After years of persistent questions from fans, Star Trek: Section 31 is officially coming to Paramount+. The long-awaited spinoff has finally begun production and added several new cast members.
Rumors of Star Trek: Section 31 first arose in 2018, just a year after Star Trek: Discovery premiered. CBS reportedly began talks with Michelle Yeoh to give her character, Philippa Georgiou, a solo spinoff series. Yeoh received high praise for her role as Georgiou, who was introduced as a Captain of the USS Shenzhou in season 1. After being killed, she returned as another iteration of Georgiou from the Mirror Universe, where she was the emperor of the authoritarian Terran Empire.
She was officially written off Star Trek: Discovery in season 3 in 2020 to pave the way for her spinoff series. Unfortunately, this is when progress on the series started to lag. First, the COVID-19 pandemic caused filming delays, then CBS All Access rebranded to Paramount+ and made the streamer Star Trek‘s home. With the streamer continuing Star Trek: Discovery and debuting four more shows—Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Prodigy, Star Trek: Lower Decks, and Star Trek: Brave New Worlds—creator Alex Kurtzman warned that Star Trek: Section 31 wouldn’t be officially added to Paramount+’s slate until one of the aforementioned shows concluded.
Fortunately, Kurtzman kept his promise: Right before the series finale of Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Section 31 was officially ordered by Paramount+. However, the project is no longer being developed as a TV series but as a streaming film directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi. Here’s everything we know about the Star Trek: Section 31 film.
Star Trek: Section 31 reveals its cast as production commences
Star Trek: Section 31 confirmed the return of Yeoh, who will be reprising her role as Georgiou. Even though the project is being redeveloped, it will still star Yeoh as was initially planned. After all, the entire project started with Yeoh when she approached CBS about giving Georgiou a spinoff. The role had grown close to her heart and was quite significant, as she was one of the first women to ring in a new era of Star Trek. On reprising her role as Georgiou, Yeoh stated:
“I’m beyond thrilled to return to my Star Trek family and to the role I’ve loved for so long. Section 31 has been near and dear to my heart since I began the journey of playing Philippa all the way back when this new golden age of Star Trek launched. To see her finally get her moment is a dream come true in a year that’s shown me the incredible power of never giving up on your dreams. We can’t wait to share what’s in store for you, and until then: live long and prosper (unless Emperor Georgiou decrees otherwise)!”
As reported by Variety, Star Trek: Section 31 has also confirmed seven more cast members, although their roles have not been disclosed. Joining Yeoh for the film are Sam Richardson (Ted Lasso), Kacey Rohl (Hannibal), Omari Hardwick (Army of the Dead), Robert Kazinsky (Pacific Rim), Humberly González (Ginny & Georgia), James Hiroyuki Liao (Prison Break), and Sven Ruygrok (Spud). So far, these are the only confirmed cast. However, there’s a chance some Star Trek: Discovery cast members could return. For example, Shazad Latif’s Ash Tyler was made Commander of Section 31 in Star Trek: Discovery, paving the way for his potential return. It remains to be seen if he will reprise his role for the film, though, and if any other familiar faces will join Yeoh.
In addition to the film forming its cast, Kurtzman confirmed that principal photography has begun, meaning Star Trek: Section 31 will likely have a 2025 release date.
What is Star Trek: Section 31 about?
As revealed by The Hollywood Reporter, the synopsis for Star Trek: Section 31 reads, “[Georgiou] joins a secret division of Starfleet tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets and faces the sins of her past.” As mentioned above, Georgiou was once the ruthless emperor of an authoritarian dictatorship, which explains the “sins” she is facing. However, we’re not so sure if joining Section 31 is the path to redemption.
After all, Section 31 has a fairly dark history in the Star Trek franchise. Section 31 was a secretive organization that claimed to protect the security of Starfleet and the Federation. While considered a part of Starfleet Intelligence, Section 31 largely operates in the shadows, outside of the Federation’s jurisdiction. This means the few individuals who made up Section 31 could largely use their own discretion to deal with threats without being held accountable for more extreme measures. Hence, Section 31 isn’t necessarily an “evil” organization but one with questionable morals. At times, the group concluded that such despicable actions as murder and even genocide were justified to deal with a threat. Despite being extreme at times, many of its members did believe they were working in the best interest of the Federation and doing what had to be done.
Considering Georgiou already has a pretty morally ambiguous past, it’s a little concerning to see what she’ll do in the name of the Federation’s security under the protection of Section 31’s secrecy.
(featured image: Paramount+)
