‘Section 31’ Teaser: Michelle Yeoh Ushers in a Whole New Different Kind of ‘Star Trek’

The “Star Trek: Section 31” teaser is here, and it’s a vibe like we’ve never gotten from “Star Trek” before. No Federation root-beer-only drinkers need apply for this club.

Directed by “Star Trek: Discovery” MVP helmer Olatunde Osunsanmi — who directed that show’s premieres and finales and gave an extra cinematic dimension to the series — “Section 31” puts the spotlight on the secretive covert ops and intelligence unit within Starfleet. Michelle Yeoh, who plays the erstwhile Empress Georgiou of the Mirror Universe, is recruited by the organization to bring a different sensibility to it — one far removed from those who care about the Prime Directive or any other kind of pious Starfleet feel-goodery.

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Which is to say that this is the first “Star Trek” property ever where a character says, “You’re a bad bitch.”

Joining Yeoh are actors Omari Hardwick, Sam Richardson, and Kacey Rohl who all appeared in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con alongside director Osunsanmi and “Star Trek” franchise overlord Alex Kurtzman — Yeoh only introduced this teaser via “video interruption” of the panel.

“Section 31” is unique for “Star Trek” because it’s a direct-to-streaming movie for Paramount+, not a series. The franchise has never attempted this before (its only movies have been purely theatrical in the past), and Jonathan Frakes told IndieWire that he thinks it’ll open up a new format for the franchise that could enable different kinds of “Star Trek” stories to be told.

“I think that the success of what I’m imagining, the success of ‘Section 31,’ Michelle Yeoh’s movie, is only going to catapult us further into the future,” Frakes said.

“I believe ‘Star Trek’ can only go on if you take big bold swings,” Kurtzman told IndieWire at a panel event in June. “If you play it safe, it won’t last. And that is going to get a lot of reaction. It’s the nature of ‘Star Trek’ fans, it’s their reaction to have a big debate about what you like or don’t like about ‘Star Trek.’ That’s the point. That’s what it means to be a ‘Star Trek’ fan. I think that’s a good thing.”

“Section 31” certainly seems to be living up to that. Watch the teaser below.

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