Khan Noonien Singh, one of Star Trek’s most infamous villains. He first appeared in The Original Series (TOS) episode ‘Space Seed’ in 1967. Nearly sixty years later, there isn’t a Star Trek fan who doesn’t know his name. His charisma and tyranny have stood the test of time.
We’ve had the pleasure of seeing the augment leader on screen several times since ‘Space Seed’. And we will soon hear him again in a new podcast series, Star Trek: Khan, launching 8th September 2025. So, in anticipation of learning more about this complicated antagonist, let’s trek back through the highlights of his journey so far.
The Birth of a Legend
For me, Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban) became a legend in one of the most beloved Star Trek movies of all time. But this transition from dangerous adversary to Shakespearean antagonist had to start somewhere. And that somewhere is TOS Season 1 episode ‘Space Seed’.
The episode’s story is straightforward, with the Enterprise encountering an old ship adrift in space. The crew aboard is cryogenically frozen, and Captain Kirk (William Shatner) decides to wake up the leader. Enter Khan, who the Enterprise crew quickly learn is an augmented human from the twentieth century. Being a product of the Eugenics Wars, he was extremely powerful, both physically and mentally. At the height of his power, he was a dictator ruling over much of the Middle East and Asia.
It doesn’t take long for Khan to exercise his superior intellect and charisma, seducing Enterprise historian Marla McGivers (Madlyn Rhue) to his side. With her help, Khan revives his crew and seizes control of the ship with what feels like impossible efficiency. The villain’s strategic advantages are eventually overcome, and Kirk retakes the ship. Kirk decides to maroon Khan and his crew on the planet Ceti Alpha V. This act of mercy is expected to give Khan what he desires (a place to build his empire) whilst ending a considerable threat to the Federation.
A Tyrant’s Wrath
Alas, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry, as realised in Star Trek’s second movie, ‘The Wrath of Khan’. Roughly fifteen years after the events of ‘Space Seed’, Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig) and the crew of the U.S.S. Reliant find Khan again. A lot has happened in fifteen years, with the planet becoming all but inhospitable. Khan’s wife (presumably Marla McGivers) has died along with most of his followers due to the harsh conditions they had to endure. Filled with grief and rage, Khan quickly seizes the Reliant, masters the ship’s technology, and sets out on his quest for vengeance.
This vendetta against now-Admiral Kirk is personal. Gone are Khan’s ambitions for power and control. Kirk abandoned him and his family, never returning to check on them, thus sealing the fate of Khan’s wife and crew. So, the augmented tyrant only has one goal: to find and kill James Kirk.
This wrathful hunt ends with a deadly confrontation between Kirk and Khan. Despite the Enterprise being more powerful, Khan’s augmented intellect and cunning bring Kirk and his crew to the point of defeat. But Khan’s thirst for vengeance is ultimately his undoing, his emotions and superiority allowing Kirk to defeat him. Montalban reaches peak performance through these scenes, delivering iconic dialogue and emotion worthy of Shakespeare. By the end of the movie, Khan has become more than a villain. He’s one of Star Trek’s most complex and memorable characters.
“From Hell’s heart, I stab at thee!”
Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban) – Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Alternate Vengeance
I can’t write about Khan and not mention a couple of extra times we’ve seen him on-screen. Both these scenarios come about from wibbly wobbly, timey wimey shenanigans.
This first scenario requires a small amount of Trek context. In the twenty-fourth century, Ambassador Spock (Leonard Nimoy) creates a black hole. He does this to swallow the Hobus supernova (yeah, the one that wiped out Romulus!) and save the rest of the quadrant. Spock gets pulled in alongside an advanced retrofitted Romulan mining ship. The Romulan vessel emerges in the past, destroying the U.S.S. Kelvin and creating what we know today as the Kelvin timeline. This sets up J.J. Abrams’ first Star Trek movie, released in 2009 and starring Chris Pine as James Kirk.
Enter Star Trek: Into Darkness and a return to the big screen for Khan, this time played by Benedict Cumberbatch. Still augmented with superior intelligence and strength, Khan is again on a mission of vengeance. But this time it’s not directed at Kirk, but at Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller). Yes, that’s the father of Carol Marcus (Alice Eve), who we see played in The Wrath of Khan by Bibi Besch. Admiral Marcus uses Khan for his own ends, then tries to destroy him with missiles loaded with Khan’s cryogenically frozen crew. So, it’s understandable why Khan would be angry and vengeful.
What Would You Do
Into Darkness followed the more action-packed formula for Star Trek as seen in its predecessor. This meant we saw less of Khan’s cunning, intellect, and Shakespearean influence, and more of his rage. Yet there’s another time we see Khan, again with less of the above attributes, and a lot less anger too.
I’m referring to the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode ‘Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow’. During this episode, Chief of Security La’an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) is sent back in time with James Kirk (Paul Wesley). The aim is to stop someone from changing the timeline, and they’re successful. But La’an comes face-to-face with a child. Her ancestor, destined to rise in the Eugenics Wars and become a tyrannical dictator. A helpless and defenceless Khan Noonien Singh (Desmond Sivan).
The episode explores a difficult question. If you could go back in time and stop something terrible from happening, should you do so? What would the ramifications be? It is strongly suggested that, had someone killed Khan before his time, humanity would be much worse for it. This type of ethical or moral questioning is part of what makes Star Trek what it is. And it was fantastic to see this played out using one of the franchise’s most notorious villains.
Khan Returns
So, with all the lore and character development we’ve had to date, it’s very exciting to have new media on the horizon exploring Khan further! There’s a fifteen-year gap between ‘Space Seed’ and ‘The Wrath of Khan’. This means there’s a lot to explore on Ceti Alpha V. And it sounds like the podcast series will make it so!
Leading the cast is Naveen Andrews as Khan, supported by Wrenn Schmidt as Marla McGivers. We’ll also see the return of fan-favourite characters, including Ensign Tuvok (Tim Russ) and Captain Sulu (George Takei).
The first episode will release on 8th September 2025 (Star Trek Day). Future episodes will be available weekly each Monday until 3rd November 2025. The series will be available wherever you get your podcasts.
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