Star Trek: Section 31 ... THE MOVIE

[Snarf Zagyg]

There has been a long (and I mean LONG) history of false starts on a spinoff series about Section 31 in the Star Trek universe starring Michelle Yeoh.

Well, it looks like we have #Section31CONFIRMED!

What is surprising is that for years, it has been pitched as a series that was a spinoff of Discovery. Now, it is going to be a full-fledged MOVIE!

What does this all mean? Well, a few things ...

After the Oscar win and the success of Everything Everywhere All At Once, Yeoh is going to be able to cash in a little. Good. For. Her! Seriously ... she is amazing, and deserves the long-overdue recognition. And money. People don't live off of recognition.

Second, going forward on this movie likely is the final nail in the coffin for the fourth Kelvin universe Star Trek movie. I really loved that cast (RIP Yelchin ..... ) but they just never were able to get things together. Now that they are moving ahead with this movie, I find it unlikely that they'll be able to get the gang together again.

 

[MarkB]

That's an interesting choice. Certainly, the motivation to capitalise on Michelle Yeoh's current popularity (while not committing to paying what would no doubt be a considerable salary over the course of a series) is clear.

But this is a character with a complicated backstory, becoming part of an organisation with some similarly complex background. Not something easily summed up within the opening minutes of a movie - and movies are generally intended to stand on their own, not rely upon previous character knowledge.

So I wonder if any of that existing backstory will be referenced at all, or if they'll find a way to make it effectively standalone as a story.

 

[trappedslider]

Well, it looks like it might be a Paramount+ release only instead of going to the big screen

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Well, it looks like it might be a Paramount+ release only instead of going to the big screen

Yeah, the wording is unclear but it looks to be a streaming exclusive.

 

[Umbran]

What is surprising is that for years, it has been pitched as a series that was a spinoff of Discovery. Now, it is going to be a full-fledged MOVIE!
What does this all mean? Well, a few things ...

After the Oscar win and the success of Everything Everywhere All At Once, Yeoh is going to be able to cash in a little. Good. For. Her! Seriously ... she is amazing, and deserves the long-overdue recognition. And money.

This is going to be a movie for Paramount+, not the big screen. So, while I am sure she's getting paid, it won't be blockbuster film money.

I wouldn't be surprised if this is a compromise - after that Oscar win, she's likely in heavy demand. A multi-year series commitment might not be a great career move for her just this moment.

Second, going forward on this movie likely is the final nail in the coffin for the fourth Kelvin universe Star Trek movie.

While I also expect that the Kelvin Universe is done, I don't know that a movie for a streaming service really speaks to big-screen plans.

 

[Umbran]

Yeah, the wording is unclear but it looks to be a streaming exclusive.

From StarTrek.com:

"Paramount+ today announced it has officially greenlit Star Trek: Section 31 starring Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh. In this special original movie event for the service,Yeoh will return to her role as Emperor Philippa Georgiou... "

So, that seems pretty clear.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

From StarTrek.com:

"Paramount+ today announced it has officially greenlit Star Trek: Section 31 starring Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh. In this special original movie event for the service,Yeoh will return to her role as Emperor Philippa Georgiou... "

So, that seems pretty clear.

Maybe. But we've been seeing a lot of the streamers pivot from "Original and exclusive" to "Original and also released in theaters," and given that Amazon, Apple, and WB/Universal have already made it pretty explicit, I wouldn't be surprised if there's wriggle room based on the lack of the word "exclusive."

I'm also not holding my breath on the Election sequel starring Reese Witherspoon being only on Paramount+ without any theatrical release.

We'll see!

 

[Ruin Explorer]

If Section 31 are the bad guys, and even the ex-Empress herself finds that she has to sort them out/set them straight/shoot all of them, great.

If Section 31 are Hard Men Making Hard Decisions and essentially "the good guys", absolutely kill me now. That is literally, I do mean literally the antithesis of everything, absolutely everything Star Trek has stood for, for decades.

I mean, if it's the latter, hopefully the next series of Doctor Who can feature him as square-jawed, musclebound slightly-dim American man who subscribes very strongly to "Shoot first and ask questions later" and just absolutely blasts his way through every problem. But he has a natty scarf on so it's fine!

 

[payn]

Ugh, I loved DS9 S31, hated Discovery version.

 

[MGibster]

If Section 31 are Hard Men Making Hard Decisions and essentially "the good guys", absolutely kill me now. That is literally, I do mean literally the antithesis of everything, absolutely everything Star Trek has stood for, for decades.

That's kind of where I am. I know know Section 31 from Deep Space 9, but we're not supposed to be rooting for them.