy Bill, you made the audience cry.’ Now my father is giving me love. I liked it. I think I will do it again.”
before playing his role “Star Trek,” Shatner worked in theater and also served as a student for fellow Oscar winner and fellow Canadian Christopher Plummer.
William Shatner is present for Christopher Plummer’s hand and footprint ceremony outside Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Los Angeles in 2015. (Mark Davis / WireImage)
“He was playing Henry V, so Chris Plummer, who had become an acquaintance, was playing King Henry. So, the director said, ‘You have to understand the role.’ It was repertory theater, so we rehearsed a play before it opened for a month or so,” Shatner said.
“The week before the opening of the Shakespeare play, Chris Plummer got sick, and he came up to me and said, ‘Can you go over?’ I said yes. I didn’t know the actors’ names. I didn’t know where to walk. But what I did know was Actor Prerna was over my shoulder, and Actor Prerna said to me, ‘Learn the words.'”
Of course, it was the science-fiction series “Star Trek” that made shatner a household Named in 1966 when the series debuted.
The show only ran for three seasons but has made an indelible mark on pop culture. When asked if the show was a “failure”, Shatner denied it.
“Star Trek” ran for three seasons on NBC. (Sunset Boulevard / Corbis via Getty Images)
“Failure? Not a complete failure. … It was a good show. It had some wonderful stories. Great ideas given to us by many great science-fiction writers like Isaac Asimov. Some of the ideas were wonderful,” he said.
He admitted that he had to struggle a bit after the cancellation, returning to the theater for a while.
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Perhaps the biggest surprise is that captain kirk,
“Oh my god… well, I thought it was pretty funny that I got asked to do stand-up comedy,” Shatner revealed. “Nothing is more pure and innovative, and that requires talent. I thought it would be really funny to have Captain Kirk who wants to be a stand-up comic, but doesn’t know how to do it.”
William Shatner says he did stand-up comedy as his “Star Trek” character, Captain Kirk. (CBS via Getty Images)
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However, the reception was not what he expected.
“And there was silence,” he recalled. “Oh s—, it’s not going well. It was probably the worst thing that ever happened to me. When I came off stage, I tripped, and the manager looked at me and that was it.”