So, we know that Benedict Cumberbatch is playing a villain in STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS and that he has connections with Kirk and Spock, but we still don’t know who he really is. Sure, the other day we learned his character is named John Harrison, but that feels like a fake name. Of course, we will all look like dumbasses if he turns out to be John Harrison and not someone else, but the speculation is still fun!
In a recent interview with MTV, Cumberbatch gave us some more details as to who John Harrison is and what his motivations are.
“He’s a terrorist; he operates as a terrorist. He has extraordinary physical powers, but also mental powers. He can sow an idea, which is as powerful as gunshots or close-hand combat, which he’s masterful in. He tears into the fabric of both the world and the Enterprise family, and he leaves behind him a trail of devastation. It’s quite exciting to watch.”
Okay, that could still be Khan or Gary Mitchell. Go on, Benedict.
“Giving away the full motivation would ruin it, but it’s personal. It’s also political, I think. He’s somebody who, at some point in the film, you should feel a certain amount of empathy towards his cause, if not his means. … There’s no two-dimensional obstacle he presents purely and simply by the fact that he’s opposing our hero”
Still easily could be Khan or Mitchell, but I am leaning more Khan based on the polticial motivation as Khan was seeking world/galactic supremacy.
Cumberbatch also related his character’s connection with our heroes: “He has an interesting relationship with Kirk, and with Spock in a way. He very much plays them off against each other. There’s an element of shadow to him and Kirk.”
Kirk got some good rises out of Spock emotionally in the first film and having a third character who is not a love interest pit the two friends against each other sounds like a good time. Here is to hoping that, if Cumberbatch is truly not Khan or Gary Mitchell, that this John Harrison will be an iconic villain in the STAR TREK mythology.
STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS opens on May 17, 2013.
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