James T. Kirk

James Tiberius Kirk, often known as Captain Kirk, is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. Originally played by Canadian actor William Shatner, Kirk is best known as the captain of the starship USS Enterprise in the original Star Trek series (1966–1969). Kirk leads his crew as they explore new worlds and "boldly go where no man has gone before". Often, the characters of Spock and Leonard "Bones" McCoy act as his logical and emotional sounding boards, respectively.

Kirk first appears in the Star Trek episode "The Man Trap", broadcast on September 8, 1966, although the first episode recorded featuring Shatner was "Where No Man Has Gone Before". Shatner continued in the role for the show's three seasons, and he later provided the voice of the animated version of Kirk in Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973–1974). Shatner returned to the role for Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) and six subsequent films. Kirk has also been portrayed in numerous films, books, comics, webisodes, and video games. The character has also been the subject of multiple spoofs and satires.

American actor Chris Pine portrays a young version of the character in the 2009 Star Trek film and its two sequels. Paul Wesley portrays Kirk on the Paramount+ series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022–present), set prior to Kirk's captaincy of the Enterprise.^[1]