Nathan Fillion Played Captain Kirk in 'Star Trek' Special

Nathan Fillion played Captain Kirk in a surprise script reading during the 60th anniversary event for Star Trek, held by the Writers Guild Foundation.

The reading featured the episode "Mudd's Passion" from the first season of Star Trek: The Animated Series. Alongside Fillion, the cast for the reading of "Mudd's Passion" included: D'Arcy Carden as Mr. Spock, Paul Scheer also as Spock, Adam Arkin as Harry Mudd, and Aimee Garcia as Nurse Chapel. 

Next, there was a reading of the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, "The Man Trap", with cast members from HBO Max's The Pitt, including Noah Wyle as Kirk, Katherine LaNasa as Dr. McCoy, Taylor Dearden as Spock, and Fiona Dourif as Nancy Crater. Clark Gregg and Iman Vellani also took part.

The event comes at a time of uncertainty for the franchise's future on TV, with Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy coming to an end and no new projects confirmed.

The 60th anniversary celebration of Star Trek, however, continues with tributes like this one, bringing together contemporary stars to revisit the earliest episodes of the original and animated series.