Once known as the guy who told Trekkies to “get a life,” William Shatner has come full circle on the Star Trek franchise.

“The interest in ‘Star Trek’ has waned in the last couple years,” Shatner said in a telephone interview. “It’s been around a long time, it’s a staple of American life and I think we need something new and different in ‘Star Trek.’”

Not exactly the same Shatner of years ago, is it? I, for one, applaud Shatner for a couple of reasons: 1) Star Trek is indeed a unique phenomenon which is only rivaled by the Star Wars and possibly Lord of the Rings franchises in terms of fan base, and 2) Actors should embrace the roles that made them famous: to do less is a shameful elitism.

I understand the desire to be more than a one-trick pony, but if your talent deserves that recognition it will come without having to walk away from your previous work. Prime examples are Clint Eastwood - once exclusively a spaghetti western film star - and Harrison Ford of Han Solo fame. Both of these actors have had long and extremely successful careers without deserting the characters that made them household names. In recent years, Shatner has been able to do the same with his Emmy-award winning turn as Denny Crane in Boston Legal, and roles in films like Miss Congeniality.

Patrick Stewart and Kate Mulgrew will also be taking part in the Star Trek: Legacy game project, so if you’re a Trekkie the voice talent alone is probably going to be enough to make picking it up an absolute must.

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