William Shatner Fired Off A Sassy Response At A Fan Who Questioned Kirk's Death In Star Trek: Generations

James Kirk dying in Star Trek: Generations
(Image credit: Paramount)

One thing about William Shatner is that he's never afraid to offer his opinion. After rumors surfaced this year about him returning to Star Trek, a fan asked why his character was ever killed off in the first place. Shatner wasted no time responding to a critic of his decision to participate in Generations despite knowing how James T. Kirk died, and was pretty sassy about it.

Shatner is still active on X and will occasionally interact with fans who ask him various things about Star Trek. Unfortunately, one fan made the mistake of asking why the Kirk actor "agreed" to let his character be killed off in Generations, and Shatner pointed out there was little other choice for him to say otherwise:

🙄 I don’t own my character and there were 2 choices: do the movie and be killed off or don’t do the movie and still be killed off. What would have been your choice?

I do wonder what Star Trek: Generations would be like had William Shatner walked and Captain Kirk was killed off-screen. Perhaps there would be more time for Data to make jokes, which was my personal highlight of the movie when I saw it for the first time.

In all seriousness, though, without Kirk's death, I'm not sure there'd be much of a reason to make this movie at all. It's more or less the most notable thing about Generations, which is why CinemaBlend has it ranked the lowest on its list of best Star Trek movies.

William Shatner wasn't going to turn down an opportunity to play James T. Kirk, and it's not like he's really jumped at any chance to play the character in a live-action series or movie since then. I would wager that at the time, he was more or less ok with being written off, as his complaints mainly stem from the execution of how the death happened and not Kirk's actual death.

I can see where he's coming from. To see someone who is viewed as one of Star Trek's best characters die from a fall after a bridge collapse was pretty disappointing. It's certainly not a death any Klingon would call "honorable," so why should fans feel any differently?

William Shatner is announcing appearances at events once again after fans learned earlier this year that he was rushed to the hospital. The 94-year-old told his followers not to worry, however. All he did was "overindulge" in some beverages, and there was no cause for alarm.

Paramount+: from $7.99 a month/$59.99 a year

Paramount+: from $7.99 a month/$59.99 a year
Watch Star Trek: Generations and other movies with a Paramount+ subscription. Between the Essential plan running $7.99 a month and the ad-free Premium option at $12.99 a month, there's plenty to choose from with Paramount+. But if you want to watch your favorite shows and movies, and save some money doing so, sign up for an annual plan.

Watch Star Trek: Generations right now with your Paramount+ subscription. I'm eager to watch new Trek in 2026, and hoping that Starfleet Academy and Strange New Worlds Season 4 live up to the hype!

Mick Joest
Content Producer

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.