The teaser trailer for Star Trek Into Darkness ‘has all sorts of interesting things to ponder for Trek fans looking for insights into the movie. As we do with all new trailers and previews, TrekMovie takes an in depth shot-by-shot look at this trailer, trying to pry out the secrets. Find out what’s inside the trailer below, but beware of Spoilers.
Star Trek Into Darkness Teaser Trailer Analysis
Once again TrekMovie dives deep into the new trailer with a shot-by-shot analysis. The captions below are based on what TrekMovie considers to be confirmed information. In some cases it will note when there is supposition or conjecture.
(Click images to enlarge)
Trailer starts out with some quiet shots of San Francisco and the USS Enterprise…
Empty corridor and bridge of USS Enterprise
We now hear the voice of Admiral Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) speaking to Kirk with an ominous warning…
There is greatness in you. But there is not an ounce of humility. You think you can’t make mistakes. But there is going to come a moment when you realize you are wrong about that. And you are going to get yourself, and everyone under your command killed.
Capt. James T. Kirk in flight suit uniform
Kirk and Dr. Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy running from aliens on planet Nibiru – jump into ocean (to waiting submerged USS Enterprise – not seen here)
Kirk looks on (appears to be watching Harrison fight Klingons on Qo’noS)
Chekov runs though lower decks of Enterprise (wearing Engineering red)
Spock (apparently in command chair of USS Enterprise)
Unknown character (probably Harrison) looking down at destruction in a city (possibly from the bridge of a ship through broken screen/window)
Ships fly by in missing man formation (presumably for a memorial)
Federation flag being folded by Starfleet honor guard (presumably for a memorial ceremony)
What appears to be tubes with people inside of them (more on that below)…with two unknown characters leaving the holding room (cargo bay?)
Music changes again, now we hear the voice of John Harrison (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) who is (presumably) also speaking to Kirk, saying…
You think you are safe. You are not!
John Harrison in brig of USS Enterprise (note: ship is at red alert)…wearing Starfleet uniform
Small ship fires through window of a building (possibly related to Starfleet meeting attack seen in ‘announcement trailer’)
Unknown character (possibly Kirk) in space suit dodging debris (possibly over Earth’s moon or similar cratered body)
USS Enterprise sustaining damage
Kirk and Scotty unable to grab unknown crewperson as they fall/slide down Enterprise corridor
(Presumably) Klingon ship chases smaller craft (possibly on Qo’noS)
Once again the musical tone changes and again we hear Harrison, this time asking a question…
Is there anything you would not do…for your family?
Kirk enters room on USS Enterprise
John Harrison in command chair of a ship (not USS Enterprise)
Explosion (possibly on Enterprise)
Dr. Carol Marcus screams (note someone is on the ground behind her)
"Father" (played by Noel Clarke as seen in 9-minute IMAX preview) drops Starfleet Academy ring into glass of water
Scotty is just hanging on by his fingertips (unknown location)
Kirk in space suit looks a little concerned (probably due to his visor cracking and the whole dying in the vacuum of space thing)
Kirk punches John Harrison and Spock and Uhura look on (presumably on Qo’noS)
John Harrison beats someone up (note victims wrist in lower image)
Kirk (presumably at scene of Starfleet meeting attack) fires phaser rifle through window at what appears to be same ship hovering outside building (see above)
Spock jumps off floating barge or platform
Ship (not the USS Enterprise) crashes into San Francisco Bay
Kirk (at location of Starfleet meeting attack seen in ‘Announcement Trailer’) looks concerned
(Presumably) Kirk and Spocks hands touch through transparent wall
What have we learned? What about those tubes?
The trailer confirms (or at least implies) some new things for Star Trek Into Darkness...
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The father (Noel Clarke) is a member of Starfleet
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The USS Enterprise sustains some serious damage
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At some point in the film Chekov is reassigned to Engineering
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A small ship is used to attack (presumably Starfleet) building
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Some major damage is done to a city (possibly London or San Francisco)
Also it can’t go without saying, but those tubes could be a HUGE clue. One possibility is that they are coffins for whoever was killed in the Starfleet meeting attack. While coffins are a possibility, windows on coffins (especially coffins following a terrorist attack with possible severely disfigured corpses) seems unlikely. Another line of speculation could be that these are some kind of bio-isolation chambers and could be related to the sick girl seen in the IMAX preview. This is a more plausible theory, but the girl wasn’t isolated in the IMAX preview. It also may not fight with the sheer number of tubes, but a plausible theory.
However, another intriguing possibility is that this is a clue to the true identity of John Harrison. TrekMovie’s John Tenuto put together this comparison shot from the Star Trek episode "Space Seed," which introduced Khan Noonien Singh.
Top from Star Trek’s "Space Seed" and bottom image from "Into Darkness" trailer
There appears to be frost on the windows, which would indicate a cold environment within. That indicates these could be cryo-chambers for keeping people in stasis, like those seen on the Botany Bay in "Space Seed." These chambers held Khan’s crew of genetic supermen. One could say that if these are his fellow genetically engineered exiles from the Eugenics Wars, they could be the "family" he refers to in the dialog heard in the trailer.
Regardless, it is also intriguing to speculate as to who are the two figures seen leaving this room (cargo bay?). The one on the right might be Cumberbatch’s Harrison. The one on the left appears taller and more broad-shouldered (and possibly has a pony tail). The white outfits might indicate medical staff?
Who are these guys?
VOTE: One more guess the villain poll
Now that you have seen the second trailer (and the IMAX preview), who do you think is the villain?
[poll id=”706″]
Interesting. Who knows, could be Kahn yet. Though there’s a part of me that would be disappointed with the lack of originality. Still, maybe a fresh take on Kahn could have enough originality.
Dr. Carol Marcus screaming gif should become a meme.
Me first?
This could very well be the most sophisticated Star Trek Flick…ever!
Did you notice The Motion Picture insigna pin?
Thank you so much for this Anthony!, I am absolutely looking forward to this movie.
1. If you plan on killing Pike, please use this break until the movie comes out to fix that and kill Kirk instead. Kirk is a jerk.
Or the tubes could be the caskets of the starfleet personnel killed in the terrorist attack…
I’m thinking the scene with the rows and rows of cryo tubes might be a “final” (or at least toward the end) type shot. Ala Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Perhaps we’re looking at Starfeet’s (or some regulatory authority’s) temporary solution to the augments. Just freeze em. They’ll be tucked safely away from society.
just a guess, of course.
Isn’t Scotty hanging on by his fingertips in Engineering?
The area above his head looks like the area the Warp Core(s) eject at the end of the 2009 film. It also fits with the rest of the ship being upended.
Hmm. Post disappeared.
Anthony did I say anything out of order by saying that there’s alot of outfits in this movie? I didn’t curse or anything so I’m not sure why that merited a deletion.
Anyway, as I said in the other thread, looks even better than the 9 minutes.
I guessed it Khan with a twist. Harrison could be Jachim (sp).
2. Don’t kill Chekov, he’s just seventeen. :(
Anybody else concerned that the look of the Botany Bay and the cryotubes should not have been affected by the timeline split, and therefore should lookexactly the same as in “Space Seed?”
@Luther Sloan – I noticed that too. Curious. Very curious.
I’m starting to think that is the case – he is a superman but not Khan himself, just one of the followers probably looking to restore Khan, a lot like the storyline from ENT. Or perhaps just bring back the idea of genetic work being able to save people (thus explaining Noel Clarke’s character and their dilemma)
Here’s my take. BC *is* an augment. But not Khan. The film will end with him waking up Khan just in time for the third film.
This also explains where Chekov was at during Space Seed, he was assigned to engineering. But this time maybe the Klingons got to the Botany Bay first and “Harrison” is trying to free them. I have to say the first movie kind of disappointed me but I am looking forward to seeing this one in May.
Now that I’ve seen those tubes, I’m in the Harrison is Kahn camp. Although I’m not thrilled with the idea (I wanted a new baddie).
– Harry
Where is Peter Weller? :-(
another theory is the ship kirk is firing at through the window could be the Botany Bay. This trailer is awesome may cant come soon enough
Federation flag being folded by Starfleet honor guard (presumably for a memorial ceremony)….or a surrender.
Spock seems to jumping off of everything in this movie.
Hey Anthony, thanks for contributing to the gigantic misdirect on those stasis tubes. There couldn’t be any other possible explanation!!
3. This Spock dislikes Kirk, wants him dead, spends all his free time away from him? It’s getting old.
Where is that friendship that is supposed to define them both?
It’s not gonna happen with Bones being the only one around Kirk and Uhura hogging all Spock’s time and the two of them never meeting unless both are on the bridge at the same time.
Okay so it looks like that the red plane/ship that Spock jumps on is the one that attacked Starfleet HQ, as well as being the vehicle that Kirk fires on through the window. Since it matches up with the leaked fight photos between Spock and Cumbers, I think it’s safe to assume it’s being piloted by Harrison… Quite interesting.
The small ship attack on the building at night matches the shot of Kirk defending himself with the phaser rifle. But the building also resembles Kirk’s cylindrical apartment tower in TWOK.
Cumberbatch as Khan in my opinon would be like Harvey Dent changing from Billy Dee Williams in Batman to Tommy Lee Jones in Batman Forever.
A new Klingon BOP and Augment stasis chambers = nerdgasm.
ANYBODY NOTICE there are NO DEPICTIONS of alleged SUPERHUMAN STRENGTH in this trailer?
Interesting …
Please don’t redo Khan! please don’t redo Khan! Please don’t redo Khan!
Can anyone read the lettering on that red flyer ship? I see a “208” and then something below it. If that’s Harrison’s ship it could be a clue.
I really don’t mind who ‘John Harrison’ turns out to be… it looks like he’s going to be a formidable foe for Kirk and co.
The cynic in me does think that vast amount of uniform changes each characters has (Chekov in gold and red uniform, Kirk in what appears to be 5 or more outfits) seems to be a merchandising tool – see how many action figure variants they can get out it it…
but that aside I am so excited to see this film. After Star Trek (2009) I have complete faith in J.J. and his team to bring us the best Trek yet.
Why isn’t it May already?! arg!
It will be unorginal and riffing off a better Trek movie
I think it’s safe to say that the eugenics war theme will be a major factor in the story. What if John Harrison is Kahn’s boss?
@14 Blair “Anybody else concerned that the look of the Botany Bay and the cryotubes …. should lookexactly the same as in “Space Seed?”
Reality can be subjective. The past is never exactly what you remember. I seem to remember Captain Kirk having a very different face and voice in Space Seed, not sure how to explain that, and the bridge of that Klingon Bird of Prey really seemed like it changed completely between movies III and IV.
But anyway, I’ll say that as a fan I generally agree with you, sets shouldn’t change that dramatically if referencing previous productions, but somehow I don’t think that’s an issue here. I don’t think this the Botany Bay or anything we saw in Space Seed.
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I don’t think it will be the best ever Trek but it will be a great movie.
I think that John Harrison is an augment, but not Kahn (because you’ve seen the stasis chambers in the trailer). Kahn will appear in the end of the film (cliffhanger) as a shadow.
Until we see the last two digits of the registry number, we can’t be sure that’s Enterprise. It could say 1702 for all we know.
Also, is it just me or does it look like the deflector dish is ”hanging off” a little?
Leaked set pics from Spock/Harrison fight = top of that building Spock is jumping off of in the teaser?
In the scene with the tubes … the guy who appears in the background wearing a yellow suit I think … ? … who is he? Harrison??
“The cynic in me does think that vast amount of uniform changes each characters has (Chekov in gold and red uniform, Kirk in what appears to be 5 or more outfits) seems to be a merchandising tool – see how many action figure variants they can get out it it…”
I know, right? I don’t really care if it’s just to sell action figures though…since I’ll probably buy them. ;) In the post I made that was deleted, I joked that there’s more outfit changes on these guys than Queen Amidala.
Anyone else catch that the Klingon Bird of Prey’s wings are rising in brief glimpse we get?
The building from which Spock jumps looks an awful lot like the “space barge set” seen in the behind the scences photos:
https://trekmovie.com/2012/02/24/more-photos-from-star-trek-set-imax-camera-spotted/
Looks like a boring – albeit slicky made – action film. A brain-dead film for a brain-dead audience. I’ll pass on it, methinks.
Hey RedShirt, I don’t think that’s a building. As I mentioned above, that looks like the ship that Kirk was firing on through the window in another shot.
This movie’s title should be, “Star Trek Into Base Jumping”, judging by all the cliff- and skyscraper leaps we see.
Spock is merely attempting the Adama Maneuver.
http://scifanatic.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/stid-t2-26.jpg
All that damage to the Enterprise is pretty awesome/terrible… looks like the deflector isn’t just damaged. It looks like it’s about to sheer off of the ship completely… wonder if we will see a refit Enterprise by the end of the movie…
so to summarize:
The fact that the call number on the ship is __C-17__ is NOT proof that it is the enterprise, but capsules sitting planetside somewhere is IRREFUTABLE PROOF that Khan is in the movie.
Got it.
I still want to know why Spock is doing Yoga in the Volcano as the lava is rising and bubbling around him in the prolouge.
I mean seriously Yoga? YOGA! come on this is Star Trek not Riverdance.