Legendary Star Trek actor William Shatner, longtime Montreal Gazette hockey writer Red Fisher and director Denis Villeneuve will be among this year's Order of Canada recipients.
They were among 29 Quebecers on a list of honorees released Friday.
The Montreal-born Shatner was named an Officer of the Order of Canada for his contributions to popular culture — he is, of course, the actor who portrayed Captain James T. Kirk on Star Trek, in both television and film — and for his philanthropic work.
Denis Villeneuve was also named an Officer. Last year, he was nominated for an Oscar as best director for his film Arrival, and in 2011 his film Incendies was nominated as best foreign-language film. Villeneuve's most recent work was the theatrical hit Blade Runner 2049.
Red Fisher began his career writing about the Montreal Canadiens in 1955 — his first assignment, in fact, was to sit in the stands at the Montreal Forum and write a color piece on what mushroomed into the infamous Richard Riot on March 17, 1955 — and continued covering the team until his retirement in 2012. He began with the Montreal Star before moving to the Gazette shortly after the Star folded in 1979.
Also on the list was Barry Sherman, the founder of the generic drug giant Apotex, who was found dead, along with his wife, at their Toronto home on Dec. 15 under mysterious circumstances. The decision to honor Sherman was made before his sudden death.