Kirk is Tested in New 'Star Trek' Trailer

Star Trek Into Darkness doesn't soar into theaters and IMAX 3D until May 17, 2013, but that hasn't stopped Paramount Pictures and director J.J. Abrams from unleashing a shockwave of publicity to whet our appetites for the darker follow-up to 2009's blockbuster Star Trek reboot, from a variety of teaser trailers and a brand-new poster and still from the movie to a preview sit-down with the cast and new villain played by Benedict Cumberbatch. Watch the newest teaser trailer HERE…

Video: 'Star Trek' Stars Take on Warp Speed Round

The official logline for the film reads: "When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world in a state of crisis. With a personal score to settle, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction. As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death, love will be challenged, friendships will be torn apart, and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left: his crew."

And just in case you were thinking that J.J. Abrams' sophomore Star Trek effort is all doom and gloom, the director clarifies to ET that while the adventure does indeed get pretty dark, "You can't have darkness without light, and our characters are, I think, as much fun and compelling and interesting and relatable as you can get."

Video: Cast Moves One Step Closer to 'Star Trek Into Darkness'

In addition to Cumberbatch and a new love interest for Kirk in Alice Eve, Star Trek Into Darkness features the return of all key Enterprise crew members: Zachary Quinto as Spock, Karl Urban as McCoy, Zoe Saldana as Uhura, John Cho as Sulu, Anton Yelchin as Chekov and as Simon Pegg as Scotty.