‘Star Trek’ icon William Shatner’s agency has denied reports that he was hospitalized after suffering a medical emergency at his Los Angeles home. A statement from Shatner’s agency, TalentWorks, said he is doing fine, according to ABC 7.
What online reports claimed
Online reports claimed that the actor was rushed to the hospital after experiencing a medical emergency on Wednesday afternoon, September 24. The 94-year-old had a problem with his blood sugar while at his Los Angeles home, and had to be hospitalized, TMZ reported. Shatner’s agency, however, has dismissed those reports as false.
Reports claimed that Shatner, best known for his role as Captain James T. Kirk on ‘Star Trek,’ made the call to emergency medical service workers after he realized something was wrong. An LAFD ambulance was then sent to his home as a precaution, TMZ reported. He was reportedly rushed to a local hospital to be evaluated, where he was reportedly doing “good” and “resting comfortably.”
William Shatner’s health struggles
Shatner, also known for his roles in ‘T.J. Hooker,’ ‘Boston Legal’ and ‘Miss Congeniality,’ is known for having kept an active lifestyle despite his age. In fact, he even made history as the oldest man ever to go into space in 2021. At the time, he was 90 and flew on Blue Origin’s NS-18 Mission.
However, Shatner has also been vocal about his health struggles throughout his acting career. He revealed in March 2024 that he had been diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma, and was being treated for it.
According to Cleveland Clinic, “Melanoma is the most invasive skin cancer with the highest risk of death. While it’s a serious skin cancer, it’s highly curable if caught early.”
When Shatner first visited his family doctor after noticing a simple lump under his right ear, he was told not to worry and to massage and monitor it, the actor previously told Healio. He received a second opinion after waiting for a month, which revealed that the lump was much more serious than he had thought.
Talking about the moment he learnt he had such a serious illness, Shatner said, “It was melanoma, stage 4. I said, ‘Stage 4?’ And someone in the room said, ‘Sorry.’ I said, “What are you sorry about?’ It was like, ‘Better pack your things.’ That person who said ‘sorry,’ that was very sad, like you are going to die. And I was. They said if this [treatment] they used did not work, I had about 5 months.”
Shatner managed to undergo surgery and get the lump under his right ear removed. The actor said that a strict immunotherapy regimen saved his life and made him cancer-free.
Shatner also suffers from “permanent” tinnitus, which is a condition where you “experience ringing or other noises in one or both of your ears,” according to Mayo Clinic. The condition was brought on after he was standing too close to a special effects explosion during the filming of the ‘Star Trek’ episode ‘Arena’ in 1967, the New York Post reported.
