Over its 50 year voyage in the galaxy of popular culture, Star Trek has provided us with some of the most memorable villains in sci-fi history. Star Trek Beyond is looking to make its own mark on the franchise's history through Idris Elba's Krall - the mysterious baddie that looks to be menacing the Enterprise crew's latest adventure in the Kelvin timeline. While we don't know much about him just yet, there's some more details and new footage of Krall in action, as you'll see in the video shared below.
Paramount Pictures shared this look into Krall's motivations, and from the sounds of what both Elba himself, as well as Star Trek Beyond's director Justin Lin, have to say, it sounds like this latest rogue in the Star Trek gallery is going to be the most contemplative. Lin even laid out the blueprint he had in mind for his villain, with the following details making for interesting reading:
I wanted a character that is there to deconstruct the Federation's ideals, but to do it in a way where he has a very valid philosophy.
Considering most audiences know Justin Lin as the man that supercharged the Fast and Furious franchise, this sort of talk may run contrary towards the expectations most fans have for Star Trek Beyond. Even Simon Pegg, the film's co-writer / co-star was surprised by how that first trailer looked, as he felt that it didn't sell the depth that the film truly held in his eyes. So listening to the words that many Trek contributors have had for this new villain, it really does feel like not only did that first trailer vastly undersold the content of the latest film in the Star Trek reboot universe, but it also hasn't done its villain justice. For comparison's sake, you can rewatch that first trailer below.
Another interesting thought that came to mind while watching the latest Star Trek Beyond promo is the fact that Krall is starting to sound a little bit like the first villain in the Star Trek reboot. Much like Krall, Eric Bana's Nero was a villain who had a massive grudge with the Federation, albeit his reasons were a little more personal. Idris Elba's villain doesn't sound like a simple carbon copy though, as his motives sound more ideological rather than personal. This leads us to believe that Krall may be more of a charming figurehead for a greater organization, rather than a captain of a ship of like minded individuals, which makes him more methodical, and perhaps a bit more dangerous than even Khan himself.
Star Trek Beyond opens on July 22nd, leaving us only a little over a week to chew on the new details we've been given here. After what we've seen here, we're more than ready for it.
