'Better late than never': William Shatner, 91, keen to mend fences with 'Star Trek' castmate George Takei

'He doesn't want the bad blood anymore, and the word is George is open to it,' a source revealed

PUBLISHED NOV 1, 2022

William Shatner reportedly wants to make peace with George Takei (Amy Sussman/Getty Images for Writers Guild and Bennett Raglin/Getty Images)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: After finding a new perspective towards life during his grief-filled space trip, ‘Star Trek’ icon William Shatner is now looking forward to making peace with his co-star George Takei, RadarOnline reports.

While Shatner, 91, has shared a sweet and sour relationship with all his ‘Star Trek' cast mates, he has failed to build a tight-knit relationship with Takei. Since the start, the two have been outspoken about their struggles to get along, with both accusing the other of bringing up the controversy between them to garner attention for their careers. But now, keeping this long-standing beef aside, Shatner is eager to launch a truce with Takei.

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"Bill has been reaching out to try and mend fences," an insider close to Shatner told Radar Online. "He doesn't want the bad blood anymore, and the word is George is open to it. Bill's the first to admit he's been stubborn, big-headed, and ego-driven. It's taken years, but Bill's come a long way — and better late than never." The insider further spilled that Shatner "seems to be getting a little lonely," and "everyone would like to see Bill and George be on friendly terms."

Actors George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and Walter Koenig with the 25th Anniversary Reunion for Star Trek 2 The Wrath of Khan onstage during Spike TV's Scream 2007 held at The Greek Theatre on October 19, 2007 in Los Angeles, California (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

The insider also mentioned Shatner’s regret over not being able to make peace with his loving co-star Nichelle Nichols and Leonard Nimoy. "Bill was devastated when Leonard died. He never did get a chance to say goodbye," confided the source. "And he was so sad over Nichelle's passing. He'll always remember her as a great lady."

Nichols, who portrayed the role of Nyota Uhura in 'Star Trek', died of natural causes in July this year, while Leonard, who played Spock, died in 2015 after losing his battle with obstructive pulmonary disease.

These claims came a week after Shatner publically talked about his grief-filled space trip. "I was crying," the actor told NPR. "I didn't know what I was crying about. I had to go off someplace and sit down and think, what's the matter with me? And I realized I was in grief."

Blue Origins vice president of mission and flight operations Audrey Powers (L) looks on as Star Trek actor William Shatner waves during a media availability on the landing pad of Blue Origin’s New Shepard after they flew into space on October 13, 2021 near Van Horn, Texas. Shatner became the oldest person to fly into space on the ten minute flight. They flew aboard mission NS-18, the second human spaceflight for the company which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. — Blue Origins vice president of mission and flight operations Audrey Powers (L) looks on as Star Trek actor William Shatner waves during a media availability on the landing pad of Blue Origin’s New Shepard after they flew into space on October 13, 2021 near Van Horn, Texas (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Shatner flew into space in 2021 and became the oldest man to do so, at the age of 90, with Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin joyride. "I wept for the Earth because I realized it's dying," the star said. "I dedicated my book, Boldly Go, to my great-grandchild, who's three now — coming three — and in the dedication, say it's them, those youngsters, who are going to reap what we have sown in terms of the destruction of the Earth."

Shatner added the space trip gave him "the strongest feelings of grief" he had ever felt in his life.