William Shatner is still trying new things at 95-years-old, and he's proven that he has a wide range of interests. So, when I heard earlier this year that he was planning to tour with a metal band, I was hardly surprised. After seeing their debut, however, I can say that it caught me off guard, mainly because I forgot what it means to hear the Star Trek icon "sing."
Shatner and his band, The *uckers, performed live at the Riot Fest aftershow in Chicago over the weekend. The actor and his bandmates performed covers of iconic songs previously performed by the late Ozzy Osbourne, Mötorhead and Metallica. It's quite a variety, and I was shocked to discover he had that kind of range until I watched the video below:
On This Day in Metal September 19, 202695-year-old “Star Trek” legend William Shatner performed live with his newly formed heavy metal band, THE *UCKERS, for the first time Saturday night at the Riot Fest aftershow at Park West in Chicago, Illinois.THE *UCKERS feature Marcus… pic.twitter.com/AlqN7hw48tSeptember 20, 2026
Not too long into the video, I was hit with the reminder that in all my years of following William Shatner, I've never actually known him to sing. Not in the traditional sense, anyway and that his performances are more like lounge-singing meets spoken-word beat poetry.
It's a distinct style, and one that couldn't even keep his identity a secret when he performed on The Masked Singer. I couldn't help but feel just a bit foolish that I assumed he was going to belt out "Ace of Spades" with full bravado. But hey, if Christopher Lee could belt out metal tunes, couldn't William Shatner?
I can't say I'm disappointed, because how many nonagenarians around the world are doing the same thing? Not only that, but Shatner has also been doing interviews in connection to Star Trek's 60th anniversary as well as a lot of convention appearances. I'd love to be doing a third of that at his age, assuming I ever get there.
For those sad they missed this performance, don't worry. William Shatner and The *uckers will perform again at Coachella 2027, which is scheduled from April 9th through the 11th and the 16th through the 18th. I'd love the chance to see him perform, even if it isn't a traditional musical performance.
As for whether he'll pop back into Star Trek anytime soon, I'm still upset that Strange New Worlds couldn't get him back in the studio for a one-off episode. The writers pitched bringing him back as an alternate version of James T. Kirk, but unfortunately, the stars didn't align and the series wrapped before it could happen.
Fortunately, the actor is great at making frequent appearances and going on side adventures, so we're never lacking in seeing him out in public. Here's hoping he has even wilder adventures planned, though between these metal band performances and traveling to space, I'm not sure what else he can do to top those endeavors.
