J.J. Abrams admits that it was a mistake to try and keep the identity of Benedict Cumberbatch's Star Trek character a secret for so long.
Abrams returned to the director's chair this summer to helm Star Trek Into Darkness - the follow up to the 2009 reboot to the popular franchise.
Cumberbatch was one of the big new additions to the cast list playing John Harrison - after much speculation and denying it was revealed that he was Kahn.
Speaking to MTV the director said: "The truth is, I think it probably would have been smarter just to say upfront, 'This is who it is.'
"It was only trying to preserve the fun of it, and it might have given more time to acclimatise and accept that's what the thing was.
"It was so important to the studio that we not angle this thing for existing fans. If we said it was Khan, it would feel like you've really got to know what 'Star Trek' is about to see this movie. That would have been limiting.
"I can understand their argument to try to keep that quiet, but I do wonder if it would have seemed a little bit less like an attempt at deception if we had just come out with it."
A third Star Trek movie is set to go ahead but Abrams will not be in the director's chair due to his commitment to Star Wars.
Abrams is set to star filming Star Wars VII next year, but is yet to announce a cast list.
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