Star Trek Into Darkness Trailer: 23 Questions Raised

Are the promotional team big fans of the Iron Man 3 trailer?

Like the Iron Man 3 trailer, the Star Trek Into Darkness teaser features a voiceover from the main villain making an announcement to the populace.

It's also fairly bleak stuff, the trailer's absolutely packed with pain, with very little light out of the darkness.

The pictured scene appears to take place at a funeral, with Kirk (Chris Pine) addressing a crowd of people in formal dress, shortly before some planes fly over head in apparent tribute.

Has it got something to do with the opening sequence? Do some Star Fleet officers lose their lives in a pre-credits action sequence? We're betting yes.

But focusing on the voiceover itself, is it just us or does Benedict Cumberbatch sound a hell of a lot like Patrick Stewart here?

Is his still unnamed villain a JJ-universe Jean Luc-Picard? Probably not.

We've got a theory on who Cumberbatch is playing based on this trailer, and it's not JLP.

It's someone who would say "I have returned, to have my vengeance."

What planet is this?

The Into Darkness trailer moves all over the place, but this particular planet piques our interest.

It's a tenuous guess, but could it possibly be Ceti Alpha V?

One thing's for sure, it's going to look amazing in 3D.

Who's this guy?

Sticking with the mysterious planet for a moment, who's this chap running alongside Kirk?

Pausing it, it looks a lot like Bones (Karl Urban) - who hardly appears in this trailer.

Still, it could be worse - Anton Yelchin's Chekov doesn't get a single look in.

Will Kirk fall in love?

Chris Pine's staring dreamily at Alice Eve here.

He's probably imagining what she'd look like with a bit of green paint on.

In all seriousness, this looks like fairly solid evidence that Kirk's going to get a romantic sub-plot in Into Darkness .

But will it have a happy ending?

We're thinking… No.

Enjoy that blurry look at Bones in the background, by the way. That's the last you'll see of him.

Where did Cumberbatch get his superpowers?

Cumberbatch's character appears to have the power of flight, superior physical strength, and some pretty mean fight moves.

Why, it's almost as if he's a genetically-engineered supersoldier, hell-bent on revenge.

But there's no-one like that in Star Trek history, is there?

Hang on a minute…

What's he holding?

Looks like a big box that people really don't want Cumberbatch to have.

Is it a Genesis Device? Or some other super-weapon?

One thing's certain, he seems fairly happy to swing it around, so it can't be that delicate.

Why does Kirk look so confused?

Kirk doesn't look angry here, or scared, or shocked - he looks confused.

Almost as though he's seeing someone he never expected to see again...

Is Cumberbatch Khan (Part 1)?

All right, enough beating around the bush, we're going to go all out with our theory, based on the evidence in this trailer, that Cumberbatch is indeed playing Khan.

We know, we know, it's been directly denied - but Marion Cotillard swore blind that she wasn't playing Talia al Ghul, and we all know how that turned out.

Just look at the design of that jacket in this shot, those folds look remarkably familiar.

All that's missing is a low-cut top that shows off Benedict's Cumberboobs.

What is this lava planet?

It looks a lot like Revenge Of The Sith 's Mustafar, but this is Star Trek , not Star Wars (despite the fact the first film followed the same essential template as A New Hope )

We reckon it resembles the birth of a brand new planet.

The sort of thing that would happen if you pointed a Genesis Device at a dead world.

Is Spock's phaser set to stun?

Spock looks pretty resolute here - it's our first proper shot of him (this is a very Kirk-heavy trailer) and he's holding a gun.

Let's hope it's set to stun.

Violence is illogical, after all.

Why is the Enterprise under water?

This is really weird - we've got no idea why the Enterprise has been parked underwater.

Our only theory is fairly tenuous - they parked it on a desolate planet, which was given life (and therefore oceans) by the Genesis Device.

That would also explain the shot at the end of the trailer of the unidentified spaceship rising from the watery depths.

But then it could just be that Kirk fancied going on a date with a space mermaid.

Why is the Enterprise the wrong way up?

This sequence appears to combine The Dark Knight Rises ' opening sequence with Titanic' s ship-snap.

It certainly looks like the Enterprise, but it could be a completely different Federation ship.

If it is a different ship, we've got a feeling this sequence could come from the opening 9 minutes, which will be shown at IMAX cinemas before The Hobbit from Friday 14 December.

Is Cumberbatch Khan (Part 2)?

From the look of this shot, it would appear that Cumberbatch is playing Darth Maul (another character who enjoys returning from hiding for a bit of revenge).

Either that or Neo.

They do seem to have the same coat.

Of course, Khan would have the kind of moves to put both of those iconic characters to shame.

There are some fan theories floating around that Cumberbatch is playing Gary Mitchell, and there is actually a fair bit of evidence to back that up in this trailer.

Alice Eve in particular bears a striking resemblance to Sally Kellerman's character Dr Elizabeth Dehner, who was closely linked to Mitchell.

Whoever Cumberbatch is playing, this looks like it'll be a great fight scene.

Why is Kirk punching Cumberbatch?

Spock's got a gun trained on the villain, so why is Kirk punching him?

Could it be that he needs to be taken in alive?

If he is taken in, is it all part of a grand plan to infiltrate the main base of the heroes (see The Dark Knight / The Avengers / Skyfall )?

We hope not, we're completely fed up of this trope, and we're hoping Into Darkness will be doing something different.

Where is this and why is it exploding?

This looks like a meeting room for the United Federation Of Planets to us. Are they meeting to discuss this new threat to Starfleet?

If so, we're guessing the meeting isn't going particularly well.

Why do we hardly see Sulu?

The supporting characters really are dealt a bum hand in this trailer, this fleeting shot is all we see of Sulu, who was one of the real triumphs of the first film.

Let's hope we see more of him in the next one.

Why is Spock chasing Cumberbatch?

We love a good foot chase - especially one that contains a bit where someone smashes through some glass.

So this sequence makes us very happy.

But where is it? San Francisco? Has Cumberbatch just escaped?

What's making Alice Eve scream?

So, yeah, that romance we mentioned earlier?

Looks like it may well not have a happy ending after all.

Still, it's a genuinely brilliant scream - absolutely chilling.

Why are there so many explosions?

Every trailer needs an explosion - that's why we saw the Prometheus crashing into the Engineers' ship in the first full tease for Sir Ridley's Alien prequel, even though it was a massive spoiler; it was the only explosion they had.

Here, there's no such issue - the film seems to be bloody packed with them.

What's upsetting Uhura?

We can't really discuss our theory on this one, without letting loose a massive spoiler, but if you click through to the last page of this feature, you'll see exactly what we think Uhura and Scotty are looking at here.

But as a side note, you know it's going to be a grim film when even the comic relief looks miserable.

Who has Kirk dropped?

Our money's on Alice Eve's character. We hope not, though.

We'd hate to see her complete arc in a one-minute announcement trailer!

Is Cumberbatch Khan (Part 3)?

Like Khan, Cumberbatch is sat in the Captain's chair, whilst Kirk looks on, helpless.

Unlike Khan, he's wearing a Starfleet uniform, which would make him a more likely Gary Mitchell.

Oh, JJ. We wish you'd just tell us.

Be warned, the next page contains a MASSIVE SPOILER.

Is Cumberbatch Khan (Part 4)?

This is the big one, this shot comes from the Japanese trailer, and is almost a complete recreation of Spock's death-scene from Wrath Of Khan .

Zachary Quinto was fairly mysterious about his character's chances of returning in Star Trek 3 on Twitter recently:

"It’s like an era of association with certain roles – a specific part like Spock, or a kind of part, like Sylar — is coming to an end…"

Which sounds like confirmation to us.

It's also another bit of evidence for the Cumberbatch is Khan theory.

However, JJ could still be playing with us - by combining elements of the Khan mythos with the Gary Mitchell character he would reward Star Trek geeks and film fans alike.

What if the opening sequence involves the destruction of a Starship Gary Mitchell is onboard - one the Federation refuses to rescue.

Mitchell survives, and seeks revenge - both on the Federation itself, and on Kirk, who stole his girlfriend (Alice Eve) while they were at the Academy together.

He commits some terror acts, before allowing himself to be captured, so he can infiltrate Starfleet, to steal a Genesis Machine.

Whilst he's a prisoner, Mitchell observes Spock and Kirk, and realises he can get to Kirk by attacking Spock.

He uses the Machine to terraform a planet back into existence, as a trap.

Then, confronts the Enterprise crew, killing Spock. Cue cliffhanger, leading directly into a sequel!

Of course, we're just having fun - we're sure JJ has a few more surprises up his sleeve.

We can't wait for the full trailer, then for Star Trek Into Darkness to hit cinemas on May 17 2013.