The original James Kirk and the new James Kirk share a surprising history

Both William Shatner and Paul Wesley shared more than playing James Kirk on Star Trek.

William Shatner brought the role of James Kirk to life in the original Star Trek series in the 1960s. Paul Wesley brought the role back to life with 2022’s Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. He’s the first actor to portray the famous captain on a television series in almost 60 years, with both Shatner and later Chris Pine, doing the work of Kirk on Star Trek films over the last 45+ years.

Playing Kirk, on film or in a series, is a big deal, so it was a neat little treat to see Wesley join Shatner for Shatner’s handprint ceremony in the lobby of the Theatre Box San Diego. It was the first of a series of events that Legion M is holding. Legion M is the fan investor-funded production company that is producing Shatner’s upcoming documentary.

At the event, Shatner spoke glowingly of Wesley and revealed that not only do they now share the bond of sharing the same character, but once, not that long ago, they shared a property line. Shatner revealed that, only until recently, the two Kirks actually were neighbors.

From TrekMovie.com

"For his part, Shatner thanked Wesley for driving all the way down from LA just for the event honoring him, calling the young actor “so sweet,” and reveling that until recently they used to be neighbors. After some jokes about preserving his hands forever, Shatner’s brief comments thanked the crowd along with Legion M for putting the event together, as he hyped the “wonderful company” and their upcoming documentary all about him."

William Shatner and Paul Wesley being neighbors make the passing of the torch perfect

Shatner is 91 years old and is likely to never play any version of Kirk ever again. White Pine was well received by Shatner, having Wesley and Shatner know each other and be neighbors for a time really does seem serendipitous in nature.

Wesley wasn’t the guy most fans wanted to play the role, especially because he was about 15 years older than the Kirk they would have been presenting at the time of the show, but he’s won over some fans with not just his performance but with his attitude towards playing such an iconic role.

The more he ingratiates himself with the fans, the better his run as Kirk will be received, and being publicly endorsed by Shatner is a great way to get that done.