William Shatner visited space Wednesday in a brief trip he called “the most profound experience I can imagine.”
In an emotional conversation with Blue Origin and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos afterward, he sought to translate raw emotion into words and reflect on what had just occurred.
But it seems Shatner’s post-flight demeanor varied wildly from the expectations of Bezos, whose first instinct was not to join Shatner in a somber reflection on the significance of space ― but to cut him off mid-thought so he could drench some wealthy people in Champagne:
“Give me a Champagne bottle, c’mere. I want one,” Bezos says in a video of the moment, gesturing to a woman on the periphery who gamely brings one over.
“I want to hear this,” he adds while talking over Shatner, before offering him the open bottle: “Here, you want a little of this?”
Shatner scratches his head and gazes at the ground, declining Bezos’ offer. Bezos then gives the bottle a hearty shake and proceeds to spray it all over amid celebratory screams.
(Bezos did give Shatner plenty of time to share his thoughts shortly afterward.)
The moment struck a chord on Twitter: