It’s a British invasion over at the ‘Star Trek 2’ set! Joining Simon Pegg (good ol’ Scotty himself) and fellow Brits Alice Eve (whose role is still under wraps) and Noel Clarke (who will be playing a father) will be UK ‘Sherlock’ series star Benedict Cumberbatch! But the news gets even better…it’s now been revealed that Cumberbatch will be playing the villain in the sequel!
If you recall, J.J. Abrams originally wanted Benicio Del Toro for the villainous role but contract negotiations broke down and he declined the part. Edgar Ramirez (‘The Bourne Conspiracy’, ‘Wrath of the Titans’) and others were being considered but it eventually went to Cumberbatch who “blew them all away” with his audition. Variety has confirmed that Cumberbatch “landed the role that Edgar Ramirez had auditioned for last month.”
Now the question is “Who will this villain be?” Abrams has been pretty hush-hush about this character. Even before casting started, the rumors or Khan’s return began to surface. It didn’t help that the previous actors considered for the villain role were of Hispanic descent (just like Ricardo Montalban when he played Khan) which only seemed to fuel the fire of speculations. This latest casting coup seems to have thrown Trekkies for a loop with some hoping that Cumberbatch will be a whole new original villain.
Although Cumberbatch may not be a household name in the US yet, he will be soon. He’s currently starring in Steven Spielberg’s ‘War Horse’ as Major Steward and can also be seen in ‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy’ as Peter Gulliam. He will also voice and animate (via motion capture) Smaug the Dragon and be the voice of Necromancer in Peter Jackson’s ‘The Hobbit: There and Back Again.’ His series ‘Sherlock’ has just begun its second season and should air on PBS stations in the US hopefully in the next few months. You can watch a clip from the episode that just aired recently below.
Cumberbatch is an excellent actor and his addition to the movie adds more mystery about what the storyline for ‘Star Trek 2’ will be about. With filming to start within the next few weeks, no doubt more casting developments will be released so make sure you follow us on Twitter and Facebook so you don’t miss any news!
