While everyone across the world is facing the very real and serious threat of the COVID-19 coronavirus, Captain Kirk himself (William Shatner) has been lightening the mood with some Star Trek fun.
The beloved actor has taken to his Twitter account in recent days to post parodies of his captain logs from the original Star Trek, bringing a much-needed dose of humor to such dark times. Most of the posts center around his interactions with his two dogs, Espresso & Macchiato, whom he pretends are emissaries. He’s also apparently run low on general supplies, posting a log update indicating that the Enterprise needs to return home to obtain more.
Below, you can see just a few of his updates:
Captain’s Log: Stardate 1 of self imposed isolation. After having arrived at Planet Home, I was warmly greeted by Emissaries Espresso & Macchiato. I look forward to my planned respite from my normal duties. Kirk out.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 18, 2020
Captain’s Log: Supplemental. While reflecting upon my experiences of the past week I do want to send my love, thanks & respect to those in Europe who came out to see me. ? For those canceled appearances I will work towards seeing if I can get back to those venues at some point??
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 19, 2020
Captain’s Log: Stardate 2 of self imposed isolation. Emissaries Macchiato & Espresso have been exploring a new territory called Underbed bestowing upon me tributes of missing socks and other items in an attempt to get my attention & adoration.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 19, 2020
Although Shatner is obviously having a great time interacting with his loving fan base, he’s consistently denied that there is any chance of him returning as Captain Kirk in future installments of the immensely popular sci-fi franchise. Thankfully for Star Trek fans, at least Patrick Stewart has recently returned to the role of Jean-Luc Picard for CBS All Access’ Star Trek: Picard.
Shatner isn’t the only celebrity taking to Twitter in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, though. Arnold Schwarzenegger has had a good time posting a few lighthearted videos on the social media site and urging people to continue practicing social distancing. He even gave everyone a wonderful look at his pet donkey and mini-horses, Whiskey and Lulu. If that’s not cute, then nothing is.
Times are still dire, however, with COVID-19 having now infected over 300,000 people worldwide. With the global death toll exceeding 13,000 and the virus showing no signs of slowing down, worldwide efforts have been made to slow its spread through travel bans and lockdowns of entire countries and even some US cities where infection rates are highest. And unfortunately, the pandemic is likely to only get worse before it gets better.
Stay safe out there, and watch this space (and William Shatner‘s captain logs) for more as the situation unfolds.
