Skip to content
Answering Your Questions About Reactor: Right here.
Sign up for our weekly newsletter. Everything in one handy email.
When one looks in the box, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the cat.

Cumberbatch’s Star Trek Into Darkness Villain Revealed (Again) and He’s…a Redshirt?

Reactor

Home / Cumberbatch’s Star Trek Into Darkness Villain Revealed (Again) and He’s…a Redshirt?
Column Star Trek

Cumberbatch’s Star Trek Into Darkness Villain Revealed (Again) and He’s…a Redshirt?

By

Published on December 10, 2012

Someone's about to get Cumber-slapped
Someone's about to get Cumber-slapped

The above Star Trek Into Darkness photo, released yesterday, reveals Benedict Cumberbatch’s character in the Enterprise brig (hereafter known as the Cumberbrig). The Paramount Pictures-sanctioned caption released with that photo?

(Left to right) Zachary Quinto is Spock, Benedict Cumberbatch is John Harrison and Chris Pine is Kirk in STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS from Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions.

There we have it. We know who our Star Trek Into Darkness villain is. Except, um, we don’t. Writers Orci and Kurzman and director J.J. Abrams are probably still messing with us.

John Harrison is the nom de plume given to Star Trek actor Ron Veto, who played many an unnamed extra in the show’s first season. Literally, he’s a redshirt—although you can also catch him in blue and gold—and the name wasn’t particularly associated with the actor.

Hi. I’m John Harrison. Today, anyway.
Who’s that nurse holding Sulu down? John Harrison. Who’s that technician on the bridge? Oh, that’s John Harrison. Who’s that security officer? Why, that’s Lieutenant John Harrison. When the script or show needed to name a random crewman walking down the hall? John Harrison. Hi. I’m John Harrison. Today, anyway.

While there was definitely a “role” to play, there was no character there. So what does this mean now that the name has been attached to Benedict Cumberbatch’s character in Star Trek Into Darkness? Two things:

1.) His name is actually John Harrison and his character is a commentary on how no one pays any attention to him/the redshirts and now he’s a crazed super-powered terrorist who just wants JOHN Spock to love him.

2.) Abrams, Orci, and Kurzman are messing with us and we still don’t know the real name of Cumberbatch’s character. After all, “John Harrison” was almost literally a placeholder name in the original show. The same could easily be said here. (And these guys are no strangers to messing with the fans regarding the info surrounding this movie.)

What do you think?


Stubby the Rocket is the mascot of Tor.com. Stubby thinks John Harrison is real and is probably the one who jumped off the building at the end of Sherlock season 2.

About the Author

About Author Mobile

Stubby the Rocket

Author

Learn More About Stubby
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
20 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments