9 Blatant Lies Filmmakers Told To Keep Their Movies Unspoiled
2. J.J. Abrams Said Benedict Cumberbatch Definitely Wasn't Playing Khan
J.J. Abrams loves a good mystery and this really informs his entire approach to filmmaking. He has shown teaser trailers for movies without even revealing their titles and he only releases tightly controlled information to the press because he wants to preserve the mystery as much as possible. This is an admirable goal as most movies are a little too eager to share their secrets, but it has shot him in foot more than once. A good mystery is only as good as the resolution and Abrams' resolutions have often been found lacking. The best example of this is the extreme lengths he went to keep the identity of Benedict Cumberbatchs character in Star Trek Into Darkness secret. Everyone thought he was Khan and asked Abrams as much, but he always denied it. Not maybe or see the movie for the answer" - a flat no in the face of overwhelming evidence. So when Cumberbatch is eventually revealed as Khan its not a mind-blowing twist but only confirming what people already knew. The fans nodded or groaned, the newcomers had no idea who Khan was supposed to be and Kirk and Spock just looked confused. Some even questioned the need to keep Khans identity a secret at all. People would have been excited to see a classic villain return and theres no real reason storywise why it couldnt have been revealed. Abrams later apologised for the deception and admitted it was probably a mistake to keep it a his identity secret.
