William Shatner says Prince William is ‘missing the point’ about space travel as he responds to criticism

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William Shatner has responded to critical comments made by the Duke of Cambridge about space travel.

The 90-year-old actor, who is best known for playing Captain Kirk on Star Trek, is the oldest man to go to space, having gone from Texas on a Blue Origin rocket owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

However, Prince William has criticised the concept of space travel in a new interview, saying that people should be focusing their attention on preserving Earth as opposed to venturing to other planets.

Speaking on BBC’s Newscast ahead of his inaugural Earthshot Prize, William said: “We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live.”

He added: “It really is quite crucial to be focusing on this [planet] rather than giving up and heading out into space to try and think of solutions for the future.”

William noted that he has “absolutely no interest” in going to space, citing the “fundamental question” over the carbon cost of the journey.

Now, Shatner, has responded to the comments, telling Entertainment Tonight: “The Prince is missing the point. The point is these are the baby steps to show people [that] it’s very practical. You can send somebody like me up into space.”

He went on to describe Prince William as a “lovely Englishman”, adding: “He’s going to be King of England one day.”

Shatner also agreed with William about things needing to be fixed on Earth.

“So fix some of the stuff down here,” he said. “But we can curl your hair and put lotion on your face at the same time.”

He went on to discuss his own journey to space, calling it “indescribable”, adding that there are “no words in the English language to relate.”

“You hear people say religious experience, I don’t know about religious experience, but you can have an overwhelming experience,” he said.