The actor who portrayed Capt. James T. Kirk in the iconic 1960s television series “Star Trek” will finally enter the final frontier, albeit briefly.
At age 90, William Shatner will become the oldest person to fly into space when he boards the rocket of tech billionaire Jeff Bezos on Oct. 12.
“I’ve heard about space for a long time now,” Shatner said in a press release. “I’m taking the opportunity to see it for myself. What a miracle.”
Shatner led the cult classic TV series aboard the fictional USS Enterprise and went on to star in seven “Star Trek” films. He will be part of a four-member crew that includes Planet Labs co-founder Chris Boshuizen, Medidata co-founder Glen de Vries and Blue Origin executive Audrey Powers, a former engineer and flight controller for NASA .
Powers oversees the flight operations for the New Shephard rocket, which is scheduled to blast off next Tuesday in Texas. The space travel company launched its first human flight into space in July, with Bezos on board.
The actor also took to Twitter to herald his new travel plans, as did his actor pals.
Lynda Carter, who played “Wonder Woman” in the 1970s TV series and famously piloted a transparent aircraft, congratulated Shatner on social media.
“Seinfeld” star Jason Alexander also weighed in.
“It’s never too late to experience new things my friend,” Shatner replied. “Hope you are well.”
Though the space trip has been a long time coming, the journey will be very short. Flight time to the Kármán Line, an internationally recognized boundary of space, is an estimated 11 minutes.