With plenty of footage from the film to shortly be seen and dissected by movie-going audiences everywhere, STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS has begun the long promotional road to release by violuntarily providing its first official plot synopsis. Except for a few set photos featuring stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Zachary Quinto as the still-unnamed villain and Spock respectively, J.J. Abrams and company have managed to keep the production almost completely a secret thus far. Like it or not as a filmmaking practice, it’s impressive that they’ve made it this far and are still able to promote the film on their terms this comparatively late in the game.
And so, I present to you the first official plot synopsis for the Enterprise’s next adventure:
“In Summer 2013, pioneering director J.J. Abrams will deliver an explosive action thriller that takes ‘Star Trek Into Darkness.’ When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world in a state of crisis. With a personal score to settle, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction. As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death, love will be challenged, friendships will be torn apart, and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left: his crew.”
After the picture below, I’ve added a small potentially spoilery comment of my own regarding the various villain rumors and how they might fit in with this synopsis. Scroll slowly at your own risk (though the information there is only my supposition and nothing official).
Kirk and his crew continue to explore the final frontier in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D on May 17th, 2013.
I don’t know what part Alice Eve has in STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS, but I like it.
Cumberbatch has been rumored to be one of two TREK characters from the already-established fiction: Khan, and Gary Mitchell (from the Original Series episode “Where No Man Has Gone Before”).
Gary Mitchell was a friend of Kirk’s from Starfleet Academy who, after passing through a Galactic Barrier, developed skills of telepathy and telekinesis (amongst others). Not only did these powers alter what he was capable of doing – they also altered his personality, and he progressively became more cruel and egotistical. He was driven more and more mad by his obsession with the idea that he had transcended his humanity, until he was eventually killed by Kirk. Seems to me to be that if Khan and Mitchell are our two choices for who Cumberbatch might be playing, based on the plot synopsis there’s a strong chance that it is in fact Mitchell. I don’t know about you, but I’m actually quite excited by that idea and by the expanded plot potential. You can read all about Mr. Mitchell in the Star Trek Wiki by clicking right here.