Star Trek’s George Takei starts new chapter with Hong Kong-based gaming company Fifth Journey
Takei, now 80, reflects on Hollywood whitewashing and Trump’s treatment of ‘the others’ as he boldly goes into the world of gaming
George Takei apologises in advance because he may cough uncontrollably and unpredictably, which is why he is in bed the morning of our telephone interview from New York.
The 80-year-old Japanese-American actor and activist has been in the Big Apple performing in an off-Broadway show called Pacific Overtures. It was supposed to end on June 2, but its popularity led to a two-week extension.
“When I’m working I don’t get to do New York things, but it was Memorial Day and we went down to see Oculus, the futuristic looking transportation hub by architect Santiago Calatrava, whose work I admire,” he says.
He also visited the One World Trade Centre observatory, and it was upon returning home that he came down with the chills and felt exhausted, and so the need to recuperate.
Nevertheless, he is eager to talk about another of his projects. It was announced last night that Takei has been appointed creative director of Hong Kong-based Fifth Journey. The company, founded in March 2015, works with film studios to appoint developers and publishers for next-generation mobile games, virtual reality entertainment and Esports.
It has been involved in mobile games based on movie franchises including The Expendables, and an interactive game involving comedian and actor Kevin Hart.