The 'Star Trek Beyond' Villain Is A Stand-Out

With the upcoming release of Star Trek Beyond, it's clear that these movies are going where no one has gone before. By that, of course, I mean that the creatives behind the Star Trek movie franchise are unafraid to create new characters, planets, and conflicts for the members of the Starship Enterprise to encounter. This time around, the crew aboard the Enterprise is stranded on a hostile planet and faced with new alien threats. One of those aliens is named Krall, and played by Idris Elba, he is the newest villain for the franchise. But just who is Krall in Star Trek Beyond , and how is he going to shake things up?

To some, they might recognize the name Krall from the Star Trek lexicon. In the Star Trek wiki, Krall is described as "a Gorn assassin who later befriended Nox the Romulan commander of the USS Admonitor, and later became one of the founders of the Klingon Alliance." But in an interview with Peter Sciretta of Slashfilm, director Justin Lin has stated that the Krall in Star Trek Beyond is not the Krall previously recorded in the Star Trek lexicon. Krall isn't just a new character, but he's a new species, one that hasn't ever been in Star Trek before. Essentially, this means that Krall was crafted solely to fit the narrative of Star Trek Beyond.

OK, so he's a new villain, but what's his damage? What motivates Krall and puts him in direct conflict with the members of the Enterprise? Well, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly , Elba explained,

[Krall] has a real beef with what the Enterprise stands for. Krall’s a character who’s deeply steeped in hatred — in my opinion, a well-earned hatred — for the Federation. It felt quite political. There’s a relatability to what’s happening in our world. Not everybody’s happy with what everybody calls the good guys.

The United Federation of Planets (the governing force under which Starfleet & the Enterprise operates) was bonded together in order to have a united defensive, exploratory, scientific, and diplomatic body. Not all planets, however, joined the UFP, and that means there are those within the galaxy that don't necessarily agree with all of its methods and the ideals. That is where Krall enters the narrative. It seems that Krall is anti-UFP and stands for freedom instead of the unity and philosophy he feels the UFP imposes on the planets that do join up. In the trailer for Star Trek Beyond, Krall can be heard saying to Captain Kirk, "this is where it begins, Captain. This is where the frontier pushes back."

Chills, right? Krall seems to be a proactive, reactive, and passionate villain that wants to make a point: the frontier isn't there for the UFP's taking, and there are those that will stand against them and fight for their freedom. A bit harrowing, no? With new characters comes new excitement (and action figures) and I, for one, cannot wait to see what Elba does with the newest Star Trek Beyond villain.

Images: Paramount Pictures