With the trailer out why are they keeping the villains ID secret?

[Mutara Nebula 1967]

I'm trying to figure out why this is such a closely guarded secret as to whom Cumberbatch and Eva are playing.

If they just came out with it then that might excite fans even more.

I'm starting to feel that we will know more about the New Star Wars movie than we will about this one before it opens.

 

[JarodRussell]

His identity won't be revealed in the film either.

The end credits list him only as "Villain".

 

[Therin of Andor]

If they just came out with it then that might excite fans even more.

How would you judge that? Since we are either told now, or we are not - and yet the more they don't say, it seems the more discussion that is generated. Free publicity = priceless.

 

[Franklin]

His identity won't be revealed in the film either.

The end credits list him only as "Villain".

If Abrams had done TWOK, it would've been "Star Trek II: The Wrath of --".

Honestly, the secrecy is weird, but I guess that's J.J.' way.

Still, how can knowledge of who the villain is spoil the movie? Is who he is that big of a reveal?

There can be diminishing returns on carrying the secret too far, too. Frankly, if it comes out it's Khan or Mitchell, I think the first reaction of most folks (even those positive towards the movie) is going to be, "You waited this long to tell us that?"

Heck, I'll be one of the first in line to see it around here even if the Cumberbatch is playing Harry Mudd.

 

[SalvorHardin]

Chances are that we will know very soon when the 9 minutes and the real trailer are out.

 

[Gojira]

JJ likes being an international man of mystery. That really is the only reason. It keeps the fans like myself wondering and I think it is all part of his marketing scheme.

 

[JarodRussell]

If they are inspired by The Dark Knight, it wouldn't even be that far fetched that the villain in this film has no background and no identity.

 

[Therin of Andor]

the secrecy is weird, but I guess that's J.J.' way.

Remember, as revealed in the May 2009 issue of "Wired" that he guest edited as part of the publicitity of ST (2009)...


wired by Therin of Andor, on Flickr

... this is the man who, as a kid, ordered the iconic "Mystery Box" from a mail order coupon in a comic and chose to never open it!

 

[Caesar753]

Why would they announce the villain now? The fan speculation has been flooding the internet for months (years?) and the vagueness of the trailer has only heightened it. The tidbits of information fed to us by JJ, Orci, and Lindelof are meant to keep us guessing and thus keep us talking about the new movie. JJ et al. know exactly what they're doing from a marketing perspective.

 

[THE_FETT]

I'm trying to figure out why this is such a closely guarded secret as to whom Cumberbatch and Eva are playing.

If they just came out with it then that might excite fans even more.

I'm starting to feel that we will know more about the New Star Wars movie than we will about this one before it opens.

It generates more talk. More word of mouth = more hype = more $$$. Think about it: if we knew who it was, there would be talk of one name, but since we don't know, now there's talk of more than one name as people trying to "solve the riddle"

If we knew it was, say, Garth, then the forums would be "Garth" but when we don't know, then the forums are "Garth! Khan! Mitchell! Charlie X! Unknown!" see how much more there is in the second one?

I hate Abrams.

 

[RoJoHen]

I love not knowing. Speculation is so much more fun than knowing. The trailer gave us just the right amount of information to get our crazy fan brains spinning. It's not called a teaser for nothing.

 

[Franklin]

Spoiler alert! Would the movie be ruined for any of you if you knew beforehand that at the end of "Lincoln" --

Spoiler: Spoiler alert

Lincoln is assassinated.

Me? I HATE knowing nothing.

 

[RoJoHen]

Spoiler alert! Would the movie be ruined for any of you if you knew beforehand that at the end of "Lincoln" --

Spoiler: Spoiler alert

Lincoln is assassinated.

If I somehow managed to go my entire life not knowing that fact, then I deserve to have the movie ruined.

 

[SalvorHardin]

Spoiler alert! Would the movie be ruined for any of you if you knew beforehand that at the end of "Lincoln" --

Spoiler: Spoiler alert

Lincoln is assassinated.

Me? I HATE knowing nothing.

Assuming I somehow didn't know about it...ruined, no. Entertainment & shock value definitely diminished.

 

[KennyB]

This amuses me every day. Bitch for months that you have NOTHING.......then you get poster and a teaser and days away from proper trailer and STILL bitching about it all. This is EXACTLY what the PR machine wants.........people talking, articles being written. This is GOOD! It's like Christmas time!!! Just settle down kids cause Santa won't come till you calm down and go to bed!

 

[SalvorHardin]

This amuses me every day. Bitch for months that you have NOTHING.......then you get poster and a teaser and days away from proper trailer and STILL bitching about it all. This is EXACTLY what the PR machine wants.........people talking, articles being written. This is GOOD! It's like Christmas time!!! Just settle down kids cause Santa won't come till you calm down and go to bed!

Just wait until the other trailer and the 9 minutes preview comes and reports go online.
People are going to start bitching Abrams is spoiling too much of the movie.

 

[Ovation]

Nah. In an homage to Enterprise, the 9 min preview will be the first 9 mins of The Hobbit, with a pullback to crew members gathered in the rec lounge for "movie night". Then The Hobbit opening credits will roll.

 

[BillJ]

It generates more talk. More word of mouth = more hype = more $$$. Think about it: if we knew who it was, there would be talk of one name, but since we don't know, now there's talk of more than one name as people trying to "solve the riddle"

But I keep getting told this movie isn't made for people like me, that its made for people who aren't Trek fans. The only people this is driving conversation for is people who were already going to buy tickets anyways.

General audiences aren't going to care who the villain is...

 

[CorporalClegg]

For all you know, it could be for plot reasons.

Hell, BC could end up being a red herring.

 

[Xaios]

But I keep getting told this movie isn't made for people like me, that its made for people who aren't Trek fans. The only people this is driving conversation for is people who were already going to buy tickets anyways.

General audiences aren't going to care who the villain is...

I wouldn't say that. The focus of the marketing department is definitely non-Trek fans, because they need to put so many butts in theater seats.

I'd say the movie IS being made for Trek fans, but with the understanding that what it means to be a Trek fan is evolving and changing. Just like DS9 challenged Roddenberry's utopian ideology and redefined what Star Trek could be, so do these movies challenge the notion that Trek can only be heady morality tales. Naturally, this tends to wrankle some of the old vanguard. But prospective fans shouldn't be held back simply because they weren't even born when TOS aired.