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‘Star Trek’ actor George Takei sets internet abuzz with ‘Olympic-sized’ April Fool’s prank

George Takei pranks the internet with an ‘Olympic-sized’ April fool’s joke. — Picture via Twitter/GeorgeTakei
George Takei pranks the internet with an ‘Olympic-sized’ April fool’s joke. — Picture via Twitter/GeorgeTakei

KUALA LUMPUR, April 2 — American actor and LGBTQ icon George Takei sent Twitter into a frenzy yesterday after announcing that he had been selected as the final torchbearer for the delayed 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games.

It however turned out that the 82-year-old Star Trek actor had just pulled an April Fool’s day joke on his followers.

“I am honoured beyond belief to have been selected to be the final torchbearer who will light the Olympic Flame in Tokyo in 2021.

“This will be such a unique moment, before the eyes of a billion people, lighting the torch as a symbol of hope for the future in 2021 in Tokyo,” read Takei’s initial tweet.

Takei posted the news on social media with a picture of himself holding a torch standing next to a table with various memorabilia, including his uniform from the popular science fiction show, Star Trek.

 

 

Takei’s witty torch tale even made headlines on several international media who fell for the Los Angeles-born actor’s joke.

Traditionally, the distinct honour of becoming a torchbearer is granted to a citizen of the host nation.

Hours after making his “big” announcement, Takei came clean by revealing that it was an April fool’s joke.

“Yes, friends, I'm afraid this was an April Fools prank, a bit of levity in an otherwise dark time.

“And while I’ll not be lighting that fire myself, my eyes will look upon it as a symbol of our triumph over this invisible foe and a reuniting of the global community,” he wrote on Twitter.

 

 

This, however, isn’t the first time Takei had amused the internet with his April fool’s pranks.

In 2017, the actor dropped a bombshell that he was moving to California to challenge a US representative in the 2018 midterm elections.

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