Star Trek Into Darkness [2013] (2 discs)

Random Trivia For This Title:

• Benicio Del Toro was in early talks for the role of John Harrison, but eventually declined due to monetary issues. Demian Bichir, Édgar Ramírez and Jordi Mollà were considered afterwards, before Benedict Cumberbatch was finally cast. Mickey Rourke was also considered for the role of Khan Noonien Singh.
• Hayley Atwell and Teresa Palmer auditioned for the role of Carol Marcus. Sophia Myles was considered.
• Leonard Nimoy makes his eighth appearance as Spock in the movies. That breaks the tie with William Shatner for most appearances in the Star Trek universe.
• In one of the exchanges between McCoy and Kirk, McCoy says "Are you out of your cornfed mind?" This is a reference to the fact that Kirk is from Iowa.
• Christopher Doohan: The son of the original Scotty James Doohan, makes a cameo appearance in the film as a Transport Officer alongside the current Scotty Simon Pegg.
• Dermot Mulroney plays cello in the scoring orchestra for this movie. Mulroney, who is better-known as an actor (Longtime Companion, My Best Friend's Wedding, etc.), is also a classical cellist who occasionally plays in recording sessions for soundtracks.
• In the opening sequence, on Nibiru as Kirk and Bones are running, the ground looks artificially hexagonal, almost as thought the ground were paved with hexagonal slabs, however this pattern can happen in nature, as it has in the "Giants Causeway" in Northern Ireland.
• Chekov spends much of the film in engineering rather than the bridge, so that he doesn't interact with Khan. This is in keeping with [Star Trek]: {Space Seed}, which aired before Chekov was added to the cast. Ironically, Chekov is the only crew member Khan interacted with directly in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Khan's face-to-face interaction with the rest of the crew on board the Enterprise is a first since {Space Seed}.
• J.J. Abrams pitched the villain to Benedict Cumberbatch as a combination of The Joker (The Dark Knight), Hannibal Lecter (The Silence of the Lambs) and Jack Torrance (The Shining).
• Of all the titles proposed for the film, including many joke titles, Damon Lindelof preferred Star Trek: Transformers 4 best: "It's technically available, we can go there!"
• In Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Uhura (to Nichelle Nichols objections) was unfamiliar with Klingonese during their covert mission into Klingon territory. The alternate reality-Uhura, this time, is better fluent in the language while in Klingon space.
• One of the key action setpieces, the space jump sequence, was largely achieved by pulling Chris Pine and Benedict Cumberbatch along the floor on a hoist.
• Chekov's temporary posting to Chief Engineer is based on a long running backstory and fan joke. When he was recognized in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan from a supposed encounter in [Star Trek]: {Space Seed}, it was explained Chekov was assigned in security department. During the Space Seed incident, Chekov attempted to seal off engineering (as Walter Koenig had not yet joined the cast). Kirk was so impressed by his bravery, he moved him to bridge navigation. This also explained why Chekov in the first three films was later bridge weapons and tactical officer.
• The scene which Khan is put back into suspended animation was written, as a possibility, that Khan, with Benedict Cumberbatch returning in the role, may return in a future installment.
• According to J.J. Abrams, the time travel-alternate reality concept used in the previous film Star Trek was a deliberate ploy to enable a reboot for new sagas/films: "The idea, now that we are in an independent timeline, allows us to use any of the ingredients from the past - or come up with brand-new ones - to make potential stories."
• There is an inside joke with Chekov being asked to put on a red shirt by Kirk, and Chekov's less than enthusiastic reaction. In a famous interview, Walter Koenig stated that being a part of Star Trek all of these years was fantastic, as long as you didn't wear a red shirt, since most of those who wore the red shirts in [TOS] were almost always killed.
• Scotty refers to McCoy as "Bones" - this is the only instance in the history of [Star Trek] where someone other than Kirk refers to him by this nickname. In [Star Trek]: {The Tholian Web}, when McCoy gets angry, Spock tells him that Kirk would have said "Forget it, Bones."
• There's mention of the ship the "USS Bradbury". This is in tribute to science-fiction writer Ray Bradbury who passed away in June 2012.
• Writer Damon Lindelof apologized on Twitter for the seemingly gratuitous and much criticized scene where Alice Eve strips down to her underwear. J.J. Abrams would counter the criticism later when he appeared on Conan O'Brien's talk show and premiered a deleted scene featuring Benedict Cumberbatch showering. For her part, Eve later stated that she didn't feel exploited by the inclusion of her strip scene.
• An "in joke" reference is made to Simon Pegg when he is trying to open the bay doors during Kirk and Khan's boarding attempt. The security guard asks Scotty to "show his other hand". It is common knowledge to Star Trek fans that James Doohan never revealed both hands in any of the original series because of the loss of one of his fingers (lost in combat during the D-Day invasion while storming the beach).
• Karl Urban pays homage to DeForest Kelley as he wears a pinkie ring on his left hand, just as Kelley did in the original [Star Trek] series and six movies.
• During Spock's fight with Khan, a six-note musical cue can be heard which is strongly reminiscent of the score from an episode of the [original series], {Amok Time}, during a scene where Kirk and Spock are fighting to the death. This can be heard on the score in the track called "The San Fran Hustle" at approximately 1:58.
• When Carol Marcus boards the Enterprise, she gives her name as Wallace. In an early draft of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, the character of Janet Wallace was going to be used before they decided to create a new character: Carol Marcus. Janet Wallace first appeared in [Star Trek]: {The Deadly Years}.
• Benedict Cumberbatch's character was not revealed to the actor until a week after he was cast. A studio representative flew to London from Los Angeles with the script handcuffed to his wrist.