Pete Davidson, William Shatner and More Notable People Who Have Been (or Are Headed to) Space

Up, up and away! These stars are among the first civilians to go to space 

01 of 05

Pete Davidson

pete davidson
Pete Davidson. Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

The Saturday Night Live comedian will be the next celebrity to venture into space, when he embarks on Blue Origin's 20th mission on March 23, 2022.

As part of the mission, Davidson and his fellow passengers will each carry a postcard for Blue Origin's foundation Club for the Future and their Postcards to Space program, which gives students access to space on Blue Origin's rockets. The organization's mission is to inspire future generations to pursue STEM for the benefit of the Earth.

UPDATE: On March 17, Blue Origin announced that because of a shift in the launch schedule, Davidson could no longer join the mission.

02 of 05

William Shatner

Blue Origins vice president of mission and flight operations Audrey Powers (L) looks on as Star Trek actor William Shatner waves during a media availability on the landing pad of Blue Origin’s New Shepard after they flew into space on October 13, 2021 near Van Horn, Texas.
William Shatner. Mario Tama/Getty

The Star Trek actor became the oldest person to ever cross the Kármán line — the internationally recognized border of space — when he traveled aboard Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin New Shepard on Oct. 13, 2021.

The 90-year-old actor said of the experience, "When I was there [in space], everything I thought might be clever to say [about the trip] went out the window."

"Everything else just stood still for a moment," he added. "I was overwhelmed with the experience, with the sensation of looking at death and looking at life. It's become a cliché of how we need to take care of the planet, but it's so fragile."

03 of 05

Michael Strahan

Exclusive - Strahan - What he’s Bringing to Space Michael Strahan - Blue Origin NS-19
Blue Origin

The Good Morning America anchor embarked on the mission of a lifetime in December 2021, traveling to space on Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin, and becoming the first American news anchor to leave earth!

Ahead of the launch, Strahan revealed a list of sentimental items that he'd be taking into orbit exclusively to PEOPLE.

"That was beyond," Strahan told Jeff Bezos upon touching the ground. "I want to go back."

04 of 05

Jeff Bezos

Jeff Bezos
Chris Jackson/Getty

In July 2021, the Amazon founder took one small step for man and one giant leap for space tourism when he boarded the first space flight with humans on board for Blue Origin, the aerospace manufacturing and spaceflight company he founded in 2000.

"Best day ever," Bezos said after the capsule safely landed following the flight.

05 of 05

Richard Branson

Richard Branson
Virgin Galactic

In July 2021, nearly two decades after he founded Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson made his first trip to space. Branson, along with five other team members, embarked to the edge of outer space on the VSS Unity spacecraft on the company's first fully crewed flight test, a mission dubbed "Unity 22."

Related Articles