'Death comes anew to all of us': William Shatner, 91, says he doesn't 'have long to live'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: William Shatner went all frank while discussing his life and the time he’s left behind. The 91-year-old will soon be seen in a documentary called, ‘You Can Call Me Bill,’ which will show his “personal journey over nine decades on this Earth,” IMDb stated. It also added that the documentary “strips away all the masks he has worn to embody countless characters, and reveals the man behind it all.”
While speaking of his new project with Variety, Shatner revealed why it is important to him. He shared, “I’ve turned down a lot of offers to do documentaries before. But I don’t have long to live. Whether I keel over as I’m speaking to you or 10 years from now, my time is limited, so that’s very much a factor. I’ve got grandchildren. This documentary is a way of reaching out after I die.”
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‘I’m feeding my mind’
The veteran star went on to say that through the documentary he is “trying to discover something I’ve never said before or to find a way to say something I’ve said before in a different way, so I can explore that truth further. I read all the time — newspapers and books. I’m feeding my mind. The sad thing is that the older a person gets the wiser they become and then they die with all that knowledge. And it’s gone. It’s not like I’m going to take my ideas or my clothing with me.”
“Today, there’s a person going through some of my clothes in order to donate or sell them, because what am I going to do with all these suits that I’ve got? What am I going to do with all these thoughts? What am I going to do with 90 years of observations? The moths of extinction will eat my brain as they will my clothing and it will all disappear,” Shatner added.
The ‘Star Trek’ star also reflected on death from an actor’s point of view. He stated, “There was a time when actors, and I include myself in this, would portray death by falling to the ground and your eyes would flicker and you’d slump around and then you’re dead. That’s not how you die.”
‘Death comes anew to all of us’
He then reportedly showed how a person actually breathes their last. The Canadian native said, “Ever put a dog down? When I have to put a dog down and I’m at the vet, I cup my dog’s head and I say, ‘I’m with you baby, I’m with you.’ And the injection goes in and the dog looks at me with love, and that’s it. You don’t know they’re dead."
“That’s how you die. It’s abrupt. My wife’s brother walked out of the living room and into the bedroom. There was a thud. His wife walked in, and he was dead. Death comes anew to all of us,” Shatner concluded.