William Shatner Gives Miss Congeniality's "Perfect Date" Joke a New Twist

It's been almost two decades since William Shatner and Heather Burns made April 25 the most "perfect date" of the year.

That's right! Miss Congeniality first hit theaters in 2000, and Shatner and Burns won viewers over with their portrayals of pageant host Stan Fields and Miss Rhode Island Cheryl Fraiser. One of their most memorable scenes was when Fields asked Fraiser to describe her perfect date.

"That's a tough one," the contestant replied. "I'd have to say April 25 because it's not too hot, not too cold. All you need is a light jacket." 

Fans haven't forgotten about the scene and neither has Shatner. The 87-year-old actor took to Instagram on Wednesday to invite people to share their own "perfect dates" as part of a new campaign with online dating service Match.com. 

"Hey Miss Rhode Island, who knew that your response was going to turn into a national holiday? The perfect date, remember? ‘Not too hot, not too cold, just bring a light jacket,'" Shatner stated in a video. "And to think it was 20 years ago that I asked that question…Well, I'm back and I've teamed up with Match to ask that same iconic question, ‘What is your perfect date?''

Shatner told viewers he would be monitoring social media to find his favorite responses and that the person with the best response would win $500 to make their fantasy date a reality. Sorry, no tiara or sash up for grabs this time. 

All participants have to do is write their perfect date idea in the comments section of the post and include the hashtag #theperfectdate and Shatner's and Match's Instagram tags.

"So, tag the tag; post the post; do the darn thing; and have a perfect date," he told viewers. "And, don't forget to bring your light jacket."

He then ended the video by blowing a kiss and saying, "Perfect."

Miss Congeniality is about an FBI agent who goes undercover as a pageant contestant to prevent someone from attacking the annual Miss United States competition.

In addition to starring Shatner and Burns, the movie featured Sandra Bullock, Michael Caine, Benjamin Bratt and Candice Bergen.