Sherlock actor Benedict Cumberbatch will be playing the role of the unnamed villain in the sequel to JJ Abrams'
Star Trek. While writer Alex Kurtzman has already praised the actor for his work on the sequel, he added to that when he sat down for an interview with
CinemaBlend about his directional debut
People Like Us.
He’s a genius," Kurtzman said. "There are certain actors who have the ability to take a line of dialogue and add a ring to it that you didn’t even know you put into the dialogue, into the line. And he’s one of those really brilliant actors. Just listening to him talk…you could enjoy him reading the phone book."
When asked about how the villain will play into the larger story, Kurtzman explained how sequels are important for antagonist escalation:
"Sequels are about your bad guy. Because your first movie is always about the becoming of [the hero] and your bad guy has to test that hero in a very significant way. And he’s an incredibly formidable presence. He’s amazing. Are you going to be scared of him? S#%t yeah!"
We already know that
The Dark Knight will serve as inspiration for this untitled Star Trek sequel when Damon Lindelof stated that as a sequel
The Dark Knight transcended the original. Well, with Kurtzman also stating that
the reason the movie was delayed for a year was to make sure they did not rush it, certainly looks to support the notion of this sequel surpassing 2009's re-imagining of the franchise.