Speaking about the much-speculated-about 'Star Trek Into Darkness' villain, Cumberbatch gushes that the character is 'remarkably rational and wildly, insidiously brilliant.'
- Dec 13, 2012
AceShowbiz - Another day means another speculation surrounding the mystery behind Benedict Cumberbatch's villainous character in "Star Trek Into Darkness". After J.J. Abrams weighed in on the much-talked-about figure, who is now known as John Harrison, this time, it is Cumberbatch himself who gives his comment on the soon-to-be-iconic character.
To ET Online, Cumberbatch admits that he enjoys fans' wild speculations about the character he's playing in the "Star Trek" sequel. He says, "Maybe you can break me. I enjoy [the speculation], because I appreciate the reasons for it. I really, really do."
Giving a little hint about the bad guy, the British thesp describes the character as a "terrorist." He explains that Harrison is "someone who's a fearsome warrior and he's an expert in hand-to-hand combat and weaponry, as well as being a psychological terrorist - he's a great manipulator of minds to perform his intentions and do his bidding."
"But he has a cause; however violent and destructive the effects of his actions are, the reasons and intentions behind them are pretty noble, so hopefully at some stage in the story you'll have a sympathy for him, which should be unexpected but should be genuine. He's fighting for something he believes in, as strong as those who are defending Starfleet and the Enterprise itself."
Gushing that his antagonist role is going to be brilliant, the actor best known for playing on TV series "Sherlock" states, "He's remarkably rational and wildly, insidiously brilliant." He goes on, "Part of the fun of this bad guy is he's not just a raving lunatic. He's somebody you can talk to and get seduced by."
In a different interview with MTV, Cumberbatch once again stresses that Harrison is a terrorist but he refuses to reveal if the name is just an alias of another master villain. "He's a terrorist; he operates as a terrorist," he dishes, adding that the character "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."
Since it was revealed that the new "Star Trek" bad guy was named John Harrison, many fans have been speculating that Harrison is just an alias that is used to hide the real identity of the villain. The same strategy was used when Marion Cotillard claimed she would play an all-new character called Miranda Tate, who turned out to be a major villain in "The Dark Knight Rises".
The answer behind the massive speculations about Cumberbatch's villainous character will be answered when "Star Trek Into Darkness" opens in theaters Stateside on May 17, 2013.
