Peter Weller Joins Star Trek, And Del Toro Will Not Be Khan

[Brendon Connelly]

A pretty loud rumour was buzzing around the web a couple of days ago, but it was quickly swatted. I only really mention it now as a side bar, but, no, while Benicio Del Toro might well be playing the villain in the new Star Trek, his character won't be Khan.

JJ Abrams told Hit Fix that the rumour is:

Not true.

Full stop.

In more affirmative casting news, Deadline have confirmed that Peter Weller will have a "principal" role in the film. "Robocop becomes a member of the Borg" jokes are no doubt imminent.

Not that I'm suggesting that will be his actual casting. Far from it. I'll bet my house that he won't be playing a Borg role.

Trek starts shooting in 3D early in the new year and will be with us in May 2013.

[rassmguy]

Peter Weller already played John Frederick Paxton on Enterprise:

John Frederick Paxton - Memory Alpha, the Star Trek Wiki

[Clem]

Peter Weller already played John Frederick Paxton on Enterprise:

John Frederick Paxton - Memory Alpha, the Star Trek Wiki

I was about to say the exact same thing.

He's already tried to blow up Earth once already, what more could he possibly do!

[moun10dew]

Thank GOD! Now we can stop with this Khan BS!

[Joe Kalicki]

The last movie was basically a rip-off of Wrath of Khan anyway, so I don't know why people would want to see all that a third time.

[Multiverseman.com]

The last movie was basically a rip-off of Wrath of Khan anyway, so I don't know why people would want to see all that a third time.

No it wasn't. Now Nemesis, THAT was a WOK ripoff.

[Joe Kalicki]

No it wasn't. Now Nemesis, THAT was a WOK ripoff.

It really was. The bad guy with a personal vendetta against one of the main characters, out to destroy a planet, right down to Kirk getting stuck on a planet.

They should really do something different with this one.

[Davidb5x]

No it wasn't. Now Nemesis, THAT was a WOK ripoff.

I have a longstanding ongoing debate/slanging match with one buddy over those 2 Trek movies. He doesn't understand what everyone sees in The Wrath of Khan (largely coz he's also very dismissive of Shatner) while on the other hand (due partly to his love of the Romulans) he rates Nemesis, which I thought was pretty dreadful and is the only Trek movie I've ever only watched the once. I recall hearing that the director Stuar Baird openly boasted of having no personal knowledge about the Trek universe..... and it showed.

This buddy and I like almost all the same sorts of genre shows and movies, but again in many instances have diametrically opposite opinions about various characters or plot points. Just this week we had another debate, on the Walking Dead tv show. He's just, finally, started watching season 1 to see what all the fuss is about. He's not really into the zombie genre to begin with so he messaged me with questions on the cause of the outbreak, what the government are doing, and why so many people are dead. (duh) As I tried to explain to him that the first two are irrelevant and that the third is bloody obvious our conversation lead to him deciding that unless there's ultimately a cure to be found by the heroes by the end then the show is pointless, while I tried to explain that it's more about the journey than the destination, how the characters interact and what they do and are forced to do in order to survive a more or less hopeless situation. But he just doesn't get it.

Anyway, I digress. Back to Trek and I've found it quite ridiculous when anybod has suggested that the 2nd Abrams movie would be their remake of Khan. They are forgetting that in the original movies Wrath of Khan took place many many years after the original voyage, and indeed even several more years after the 2nd off-screen 5-year mission. Not immediately after the crew first getting together.

[the_Dagman]

Peter Weller as Commodore Matt Decker and the big bad is the Doomsday Machine? (fingers crossed)

[bottleHeD]

Robo-Borg!!!