William Shatner is heading to space — and this time he’s not acting.
The 90-year-old actor, well known for his portrayal of Captain James T. Kirk in the original “Star Trek” television series and movie franchise, will launch into orbit on Oct. 12 as part of Jeff Bezos’s civilian space program, Blue Origin.
The Blue Origin program confirmed the upcoming celebrity space launch in an Oct. 4 tweet.
“Two incredible and inspirational people will join the #NS18 crew,” the tweet read. “Actor @WilliamShatner and Blue Origin’s Vice President of Mission & Flight Operations Audrey Powers @AudreyKPowers.”
Two incredible and inspirational people will join the #NS18 crew. Actor @WilliamShatner and Blue Origin’s Vice President of Mission & Flight Operations Audrey Powers @AudreyKPowers. pic.twitter.com/xqI9nw1KX8
— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) October 4, 2021
Shatner, who is an active Twitter user, quickly shared his excitement about his upcoming space adventure, calling himself a “rocket man.”
So now I can say something. Yes, it’s true; I’m going to be a “rocket man!”
https://t.co/B2jFeXrr6L
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) October 4, 2021
In a press release from Blue Origin, Shatner talked about the opportunity to make his science fiction world more of a reality.
“I’ve heard about space for a long time now,” he said in the statement. “I’m taking the opportunity to see it for myself. What a miracle.”
Shatner will become the oldest person to fly into outer space when he and the rest of the crew on the New Shepard rocket take off at 9:30 a.m. EDT on Oct. 12.
Back on July 20, 82-year-old Mary “Wally” Funk became the oldest person to travel to space as part of Blue Origin’s first launch. She surpassed the record set by astronaut John Glenn, who was 77 years old on his final mission.
The crew for this flight includes Shatner and Powers, plus Chris Boshuizen, a former NASA engineer and co-founder of Planet Labs, and Glen de Vries, the vice chair of Life Sciences & Healthcare at Dassault Systèmes and co-founder of Medidata Solutions. Their trip is scheduled to last 11 minutes, according to Yahoo.
How is Shatner feeling about his trip into the unknown?
He told NBC’s “Today” that while he felt a little nervous, he was mostly looking forward to experiencing the “enormity of the universe.”
“Star Trek” actor @WilliamShatner is turning science fiction into reality! The 90-year-old star will blast off to space on a @blueorigin rocket next week. He joins us live to talk about his exciting mission. pic.twitter.com/WuyAtAY6Mp
— 3rd Hour of TODAY (@3rdHourTODAY) October 5, 2021
“We talk about space and what weightless conditions are, the enormity of the universe and the absolute jewel of a little thing we call the Earth by comparison,” Shatner told “Today.” “I’m going to feel that with the same enormity that I felt this electrical storm last night.”
BlueOrigin.com will live stream the launch starting 90 minutes before liftoff on Oct. 12.
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