J.J. Abrams Grants Dieing Man Advance Screening of 'Into Darkness'

Diagnosed with terminal cancer, Daniel Craft, director of the New York Asian Film Festival, was allowed to see an early cut of the upcoming Star Trek film nearly five months ahead of its release date.

When New York-based film buff Daniel Craft was told he had terminal cancer less than six weeks ago, Craft's friends and family took it upon themselves to make his last days as happy and comfortable as possible. His friend Doug posted a plea from Craft's wife, Paige, on the popular Internet message board Reddit, and the message was picked up by social media and the press until it eventually found its way to J.J. Abrams. The director granted him access to see an early edited version of the film, which isn't set to be released until May.

At a time when he didn't have much to look forward to, a Star Trek fan was given the opportunity to watch a rough cut of Star Trek: Into Darkness just days before he died.

"The next day, one of the film’s producers showed up at the door of their apartment with a DVD containing a very rough cut of Star Trek: Into Darkness in his hands. Paige had made popcorn, Dan had spent the previous day resting so he could sit through the movie, and after signing about 200 non-disclosure agreements they watched the film and had a blast."

After watching the film, Craft went back to bed and didn’t get out again. His wife took him to the hospital for hospice care on Friday, and at 10:15 pm, with his wife and his brother by his side, Dan died. He was 41.

But Craft was more than just a Star Trek fan. As one of the founders of the New York Asian Film Festival, he was instrumental in bringing Asian cinema to the US. "Jackie Chan, Jet Li--these actors have careers in the US because of people like Dan bringing their movies over when distributors weren't doing it," Hendrix tells THR. But like the other directors of NYAFF, it was merely fulfilling a passion; Craft still had a day job: He worked in the data department for MTV until, due to his illness, he was no longer able to work. The film buff was also fluent in Mandarin, and even tried his hand at acting in a few Chinese television series. "He always played the evil white guy," Hendrix says. His biggest claim to fame might have been as an extra in Kill Bill Vol. 1, where Hendrix says Craft was "the bald white guy dancing on a dance floor."

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