'Star Trek Into Darkness' is set to be an ''explosive action thriller''.

The creators behind the upcoming sci-fi sequel have released a new official synopsis giving an insight into what fans can expect from director J.J. Abrams' greatly-anticipated feature.

The synopsis reads: ''In Summer 2013, pioneering director J.J. Abrams will deliver an explosive action thriller that takes 'Star Trek Into Darkness'.

''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 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.''

While it has been unveiled what is in stow for Captain Kirk, played by Chris Pine, nothing has been said about Benedict Cumberbatch's villain character after Abrams revealed earlier this month that the 'Sherlock' actor will star in the film.

He told Yahoo!: ''It is obviously a little too early to be talking specifically about the movie, but we're editing the film now.

''It has been a blast working with the same cast, and some new amazing actors, including Benedict Cumberbatch, who is this British actor who is mind-blowingly great, and we are putting the movie together now.''

'Star Trek Into Darkness', which also stars original cast Zachary Quinto and Zoe Saldana, will open in the UK on 17 May 2013.