It seems as long as people have been watching television, William Shatner has been on it. Shatner’s first television credit was in 1954 on the Canadian version of TheHowdy Doody Show. While a trained theater actor and also a movie star, television has been where Shatner has shined. Most famous for the role of Captain James T. Kirk in Star Trek: The Original Series, he has also had starring roles in T.J. Hooker and Boston Legal. Shatner has also appeared in some of the most famous television shows, from The Twilight Zone and Columbo up to Psych and The Bang Theory. It is hard to imagine television without William Shatner, and we don’t even want to think about that.

The actor is still going strong, having recently voiced the role of Keldor in Masters of the Universe: Revolutions. But Shatner’s latest project is a personal one. The documentary William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill has arrived on VOD. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Alexandre O. Philippe (The People vs. George Lucas), the documentary is a deep dive into Shatner’s career, as told by Shatner. Viewers are given an insight into his thought process, as only Shatner could explain. MovieWeb had the honor to sit down and talk with Shatner about how the documentary came to be.

I had a weird career. I don’t recall more than a moment or so here and there thinking, ‘Oh, I hope I work.’ I think sometimes I thought, ‘Well, I can always go back to Toronto,’ when I was in New York looking for work, but I never did.

He provided insight into his experience with acting, his personal history with future Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered co-star Christopher Plummer, and what Shatner would say to his younger self (and what he thinks his younger self would say to him).

Why Make a Shatner Documentary Now?
You Can Call Me Bill Release Date March 22, 2024 Director Alexandre O. Philippe Runtime 1h 36m Writers Alexandre O. Philippe Studio(s) Legion M , Falling Forward Films , FilmFrog

William Shatner has been featured in many documentaries but has never done one centered on his life. Why now? Well, it was the people involved in the project that finally convinced Shatner to open up. “Over the years, people would come up and say, ‘We’d like to shoot a documentary about you,’ and I didn’t. I wasn’t enthralled with the idea,” said Shatner. “First of all, it’s admitting, you know, when you see this, I’ll be dead. In addition to that, I didn’t know the people as it wasn’t the right time, but I didn’t feel like it.” He added:

“And then Legion M came up to me, these three guys and Legion M, two really, and they said, ‘We’re Legion M, we are financed by fans who own a piece of the company, and you won’t get paid until they get paid,’ and it sounded intriguing.”

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The addition of well known documentarian Alexandre O. Philippe also enticed Shatner, who didn’t just want it to be a retelling of his life. “So I took a chance. I didn’t have any prearranged ideas of how a documentary goes. I was born, you know, in 1930 — I didn’t want to do that,” explained the actor. “So we started talking and this is the result.”

The results have paid off as William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill was released in theaters on March 22, 2024, and earned positive reviews from critics. As of this writing, the movie has received an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes and 71% on Metacritic. The film is a great insight into the mind of Shatner and is a must-watch documentary not only for fans of Star Trek but also for anyone interested in one of the most famous and enduring actors in history.

The Business of Becoming an Actor

An actor known across generations for different roles, it’s hard to imagine Shatner as anything but an actor. “It never occurred to me to say, ‘I’m going to be an actor,'” said Shatner, but he did say how his father tried to convince him to get another job:

“The only time I said that was graduating high school, going to college, and I said, ‘I want to be an actor’, and my father said, ‘
Well, no, you can’t be an actor. Don’t be an actor. Why don’t you just take some business classes?
Maybe you’ll join me in his small clothing business.’ I said, ‘Okay, I’ll take some business classes,’ and I failed them.”

That business course did pay off, though. “A summer theater had opened near McGill University, which is where I was, and I went to the lady who was running the theater and said, ‘Can I be a part of the company?’ and she said, ‘No, the company is all filled up, but I do have an opening for an assistant manager.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m taking business courses,’ so I became a business manager until I lost tickets. So she said, ‘You’re fired as an assistant, but you’re hired as an actor.'”

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Christopher Plummer’s Kidney Stones Gave Shatner His Big Break

Shatner later served as the understudy for Christopher Plummer on a production of Henry V. Despite only being two years older than Shatner, Plummer had already gained a high reputation in the acting community. Shatner talked about Plummer’s status when he served as his understudy.

“Christopher is also a Montrealer. Chris was a couple of years older than I was, but it made a huge difference because I was going to school for the time that he was free and acting, and in Montreal, Chris Plummer was the name. He was in his early 20s or late teens, but he had become a popular actor in Montreal. Classical. I don’t know where he learned to do the classics, but he was elegant.
An incredibly talented, upper-crust Canadian actor who could do English very well, he was very princely
.”

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While serving as Plummer’s understudy, a medical condition of the older actor’s would throw Shatner into the spotlight. “We were a week into the opening of Henry V when Chris had kidney stones and he had to go to the hospital,” explained Shatner. “A week into the opening they ask ‘Bill, can you go on?’ And I said, ‘Can I go on?’ I didn’t even know the names of some of the actors, let alone the choreography of the play. And they said ‘but could you go on?'”

“The critics were still in the theater. The critics didn’t arrive on opening night, but during that opening week, they would come in from all over the world. Chris had received great notices, and I was asked to go on.
In my idiocy, like the rest of my life, I went, ‘Oh, sure.’ I went on and didn’t screw up and got great notices.
”

Shatner and Plummer would share the screen decades later in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. It all seems to have worked out in the end. Shatner feels blessed for all of this and gives some insight into it all. “Something that has taken care of me all these years: Fate.”

What Would William Shatner Say to Young William Shatner?

What would William Shatner now say to his 30-something younger self when he was on Star Trek: The Original Series? It sounds like the plot of an episode of Star Trek. In fact, in 2009’s Star Trek, Zachary Quinto’s Spock meets the older (and original) version of himself, played by Leonard Nimoy. Yet, it is an interesting question for someone to ponder, as we change constantly. Even in the manner of 10 years, someone in their 30s might feel different about who they were in their 20s, while some of us feel like our younger selves would not recognize the people we have become.

Anyone who watches You Can Call Me Bill will know Shatner is a deeply introspective man, so when posed the question, he had a rather relatable answer most people can probably identify with.

“Well, my 30-year-old self, I’m wondering whether I can support my family, the financial worries of being an actor. But I didn’t fret, I didn’t toss and turn at night. I never got beyond $1800 in the bank, and I had three kids and a home. So, I would probably say that to the 30-year-old from this vantage point. ‘You’re right not to be overwhelmed with worry. You’re right to take it in your stride and just keep plugging away and people will find you to offer you work,’ is what I would have said, and I probably did say it to myself.”

As for any advice for actors? “Once you’ve learned the words, you’re pretty much free,” said Shatner.

William Shatner has lived a life most people can only dream of. He has been to space, and that only ranks in the top five coolest things he has ever done. While some might not treat him as seriously as his acting idols like Marlon Brando or Laurence Oliver, it is hard to argue that William Shatner’s commitment to keep working, no matter what, has made him an icon that will live on for years to come.

It’s not hard to imagine that in 60 years, Captain Kirk will still be an inspiration to many, or that people will still be trying a William Shatner impersonation. From the iconic interracial kiss from Star Trek: The Original Series to performing a spoken word version of “Rocket Man,” Shatner is not just a part of pop culture history but history in general.

William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill is available for purchase on VOD on April 26, 2024.