A whole new generation of sci-fi fans has been introduced to ‘Star Trek’ thanks to the Paramount films from J.J. Abrams (who has since jumped to the dark side for ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’). However, the starship Enterprise and it’s crew first came to prominence in the realm of television. It has been eight years since we’ve last seen a ‘Trek’ series on TV, but there are some out there who are championing for that streak to end sooner rather than later.

In a recent interview with Nerd Bastards to promote the documentary ‘The Captains: Close Up’, the iconic Captain James T. Kirk himself, William Shatner, expressed the importance of having ‘Star Trek’ on TV, not just for the franchise, but for science and future young minds in general:

“You know, I think you’re right. Because, JJ Abrams has found the key to getting a large audience into the movie theater, and that’s the ride. So you get a lot of the CGI effects, which is the epic movie making aspect of today, whereas in Cecile B. Demille’s time, you had to use real people. Now you don’t need to use real people and you can have infinity for God’s sake.

That’s in order to get you into the theater, because the majesty of the movie is shown by the large screen. But when you get into the small screen, you need stories… entertaining, interesting, vital stories that have a philosophy and also have an excitement about them, so that the viewer stays with it, but recieves the philosophy as a byproduct. Those were the best of Star Trek, those kinds of stories. And that kind of thing, there is always room for that. That kind of imaginative approach that stirs young people into wanting to be connected with science.”

Shatner does make a very interesting point as there are many scientists working today that site ‘Star Trek’ as a reason for them getting into the field, so it’s easy to see why one would want the series to make a return to the small screen for the sake of science. History tells us that Gene Roddenberry’s landmark show hasn’t been able to stay off of television for very long, so it’s very possible that it’s only a matter of time before we see a new Star Fleet captain on TV once again.

Do you want to see ‘Star Trek’ on TV again? Do you think that Paramount and CBS will come around to the idea of bringing it back to where it started? What do you think a new series would entail? Share your thoughts in the comments below.