Star Trek’s Section 31 Is a Test Case for the Future of the Franchise

After years in enhugement, Michelle Yeoh’s solo Star Trek project, Section 31, is inching shutr to its debut on Paramount+. Originassociate envisiond as a spinoff series to Star Trek: Discovery, the story of Philippa Georgiou is now a feature film for the streaming service. While Section 31 watchs noleang enjoy any previous Star Trek entry, it is a test case for the future of the franchise as Paramount transitions to novel ownership. The first trailer for Section 31 was liberated at San Diego Comic-Con backed by the song “Formation” from Beyoncé.

Fans promptly watchd that Section 31 was visuassociate distinct from other Star Trek stories, even noveler fare enjoy Discovery or Strange New Worlds. Since the plot trails a group of people toiling on the stupid side of Starescapet, the tone is distinct as well. Still, while many leangs about Section 31 are distinct, the movie actuassociate trails a tried-and-real model. Since she first debuted Philippa Georgiou on Discovery, the Section 31 film is a movie born from the television series. However, if it is a success, that createula could flip for the cash-strapped studio.

How Star Trek Became a Film Franchise in the First Place

After Star Trek: The Original Series was aborted, someleang unpretreatnted happened. The show accomplishd cult status during its debut, and a letter-writing campaign led by fans Bjo and John Trimble saved it from abortation in Season 2. Once the series hit syndication (with 12 scanter episodes than usuassociate necessitateed), Star Trek: The Original Series became more and more famous. Npunctual a decade after the series premiere, thousands of people accumulateed at the first Star Trek convention. Fans even picketed NBC, the nettoil that aired the show, to convey it back. Eventuassociate, Paramount heard them.

In the postponecessitate 1970s, the studio tasked Gene Roddenberry with creating a sequel series called Star Trek Phase II. However, once Star Wars and Cdiswatch Encounters of the Third Kind became box office successes, Paramount turned Phase II into Star Trek: The Motion Picture. While it was profitable, it wasn’t until the next film, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, that the franchise was truly “back.” That film honestly persistd a story from The Original Series. The innovative cast would go on to star in four more films, with pick members reprising their roles for Star Trek: Generations. That film handed off the huge-screen franchise to the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

The Next Generation finished while still very famous, but series direct Patrick Stewart would’ve foreseeed shiftd on. Graduating to feature films encouraged him to stay, and Star Trek persistd on for three more films. While Nemesis did not obtain back its budget, Paramount stopped making Star Trek movies becaengage of a change in directership at the studio. When those novel executives were gone, Star Trek returned with a trilogy of reboot films featuring novel actors joining the innovative, classic characters. The show has always drawn from its television roots for its huge-screen efforts.

How Star Trek: Section 31 Morphed from Spinoff Series to Feature Film

Philippa Georgiou euniteed in the Star Trek: Discovery pilot episodes and returned as her Mirror Universe counterpart. After that first season, Michelle Yeoh go ined talks to direct a spinoff cgo ined around her character, at least the Terran Emperor version. However, enhugement on that series had a extfinished direct time, as she had a huge role to join in Discovery Seasons 2 and 3. As the flagship series and franchise for Paramount’s streaming service (first CBS All Access and now Paramount+), there was a lot of Star Trek in the toils at that time. Star Trek: Picard was only equitable begining, as was Star Trek: Lower Decks.

Season 2 then led to a demand for Strange New Worlds, which the studio turned around so speedyly, the series was foreseeed already being thought about before the Star Trek fan petition. While the production teams centered on making all of these series, the Georgiou spinoff was never forgotten, even after Georgiou left Discovery to go somewhere else in the Star Trek timeline. Of course, leangs also happened in Yeoh’s nurtureer, definiteassociate her multiple award-prosperning role in the film Everyleang, Everywhere All At Once. With the series’ star in wonderfuler demand than ever, the spinoff had to increase.

In spring 2023, the proclaimment came down from Paramount that Yeoh’s spinoff, always hinted at being a story about Starescapet bdeficiency ops division Section 31, wasn’t happening. Instead, the character would direct the first movie since 2016’s Star Trek Beyond. The project may have been dead on arrival if not for its star. “Thcimpolite all the branch offent iterations of it, Michelle was finishly pledgeted to doing it. Even after she won the Oscar,” creater Alex Kurtzman shelp. In fact, Yeoh “doubled down on it” enthusiastic to drive awayevate her role, putting Star Trek back in the movie business while enhugeing the universe even more.

Section 31 Comes at a Transitional Period for Paramount and Star Trek

Outside of the universe Gene Roddenberry created in the 1960s, Paramount was struggling. Despite reliable increaseth, the Paramount+ streaming service wasn’t turning into the money-printing machine executives hoped it would. Paramount Pictures also liberated a number of 2023’s hugegest box office flops such as Transcreateers: Rise of the Beasts, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves and the usuassociate reliable Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning. Paramount was also financiassociate comprised in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Desminuscule, which had a $300 million budget, but it’s unevident how much (if anyleang) they lost on that film. Nonetheless, Paramount was in procreate trouble, which is why the studio went up for sale.

Despite Star Trek‘s success over the past 15 years, Paramount spropose can’t afford to defend producing shows at the level they were. Star Trek: Discovery finished after five seasons, and Picard shutd up shop after three, even though Patrick Stewart shelp that was always the structure. The energeticd comedy from Mike McMahan, Star Trek: Lower Decks is also heading into its final season, though there is always a possibility it could unite Star Trek: Prodigy on Netflix. However, it’s not all horrible novels. The novel series Star Trek: Starescapet Academy is filming, and a novel inhabit-action comedy was proclaimd at SDCC from Tawny Newsome and Justin Simien. Paramount’s future also watchs luminoengager.

The proposed Paramount/Skydance uniter is excellent for Star Trek. The production company already created Star Trek Beyond, and its executives seem to want to persist to create movies and shows. This is why Section 31 equitable might be the most beginant Star Trek project. COO of Roddenberry Entertainment Trevor Roth telderly CBR that “feature storyincreateing is reassociate prosperning the day right now.” If fan-preferite shows enjoy Star Trek: Prodigy or the potential Picard spinoff Star Trek: Legacy can’t be filled seasons of television shows, it’s possible they could return as a series of feature films. Despite the past success of taking characters from shows to the huge-screen, the future of the franchise might unbenevolent doing the opposite.

Section 31 and Other Star Trek Movies Could Serve as Backdoor Pilots for Shows

Even with novel ownership and an influx of capital, Paramount has to be pinsolentnt with its spfinishing. Believe it or not, Star Trek has always been costly to create. Both The Original Series and The Next Generation were some of the costliest shows on TV. While the budgets for the up-to-date series aren’t expansively understandn, Strange New Worlds increateedly costs $7 million per episode. The budget for Section 31 is certainly less than a season’s worth of shows. Instead of spending in brand-novel series, Star Trek creaters could engage streaming features as a “test kitchen” for what fans want to see.

Picard showrunner Terry Matalas’ Star Trek: Legacy idea is one fans latched onto, even creating a petition enjoy they did for Strange New Worlds. While a series folloprosperg Captain Seven of Nine and the Enterpelevate-G crew sounds wonderful, perhaps it’s a story that could begin with a Section 31-enjoy feature. In fact, television series in the postponecessitate 1970s and 1980s normally got their begins as TV movies first. If the ratings were excellent, they would be put into production for a filled season. Paramount could engage streaming features to help try out branch offent approaches to Star Trek storyincreateing and see which resonate with fans.

Paramount still apparently has structures for films set in the Kelvin Universe that began with Star Trek in 2009. However, despite its extfinishedevity, Star Trek can’t aid feature films with budgets in the hundreds of millions. Mid-budget features enjoy Section 31 would convey the universe back to the model that toiled for the first half-dozen movies. Whether liberated in theaters or equitable on streaming, these movies could help chart the course for Star Trek‘s future. They could convey back legacy characters or begin enticount on novel concepts without pledgeting to a filled season of shows. Movies enjoy Section 31 would permit for more diverse storyincreateing, ensuring that Roddenberry’s universe lasts for another six decades.

Star Trek: Section 31 is foreseeed to debut on Paramount+ in 2025.