Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige pokes fun at Benedict Cumberbatch's Cumberbatch made his debut in the long-running film franchise with Star Trek Into Darkness initially as John Harrison, a genetically engineered superhuman who was cryogenically frozen in suspended animation after escaping a death sentence in the past. Harrison is revived by Starfleet iral Alexander Marcus in an effort to prepare for war against the Klingons by having him develop warships and weapons for Starfleet under his pseudonym.
Harrison's real name would revealed to be that of Khan after he surrenders and reveals his plan to overtake the USS Vengeance from Marcus and revive his followers cryogenically resting within advanced torpedoes aboard the Enterprise. Khan is ultimately stopped by Chris Pine's James T. Kirk, Zachary Quinto's Commander Spock and Zoe Saldaña's Nyota Uhura and is put back into cryogenic sleep along with the rest of his crew. Though Cumberbatch received positive reviews for his performance in Star Trek Into Darkness, it has been a point of debate amongst fans in the years since its release.
This week saw Benedict Cumberbatch get his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, with multiple collaborators of the actor offering speeches to praise his work. One such speaker was that of Marvel head Kevin Feige (via Variety), who took the opportunity to poke fun at Cumberbatch's Star Trek role as the "second best Khan ever." See what Feige said below:
"There are so many roles you've played, Benedict, that have made you worthy of this prestigious honor. You were an amazing Hamlet. You were an incredible Sherlock Holmes. You were the second best Khan ever. Ever. You were brilliant in all the iconic roles, but to us, you deserve this honor for being the first, the best, the greatest, and the only Doctor Stephen Strange."
Cumberbatch's Star Trek role became one of the more infamous castings in Hollywood at the time of the film's development and release as both the actor and director/producer J.J. Abrams stated multiple times he would not be playing Khan in the film. Abrams has since come out in defense of his efforts, hoping to "preserve the fun" for audiences by not letting them know of the major plot twist by downplaying the rumors of his secretive role in the film. Cumberbatch's casting as Star Trek Into Darkness also saw criticism for the whitewashing of the character, given he was explicitly written as a Sikh and former ruler of eastern Eurasia when Ricardo Montalbán in both the original Star Trek series and sequel movie, The Wrath of Khan.
Much like Feige poking fun, most have agreed that Cumberbatch's performance in Star Trek Into Darkness was a worthwhile addition to the Kelvin timeline, albeit one deserving of a completely new villain rather than that of an established character such as Khan. Though some may get a kick out of Feige's ribbing of his Doctor Strange star, it should also come as a fun nod to see him praise the two-time Oscar nominee for his work in the sci-fi sequel and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Audiences can revisit Cumberbatch's performance with Star Trek Into Darkness streaming on Hulu and Paramount Plus now.
Source: Variety
