Star Trek: Section 31 Movie Streaming Soon! - January 24
After years of waiting, Section 31 (the 'Special Movie Event') is now only mere months away.
It's the 'Long Trek' with the longest gestation. It's the Era most Lost. It's the shady organisation with the dubious morals. It's the ex-Emperor with a kill count on (mirror) Qo'noS. Conceived as a spin-off series during filming of Star Trek: Discovery's first season by Michelle Yeoh, Star Trek: Section 31, the movie — after all the ups and downs, pushbacks and the pandemic — is at last coming to streaming on Friday, 24th January 2025 on Paramount+.
Fittingly cryptic like Section 31 itself, we didn't get much more information than the release date out of the New York Comic Con 'Star Trek: Universe Panel' this Saturday (19th). There was no official trailer to add to the teaser from San Diego, though we did get some very colourful, not metaphors, but posters of Yeoh and the rest and the cast tucked in, around, and on the 'Section' of 'Section 31'.
Taking to the Empire Stage were actors Omari Hardwick, Kacey Rohl, and Robert Kazinsky, as well as the film's director and executive producer Olatunde Osunsanmi. NYCC has clearly mastered VoIP technology, too, without the need for subspace relays, as for the second time of the afternoon, another surprise call came in. Yeoh appeared live on screen from Prague, looking like Georgiou herself had hacked her way in on the conversation. When asked if she would want to do a Section 31 series if the movie is a success, the mega-busy Oscar-winner rather heart-warmingly replied, "I've always been available for Section 31".
How many secret lives can one person live? Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh stars in #Section31, a @ParamountPlus Original Movie streaming January 24. pic.twitter.com/4kIQ8C4cll— Star Trek on Paramount+ (@StarTrekOnPPlus) October 19, 2024
As we noted in our breakdown article and video on 'Everything We Know About Section 31 (The Movie),' we already knew some of the character names for the (main) cast. For those there on stage at NYCC, Omari Hardwick is playing 'Alak Sahar,' the 'overseer' of the 'motley crew'. Kacey Rohl is none other than Rachel Garrett — LIEUTENANT Rachel Garrett, in fact, as was revealed in an interview with MTV's Josh Horowitz at San Diego Comic Con in July.
Other than 'mech guy' and 'definitely not Borg,' we didn't know the name of Robert Kazinsky's character, however. He is 'Zef' or 'Zeph' (depending on the spelling), the British actor revealed at NYCC — the guy who 'smashes' and 'breaks' anything Alak Sahar points him at.
As we found out from his Instagram, Kazinsky is also a huge Star Trek fan. He proved that and then some during the NYCC panel, citing episode after episode with ease! The debate over the morality and very 'Star Trek-ness' — particularly in the 'Roddenberry's vision' sense — of Section 31 goes back to, well, the organisation's introduction in Inquisition.
Asked a similar question on Section 31 ethics, Kazinsky didn't shy away from giving an honest answer — that "it's easy to be a saint in paradise". To coin a phrase, if I may, perhaps Section 31 handles the demons, so everyone else can keep their angels too.
Whichever side of the debate you come down on, it's good to have the debate in the first place! Star Trek has always meant to provoke difficult questions. Moreover, Section 31 (the movie), no matter how we judge it, can be the test bed for other 'Long Treks' and spin-offs of its kind. Star Trek: Legacy need not be in the singular, after all. In any case, I know what I'll be doing on 24th January. Let's get in formation… and popcorn!