Star Trek Into Darkness Villain John Harrison Gets Compared to Hannibal Lecter

 One of the biggest questions that remains regarding Star Trek Into Darkness is who the villain John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch) really is. Many speculate that the character name is just a cover for Khan. Benedict Cumberbatch recently spoke about the character, comparing him"When J.J. (Abrams) described the role to me... he described someone who was, in movie terms, a mixture of Hannibal Lecter, Jack in The Shining, and the Joker in Batman to a few iconic cinematic villains.

"When J.J. (Abrams) described the role to me... he described someone who was, in movie terms, a mixture of Hannibal Lecter, Jack in The Shining, and the Joker in Batman. He's someone who has enormous physical strength. He's someone who is incredibly dangerous, both as a physical entity and through the use of various technologies and weapons and who performs acts of what I would describe as terrorism. He's also a psychological master. He manipulates the minds of those around him to do his bidding in a very, very subtle way."

Director J.J. Abrams also revealed that John Harrison is a Starfleet employee who turns on the organization.

"His name is John Harrison and he is sort of an... average guy who works in an organization called Starfleet, and he turns against the group because he has got this backstory and this kind of amazing secret agenda. After two very violent attacks, one in London and one in the U.S., our characters have to go after this guy and apprehend him. And it is a far more complicated and difficult thing then they ever anticipated. Star Trek Into Darkness is very much about how intense it gets and really what they are up against."