Khan Noonien Singh
Khan Noonien Singh is a fictional character in the Star Trek science fiction franchise, a genetically engineered superhuman who first appeared as the main antagonist in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Space Seed", and was portrayed by Ricardo Montalbán, who reprised his role in the 1982 film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. In the 2013 film Star Trek Into Darkness, he is portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch.
Khan controlled more than a quarter of the Earth during the Eugenics Wars of the 1990s. After being revived from suspended animation in 2267 by the crew of the Starship Enterprise, he attempts to capture the starship but is thwarted by James T. Kirk and exiled to Ceti Alpha V, where he has the chance to create a new society with his people. In Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, set 15 years after "Space Seed", Khan escapes his exile and sets out to exact revenge on Kirk.
In Star Trek Into Darkness, set in the alternate continuity established in Star Trek, Khan is awakened almost a decade before the events of "Space Seed". He is given the false identity John Harrison and coerced by Admiral Marcus into building weapons for Section 31 and Starfleet in exchange for the lives of Khan's crew. He ultimately rebels and comes into conflict with the crew of Enterprise.
Appearances
"Space Seed"
Khan makes his introductory appearance as the antagonist in the episode "Space Seed", first broadcast on February 16, 1967. According to the backstory revealed in the episode, Khan is one of a group of genetically engineered superhumans, bred to be free of the usual human mental and physical limitations, who were removed from power after the Eugenics Wars of the 1990s. Khan had been both the most successful conqueror and the most benign ruler of the group, ruling more than a quarter of the Earth's area across Asia to the Middle East from 1992 to 1996 with a firm but generally peaceful hand until he was deposed. While most of the supermen were killed or sentenced to death, Khan and 84 others escaped Earth by way of the sleeper ship SS Botany Bay. Botany Bay is discovered by the crew of the Starship Enterprise in 2267, with Khan and 72 of the 84 crew members of Botany Bay still alive, cryogenically frozen in suspended animation.When Khan's sleep chamber malfunctions, he is transported to Enterprise, where he reawakens and learns he is in the 23rd century. Given spacious quarters while Botany Bay is towed to a starbase, Khan fascinates and charms the ship's historian, Marla McGivers, while using his access to the ship's technical manuals to learn how to take over and operate Enterprise. McGivers agrees to help Khan revive the other supermen, allowing him to organize an attempted takeover. To coerce the Enterprise crew to cooperate with him, Khan places Captain James T. Kirk in the ship's decompression chamber and threatens to kill Kirk unless the crew submits. McGivers cannot stand by as her Captain dies and frees Kirk, who neutralizes Khan's men by using a neural gas. Khan heads to engineering and sets the ship's engines to self-destruct, whereupon he is incapacitated by Kirk. Captain Kirk conducts a hearing, sentencing Khan and his followers to exile on an uncolonized world, Ceti Alpha V. Khan accepts Kirk's challenge—evoking the fall of Lucifer in Milton's Paradise Lost—and McGivers joins Khan rather than face court-martial. Spock wonders what the "seed" Kirk has planted will bear in a hundred years.
''Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan''
Khan returns as the antagonist in the 1982 feature film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Captain Clark Terrell and First Officer Pavel Chekov of USS Reliant are searching for an uninhabited world to test the Genesis device, a powerful terraforming tool. They beam down to what they believe is Ceti Alpha VI; however, Chekov soon discovers the Botany Bay and realizes their true location. After Khan and his people capture them, Khan confirms that the barren world is in fact Ceti Alpha V; Ceti Alpha VI exploded six months after he and his people had been marooned, and the resulting shock shifted the orbit of their planet. The cataclysm rendered Ceti Alpha V nigh-uninhabitable. Twenty of the survivors, including McGivers, whom Khan had married, were subsequently killed by the only surviving animal life, the Ceti eel. Swearing vengeance on Kirk, now an admiral, for abandoning them to die, Khan infests Terrell and Chekov with young Ceti eels; the creatures enter their brains, rendering them vulnerable to suggestion. Khan, intent on seizing control of the Genesis device, then seizes control of Reliant.Khan lures Enterprise to the space station Regula I, and he launches a surprise attack that disables Kirk's ship. Kirk tricks Khan by using a special code to remotely lower Reliants shields, allowing Enterprise to inflict significant damage. Khan is forced to withdraw to make repairs. Using the mind-controlled Terrell and Chekov as spies, Khan captures the Genesis device and leaves Kirk marooned on Regula I. Spock deceives Khan into thinking that Enterprise is crippled, surprising Khan when Enterprise rescues Kirk and escapes to the nearby Mutara Nebula. Goaded into following Kirk, Khan pilots Reliant into the nebula, where shields and sensors are inoperable. Due to Khan's inexperience with three-dimensional space combat, Enterprise defeats Reliant and Khan is fatally wounded. Refusing to accept defeat, Khan activates the Genesis device, intent on killing his foe along with himself. Khan quotes Ahab's words of vengeance from Moby-Dick before dying: "From hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee."
''Star Trek Into Darkness''
Khan appears in the 2013 film Star Trek Into Darkness, taking place in the alternate timeline established in Star Trek. While the character's backstory remains the same, Khan is revived by Starfleet Admiral Alexander Marcus rather than the crew of Enterprise. Marcus anticipates a war with the Klingons, and forces Khan to develop warships and weapons for Starfleet under the cover identity of John Harrison, holding Khan's shipmates hostage. These developments include advanced long-range torpedoes and the warship USS Vengeance.Khan carries out an attack on a high level Starfleet meeting where Admiral Christopher Pike is killed before fleeing to the Klingon homeworld Qo'noS. Marcus arms the Enterprise with 72 advanced torpedoes and sends Kirk and crew to Qo'noS with orders to kill Khan. Kirk goes against his orders and attempts to capture him alive. Upon learning the number of torpedoes on board Enterprise, Khan surrenders, revealing his identity, the presence of his followers inside the torpedoes, and the reasons for his attacks.
When Marcus arrives aboard Vengeance and attacks Enterprise, Kirk and Khan work together to take control of Vengeances bridge. Once in control of Vengeance, Khan kills Marcus and demands that Spock return his crew. Spock, having removed Khan's people from the torpedoes, lowers Enterprise's shields and allows Khan to beam the activated weapons' warheads aboard Vengeance. Before Khan can attack Enterprise Spock remotely detonates the torpedoes crippling Vengeance. Khan crashes Vengeance in San Francisco in an attempt to destroy Starfleet Headquarters and escape, but is pursued and captured by Spock and Uhura. Khan is placed back into cryogenic sleep along with his crew.
"Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow"
Khan appears as a child in the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds second season episode "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow", in which Sera, a time-traveling Romulan agent, attempts to derail human history by assassinating Khan during his youth. She was ultimately stopped by Khan's own descendant, La'an Noonien-Singh, alongside an alternate timeline version of James T. Kirk, who were sent back in time to preserve the course of history.Novels and comics
Khan has been depicted in various novels and comic book publications. As with all non-television and non-film Star Trek material, the publications are outside of Star Trek canon.Author Greg Cox penned three Star Trek novels featuring Khan, published by licensee Pocket Books. In the two-volume The Eugenics Wars: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Khan is depicted as a North Indian from a family of Sikhs. "Khan" is a title; his adoptive parents are from Chandigarh, Punjab, India and are both eugenic scientists. At the end of the second novel, Khan and his followers are placed aboard the Botany Bay by Gary Seven as part of a deal to stop Khan's machinations on Earth. The 2005 follow-up, To Reign in Hell: The Exile of Khan Noonien Singh, relates what happened to Khan and his fellow exiles between the events of "Space Seed" and The Wrath of Khan. A different version of Khan's exile on Ceti Alpha V is depicted in IDW Publishing's 2010 comic miniseries Khan: Ruling in Hell.
From 2013 to 2014, IDW published a five-part series of comic books telling the story of the Into Darkness incarnation of Khan. The first issue in the series acknowledges the discrepancy of Khan's physical appearance compared to that of the previous incarnation. In keeping with the prime timeline's backstory, Khan's beginnings, rise to power, and involvement in the Eugenics War are depicted. It is also revealed his birth name was Noonien Singh and that he adopted the title "Khan" out of admiration for Genghis Khan. The series goes on to mention that Khan's anatomy and memories were altered per Marcus's orders, so that Khan would initially believe himself to be the fabricated Harrison.