George Takei attends PFLAG Gives Thanks: Celebrating Inclusion in the Workplace on 18 November 2019 in New York City. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty for PFLAG)
George Takei threw epic shade at his former onscreen captain William Shatner before aiming Superman actor Dean Cain.
Takei opened up to Page Six about his thoughts on Shatner’s excursion into the atmosphere on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin capsule. He snarked about Shatner’s decision to travel to space at his age, referring to the actor as “not the fittest specimen”.
“He’s boldly going where other people have gone before,” Takei said, mocking Shatner’s popular phrase as Captain Kirk.
He continued: “He’s a guinea pig, 90-years-old and it’s important to find out what happens.”
“So 90-years-old is going to show a great deal more on the wear and tear on the human body, so he’ll be a good specimen to study,” Takei said. “Although he’s not the fittest specimen of 90-years-old, so he’ll be a specimen that’s unfit!”
Takei and Shatner have been feuding for decades with the out actor accusing Shatner of ignoring him on the Star Trek set. He also claimed Shatner changed the script for Star Trek V so his character Hikaru Sulu wouldn’t command the ship.
Shatner also took a shot at Takei. Speaking to Page Six, Shatner claimed there was “a psychosis there”. He alleged there’s something in Takei that “makes him unhappy that he takes it out on me”.
Shatner wasn’t the only person George Takei called out. Takei responded to former Superman actor Dean Cain for criticising DC Comics’ announcement that the latest Superman will be bisexual.
Jon Kent, the son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane, is the star of the new comic book series Superman: Son of Kal-El. The young hero will begin a romantic relationship with journalist Jay Nakamura and share a kiss in the series’ fifth issue, to be released in November.
Cain, who played Clark Kent in the television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman from 1993 to 1997, claimed DC comics are “bandwagoning” with the new comic.
“I don’t think it’s bold or brave or some crazy new direction,” he added. “If they had done this 20 years ago, perhaps that would be bold or brave.”
On Wednesday (13 October), Takei fired back at Cain’s negative reaction regarding the new Superman’s sexual orientation.
“So Dean Cain apparently is upset that the new Superboy in the comics is bisexual,” Takei wrote on Twitter. “I used to be upset that Dean Cain was straight but he has definitely cured me of that.”