Star Trek Fans; Who the heck is John Harrison??

Hey guys,

A new trailer has come out where Bruce Greenwood as Admiral Pike narrates:

"You have greatness in you," Pike says over a loving close-up of a steely-eyed Kirk (Chris Pine). "But there's not an ounce of humility. You think that you can't make mistakes. But there's going to come a moment where you realize you're wrong about that. And you're going to get yourself and everyone under your command killed."

You can see this new trailer here along with the name of this new villain played by Benedict Cumberbatch: John Harrison.





Now in this original trailer, below, this John Harrison guy says this:

But I have returned...to have my vengeance

Pretty cool the see what seems like the Enterprise smashing in the San Francisco Bay... but the real question is...

Who the heck is John Harrison??

In an interview, Cumberbatch says he’s playing a terrorist but rumours have been around for a while.

Could it be Khan?

Could it be Gary Mitchell?

Or a new character, unheard of yet?


There is this awkward moment at the end of the new trailer, where it seems that Kirk and Spock try to touch hands through a glass, a moment reminescent of Wrath of Khan and where Spock ( or could it be Harrison?) says:

Is there anything you would not do for your family?

If this Harrison guy isn't Khan, J.J. Abrams is certainly adding good hints that could nevertheless aim elsewhere...


So, Star Trek Fans, what say you?

reply to post by SonoftheSun


Kirk dies. No really, he dies.
Wait and see.
Remember, the universe has been unwritten.

reply to post by g146541


Kirk dies???

That would be quite a surprise but who knows... I doubt it though.

And you're cheating, you haven't answered the question...

From everything I have read so far about the movie (not a whole lot) is that this name has never existed before in the Star Trek universe, so it is either a cover name for who he actually will be in the movie (Khan?) or just a new villain entirely.

reply to post by SonoftheSun


Can't answer that question for the simplest of reasons, I dunno who he is.
But kirk does die, it is of no consequence though.
Ressurection is a regular hollywood thing, and the idea of Kirk EVAAAAR dying is waaay off the table.
I think that is why they did it, to dumbfound people and sell the sequel when he is brought back.

reply to post by SonoftheSun


I think you may be right to suggest Gary Mitchell as the villain. I've often wondered if Kirk truly killed Mitchell by causing Mitchell to tumble into that grave and then Kirk shooting the underpinnings of a large boulder on a facing cliff that fell and supposedly crushed Mitchell. Mitchell had become an exceptionally powerful being. Between the time he stumbled into the grave he had prepared for Kirk and the time it took for the boulder to fall on him seems more than enough time for Mitchell to protect himself and survive. Mitchell may have decided to let the Federation think him dead.

reply to post by g146541

I think that is why they did it

You seem convinced. That would bring crowds to a third installment for sure.

And thanks for answering!

reply to post by CalibratedZeus


I would also tend to think that it's a new villain all together.

But I wish it'd be Khan or Mitchell, especially Mitchell. Thanks for replying.

reply to post by apsalmist


Mitchell was God like and I also had trouble thinking he just got squished like a fly...

Mitchell or not, it seems that this Harrison guy will kick some serious butts. Thanks for dropping by.

The idea of a second installment of a JJ Trek is just sickening.

The first one had plot holes bigger than a the Romulan Empire itself. There were more wooden actors than you could shake a William Shatner at, and whilst the special effects were amazing, they ruined the bloody ship. Not to mention the lens flares and CONSTANT camera pans/tilts/shakes/zooms made everyone in the room feel sick.

What happened to telling a good story, without the need for sickening dialogue, sugarcoated special effects, and cheap jokes that aren't funny.

Sock "prime" (as he's now known), suddenly disregarded the Prime Directive, and the Temporal Prime Directive, by interfering in the time line.

Nero waited around the galaxy for TWENTY years before deciding to take revenge upon the Federation. What bad guy, in their right mind, with superior firepower, weapons and knowledge from the future, hangs around for TWENTY years before deciding to have his revenge.

Surely it would have been better for him to head straight to Romulus, give them detailed knowledge of the future, and attack the Federation that way. Then he'd have been assured that Romulus wouldn't have been destroyed. The weapons on his ship were much more advanced than anything in the Federation fleet, so just hand those over, and kick butt.... instead he hangs around, twiddling his thumbs. Presumably his crew do the same. Perhaps they had a few bowls of soup whilst they waited too!

It was a bad story, badly told, with quite a few crap actors.

I'm not paying anything to go and see the next one. Sadly though, it's likely to be a box office smash, because people don't appreciate real stories any more, they've prostituted themselves to special effects and lens flares.

reply to post by dampnickers

Surely it would have been better for him to head straight to Romulus, give them detailed knowledge of the future, and attack the Federation that way. Then he'd have been assured that Romulus wouldn't have been destroyed. The weapons on his ship were much more advanced than anything in the Federation fleet, so just hand those over, and kick butt.... instead he hangs around, twiddling his thumbs. Presumably his crew do the same. Perhaps they had a few bowls of soup whilst they waited too!

Thank you
I had the same problem. Also, now that there are two Spoks in the federation, wouldn't the entire federation then benefit from his advanced knowledge of EVERYTHING. He could by himself give them everything they would need to become a super power.

Also, if time travel is not new to the star trek universe, wouldn't the future federation that patrols time have corrected the alternate time line? Wouldn't they have gotten rid of Nero the second he emerged from the future?

That said, I like anything trek, even this JJ abomination. In my mind I see it as an alternate universe and that the original is still around. It would be nice to see a cross over, or the final installment be of Spok fixing the event that spawned it.

I agree with everything you said though.

reply to post by zedVSzardoz


I thank you deeply for the fact that you agree with me.

I can't agree with your idea that you like JJ's universe

It just doesn't sit right with me. Nor with my interpretation of Gene Rodenberry's Trek....

Again, I thank you for the compliment.

I went to see The Hobbit last night (IMAX 3D) and they previewed the first nine minutes (although it felt like fifteen or twenty minutes) of ST Into Darkess. It looks AWESOME ! The 3D effects were spectacular.

As for the story and who the villain might be, another possibility is being rumored that it could be George Samuel Kirk, James T's older brother. The english accent though...hmmm...

Alice Eve playing Dr Carol Marcus is nevertheless something that could point out to Khan or even Mitchell who'd have introduced her to Kirk.

Peter Weller is also rumored to be playing Robert April. This movie is kept under a tight lid. Rumors abound but no official leaks yet.

Sorry to disappoint some of you but I can't wait to see this new movie !!!

ETA: corrected time of prologue and adding this yt video that talks about it: