Star Trek Into Darkness actress Alice Eve stands by her controversial underwear scene from the 2013 sci-fi movie. As the follow-up to the 2009 Star Trek reboot, J.J. Abrams' Into Darkness followed the adventures of the younger James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) while attempting to act as an homage to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. It received positive reviews from fans and critics upon release, though recent years have seen its praise somewhat diminished by traditional Trekkies. To this day, Into Darkness remains the highest-grossing Star Trek movie at the worldwide box office.
Eve joined the franchise in Star Trek Into Darkness as Dr. Carol Marcus, the Enterprise's new science officer with a familial connection to Starfleet admiral Alexander Marcus (Peter Weller). Carol's knowledge of Starfleet weaponry made her an ideal asset to the crew, but her overall role in Into Darkness was overshadowed by one scene. While changing into a jumpsuit ahead of deactivating a torpedo, Kirk takes a peek at Carol when she's only in her underwear. The scene sparked backlash from fans who felt it was gratuitous and misogynistic.
Looking back on the scene today, Eve doesn't agree with the criticism it received. Speaking to Inverse to promote her new film Warning, Eve admitted she's actually quite proud of that Star Trek Into Darkness moment because of how much work she put into it. She said:
It was something I voluntarily worked with a trainer to be fit for, was very much prepared for, and very much enjoyed [doing] — filming, executing, promoting. The feeling I shouldn’t have done it, or that it was exploitation, was confusing to me. There are many things in the world that are confusing. I put it down to one of those anomalies. I’m proud of that scene, and all the work I did.
As the woman actually featured in the Into Darkness scene, Eve has every right to push back against the backlash. She didn't see it as exploitative and even looks back fondly on it. At the same time, one has to question why the scene needed to be put in at all. That Abrams and writers Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and Damon Lindelof wanted to include a moment featuring a semi-naked woman for no reason at all save for showing off her body speaks to a greater issue within cinema. Star Trek Into Darkness is just one example of a movie that does this, though perhaps it's a good thing that its star doesn't see it as an issue.
The Star Trek franchise has received only one additional movie, 2016's Star Trek Beyond. Since then, the future of the series has been harder to predict than anything the sci-fi universe itself could cook up. There have been various Star Trek movies in development over the years, and one even managed to get scheduled for release in 2023. However, little is known about that installment, and it remains to be seen if it will bring back the likes of Pine and Quinto. In terms of attention and box office returns, Star Trek Into Darkness represented a high point of sorts for the franchise, and only time will tell if it can ever be surpassed.
Source: Inverse