Star Trek’s Khan Noonien Singh Originally Had A Different Name & Look

Once Gene Coon started getting involved, the wheels started turning. The «Star Trek» writer considered the possibility that Khan should be more of a threat to Kirk. Instead of a low-level villain, he could be something much more ambitious like a warlord who ruled during the darkest parts of «Star Trek» history. As a relic from an era long since passed, he did not adhere to the rules of Starfleet and would be that much more dangerous. Coon finished his own script with these changes in mind, but the final touches came in the casting process. Up until then, Khan was still a Viking-type character who did not resemble who he became when it was time to film.

«Montalban’s casting really altered the character in terms of who he became,» Tenuto said, continuing: «Once they knew that Montalban was taking the role, you can see a shift in the dialogue [in the scripts] to become more romantic.» This also caused the name to change from one of Scandinavian origin. Ultimately the «Star Trek» team came up with Khan Noonien Singh, in part to honor Noonien Wang, a friend of Roddenberry’s. All of this came together to create a character that is arguably one of the most significant characters in the «Star Trek» canon and returned to cause moments that stunned «Star Trek» audiences.