Sunday brought another awards show with Star Trek Into Darkness celebs presenting, this time it was Simon Pegg and Alice Eve at the BAFTA Film Awards in London. On the red carpet Eve weighed in on the most persistent rumor about co-star Benedict Cumberbatch’s character, and Pegg said he expects JJ Abrams (who is set to direct the next Star Wars movie) to return and direct a 3rd Star Trek film. Details below plus videos and images of the pair at the BAFTAs. UPDATED: Pegg tweets clarification on JJ directing 3rd Star Trek
Alice Eve: Cumberbatch Not Play Khan
On Sunday night the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Film Awards were held in London and Star Trek’s Simon Pegg was in attendance. Pegg (a BAFTA-nominee in 2002) was there to present Best Adapted Screenplay along with Jennifer Garner. And Pegg’s Star Trek Into Darkness co-star Alice Eve was also at the BAFTAs to present the Costume and Hair and Make-up awards.
On the red carpet Eve was asked about her work in Star Trek and specifically about the reports that Benedict Cumberbatch is playing Khan (the secret identity of John Harrison) in Into Darkness. Eve flat out denied (to BAFTAonline) the reports saying "he’s not playing Khan." Watch the interview below.
Pegg: I hope JJ Doesn’t Forget us Trekkies + expects Abrams to direct 3rd Star Trek
And well-known geek and fan of both Star Wars and Star Trek talked about JJ Abrams directing for both franchises. Pegg noted to AbsoluteRadio "JJ is the perfect choice for [Star Wars], I just hope he doesn’t forget us Trekkies in the corner." And later in the video Pegg quickly said "He will do Star Trek 3" in reply to a question on if he believes Abrams will be back.
UPDATE: Pegg clarifies his statement about JJ directing 3rd Star Trek via Twitter saying he doesn’t know.
Just to be clear, contrary to reports in the press, I have no idea whether or not JJ will helm Star Trek 3.
— Simon Pegg (@simonpegg) February 11, 2013
Pegg also talked to BAFTAonline about his JJ Abrams connection to co-presenter Jennifer Garner and about his upcoming film The World’s End.
More Photos
Finally, here are more photos of Pegg and Eve at the BAFTAs.
Pegg is looking good, especially as he had tweeted about suffering an glasses malfunction shortly before the event
My glasses just broke. This is a disaster! I’ve mended them with a key ring. Do you think anyone will notice? twitpic.com/c2kl5u
— Simon Pegg (@simonpegg) February 10, 2013
1) Holy cow, Alice Eve looks amazing.
2) Take THAT, “He’s Khan” crowd.
3) Holy cow, Alice Eve looks amazing.
4) Take THAT, “He’s Khan” crowd.
Woah Alice Eve!
And when asked about a director for the 3rd Trek movie…. Pegg replies he will do trek 3… Thank god!
He may not be playing Khan, but it’s likely he’s an augment and that Khan will appear in the film, if not in person, then at least by reference.
If Cumberbatch could be playing a deaged Captain April would he still know all the Starfleet codes and that’s how he could take down most of the Fleet and looks like he gets into Starfleet HQ?
Yeah Simon,that’s what I hope too.
I see where Pegg is coming from, as a hard core Trekkie I would hate to see Abrams treat Star Trek as a jilted lover now, which I fear he might do. I personally don’t care if he directs the next one or not, as it is Star Trek I am a fan of more, not JJ Abrams, Trek was there before him and it will be there after him.
I just want Trek treated with love and respect, not like a jilted lover.
The evidence for Khan seems too strong. I’m betting she is Marion Cotillarding through her teeth.
So no Khan, then?
“He’s not playing Khan.” Thank you Alive Eve.
And thank you Simon for expressing our hopes as well.
Yep. That’s what I got too!
Alice Eve said “he (BC) is not playing Khan!”
and Simon Pegg said “he (JJ) will do the third (Star Trek film)”. He was quite dismissive of any notions suggesting otherwise, ie that JJ Abrams would not direct the next Star Trek film.
I guess JJ won’t just need to worry about the possibility of being kidnapped by Chris Pine. I suspect that Simon Pegg may also lend a helping hand…:)
There is next to no evidence at all that John Harrison is really Khan. Never was.
“We’re just trying to protect the film.”
Yes, Simon, but Alice needs to be a little more convincing than that.
I did not like the dress of Alice … but I really liked her attitude!
To me it doesn’t matter if Abrams directs the thirteenth Trek film or not. I will scream if its another villain out for revenge though.
As the date approaches I am beginning to warm up my excitement a bit more. Because Abrams take is not as in depth as the prime universe I will admit I am more looking forward to season 3 of TNG on blu ray more , as that is Trek I love, but as we get closer to the release date of Into Darkness my excitement is growing.
Maybe JJ’s taken a page out of Robert Zemeckis’s/Peter Jackson’s books, and filmed ST3 in secret alongside ST2.
Doubt it, but Back to the Future 2&3, LOTR 1-3, Hobbits 1-2 and change….
Coulda, shoulda woulda
Rose –
To say there is no evidence “at all” seems a little erroneous. Latino Review is among the most reliable sites in this field and have never budged from Khan. When it comes to Star Trek, I would wager there is no closer site to the creative team than TrekMovie who have ALSO come out with correlating info.
Then there is weaker, circumstantial evidence. The latino casting process that predated Cumberbatch’s casting, the “Khan” slip from Quinto.
I’m not saying there’s a smoking gun, but there is more evidence for Khan than any other canon character, as of now.
Hahaha! I knew people would convince themselves Alice is lying.
Finally — a conspiracy even Trekkies can believe in.
I doubt that Simon can speak by JJAbrams … but I also liked his attitude!
;-) :-)
why can’t John Harrison just be John Harrison?
Why not be a new character rather than a rehash of one of the best villains and a performance that can’t be bettered in my opinion?
#4: Being de-aged doesn’t mean he’d lose memory. That’s just a silly sci-fi trope. If you were de-aged, it would just mean your cells became younger.
#7: There’s no evidence that he’s playing Khan. The idea has always been patently ridiculous.
Oh… my… god. Alice Eve. Geezus.
I love that the we have the Enterprise crew on both sides of the Atlantic this awards season. Good job, PR!
Maybe he’s not ‘playing’ Khan, but he IS Khan… :p
Seriously, there were other augments on the Bay. Guess it’s simply one of them.
It’s Khan.
#20 – Good point! Starfleet would assume he died and wouldn’t need to change their codes.
Because if he was playing Khan she would just confirm
It. Give me a break…..
21 BatlethInTheGroin
Ridiculous? That’s a strong term. One thing is certain, two reputable journalists in this field have staked out on Khan. Now, I think we can assume they didn’t do it for sh**s and giggles, since they value their reputations and will have other things to write about once Star Trek Into Darkness is showing on TV.
Could it be they are being lead astray by their sources? Sure. But in what little we have seen of this movie thus far, a significant portion has corroborated the idea. The hands on the glass clearly evoke WOK. Even if the scene ends up having a different spin, it is no accident it is presented as it is. Not Khan specific, but deliberately pointing us at his movie. The drip of Cumberbatch’s precious few lines have all been Khan-tastic, up to a point. Vengeance. Superiority.
I concede, that we may be seeing what we want to see. Equally plausible: perhaps Bad Robot are cherry picking misleading lines knowing the baggage we bring.
Also we should consider the chamber scene in the trailer. Something that appears to be pods consistent with cryogenic sleep.
There is no one piece of evidence which Khan-firms (heh) it’s him. But if we take Bob Orci at his word that the villain is canonical, we must surely agree that Khan is the best fit for what we have thus far.
Now, what we have is a theory. A theory that happens to fit the facts (to quote a bloke I like) but on the balance of probability, we can conclude that either:
a) It’s Khan
b) It’s not Khan, and significant steps are being made via leaks and publicity materials to keep the “It’s Khan” theory alive, to obscure the true identity.
One thing I am certain of: come closing credits, no one will refer to him as ‘John Harrison’
Simon Pegg just tweeted he has no idea if JJ will helm Star Trek 3.
Some fans are experiencing a paradigm crisis. The high cost of having to revise their data is causing them to regard the absurd as perfectly reasonable.
There has never been any real evidence that Khan was going to be in this movie. What little some might suggest as being evidence is circumstantial only. Just because the Latino Review insist on repeating a rumour, a wish, does not make it a fact. The fact that the studio were casting around for Latino actors at the time is at best, circumstantial. Benecio Del Toro would have made a very fine TOS Klingon!
What we have had is rumour, rumour and more rumour, inuendo and other quite specious nonsense over the last three or so years.
Now that three of the Trek actors have, in their way, denied that Khan is being played by Benedict Cumberbatch, people now wonder if they are lying. Seriously, WTF? The reality is that even if turns out that Khan is in the movie and played by Benedict Cumberbatch (very, very doubtful), that fact does, in no way, validate any of the rumour and other specious claims made in this respect. If this were a court of law, all this hearsay would be thrown out for the nonsense that it is!!! Get it!
Leave off with Khan, Joachim and the Botany Bay stuff. Enough already.
I hope Simon didn’t mean me when he said there’s a continual barrage of people trying to spoil it. All I ever said was
Khaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnn!!!!!!!!
As if she was going to reveal something she was sworn to secrecy on. She’s following her script to deny anything that would reveal the master plan, plain and simple.
There is little doubt Khan factors into this movie in some way whether it be a key role or something minor.
Too many people involved in the movie have played games around whether Khan is in the film and there is zero reason why they would want fans holding out hope for Khan only to be disappointed.
I still think Khan is in the film but in the cryo tube. We’ll see him at least. And BC could be a descendent of his.
I enjoy this villain speculation myself don’t get me wrong but then we are so occupied by who Cumberbatch is playing that we do not actually appreciate that we finally have a bad-ass villain in this movie. Sorry, Eric Bana, but yeah, Nero was lame. Not your fault, that is what origin movies are about. I mean, I just saw the trailer again in the movie house and Cumberbatch’s voice is glorious! The big game ad wherein he said ’Everything’ is spine-chilling. He is evil! Does it really matter now who he really is? We have a scary and I could not emphasize it enough, scary antagonist and the same crew we learned to love in the first. I don’t care who the villain is anymore. Just, bring it on!
Yes, JJ. If you do not direct the third movie I will p*ss on everything you love (including Star Wars). Haha! Not really. But yeah, I think he should still direct it. Or it will just be seen as complete abandonment (even if he still produces).
Rose –
I am gratified to learn that there is no legal standard to satisfy on a Star Trek message board. I will, with your permission, feel so empowered to continue to speculate as long as my free time and inclination permits.
I do not think Anthony Pascale and Latino Review are in the business of making wishes in the guise of trusted sources. I assess their records and conclude that either this smoke has an accompanying fire, or smoke is being blown up their arses by Bad Robot.
In either case, I give their word credibility on the subject. I believe they report in good faith. I am hopeful that Khan is NOT the villain (I have a hankering for new-Universe Sybok) but I think it is.
35:
mattytrek
“I have a hankering for new-Universe Sybok…”
Mattytrek: I can feel your pain…SHOW ME YOUR SECRET PAIN!
If JJ had not aimed that drill right at Shi’Kahr, and, instead, at the Isle of Random Fertile Vulcan Princesses, at least a few dozen of us would’ve squeed.
Or he could just be an Augment maybe made be Weller’s Company with Marcus in charge of the project. He escapes and goes on his own mission to find Khan and the Botany Bay.
Alice Eve makes me feel kinda funny…
Like when I used to climb the rope in gym class.
38. Heh. Nice Garth from Wayne’s World reference.
Yeah I definately don’t think there is any subterfuge by JJ and crew about Harrison really being Khan. how many people involved have now definitively said he is NOT kha.
@ 7 : ” The evidence for Khan seems too strong.”
I’ve been followign all this intently for months and months and so far – there has been NOT ONE SINGLE SHRED OF EVIDENCE that it is Khan.
NOT. ONE.
Crossing your fingers and hoping it’s Khan is NOT PROOF.
How many MORE of the cast have to flat out deny it before people f—ing believe them?
Pegg : it’s not Khan – i’m fed up of denying it
Cumberbatch – No it Harrison. Not Khan
Abrams : It’s not Khan – it’s Harrison – an average person from Starfleet.
Eve : he’s not playing Khan
oops obviously that should have said Khan as opposed to the Kha the snake from the jungle book lol
Having him turn around 20 mins before the end of the film and go OH PS I WAS KHAN TA DA !! will be completely meaningless, pointless, stupid, lazy and just pandering to the masses who just want familiarity.
Having him say hes; ;Khan 20 mins before the end WON’T make the preceding 90 mins any better.
If you want to see Khan in a ST movie so badly – go rent The Wrath Of Khan.
WHY does it HAVE to be Khan ? Oooh maybe because it’s the second film in the series ?
Nero wasn’t V’ger.
By the same logic – whoever is cast as the villain in Star Trek 3 MUST be Kruge. Even if he’s not even klingon.
How does Abrams description of Harrison as
” An average person who works for Starfleet ” describe Khan IN ANY WAY ?
Oddly, or perhaps not oddly, I am now certain it’s Khan. More from Pegg’s angry comment about spoilers than Eve’s sheepish denial.
Well, this appears to finally put the nail in the Khan coffin. I still think this will be a Khan-centric story though. We shall see.
Yep, we’re definitely being Talia al’Ghul-ed here. Khan is is this film, take it to the bank. Maybe played by Cumby, maybe not. But he’s there, of that I am certain.
*dons flameproof internet comment thread protective gear*
@44 Please read reply 41 & 43
I think there’s more substance in the Robert April story.
LOL…Like I said earlier:
“#18. Dee – lvs moon’ surface: I doubt that Simon can speak by JJAbrams … but I also liked his attitude!”
;-) :-)
I think that ALL of them need to start saying it’s not Khan. Literally all of them. It’s their only chance at this point. There are just too many proverbial cats out of the bag now.