Star Trek Section 31 Movie Snubbing One Of Its Stars?
Star Trek: Discovery star Shazad Latif says he has not been contacted for the Section 31 movie.
Shazad Latif is still waiting for Paramount to beam him aboard the upcoming Star Trek: Section 31 project. “I haven’t heard anything yet,” Latif revealed on the Nerds of Color podcast, “It’s down to timelines and all that kind of stuff.” The actor didn’t elaborate on whether he was referring to everyone’s availability to work on the project or Star Trek’s literal timelines—of which there are several.
According to TrekMovie, the only cast member currently announced for the made-for-streaming movie is Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh. Not much else is known about Star Trek: Section 31 beyond its title and the fact that it will revolve around Yeoh’s Philippa Georgiou. Everything else is pure speculation at this point, including, as Shazad mentioned, which timeline it takes place in.
When Latif’s character Ash Tyler was last seen on screen, it was in the 23rd-century main Discovery timeline. Since then, Yeoh’s character has been catapulted forward into the 32nd and then thrown back in time courtesy of the Guardian of Forever. Where or when she landed was left intentionally vague.
If Latif is left out of Star Trek: Section 31, it won’t be from lack of interest on his part. Ever since Section 31 was first announced as a series, the 34-year-old London Native has been keen to join the project. More recently, Shazad specifically expressed an interest in working with Michelle Yeoh again.
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance star referred to Yeoh as a “legend in the game,” and went so far as to profess his love for the actor. Latif noted that the two thespians would frequently get dinner after shooting and that he hopes to get the chance to go to dinner with Yeoh again.
Star Trek: Section 31 was first announced back in 2019 as a series. At some point, Paramount made the decision to turn it into an “event” film made specifically for the Paramount+ streaming service. According to what little Paramount has disclosed about the project, the movie will follow Emperor Philippa Georgiou as she joins a secret division of Starfleet and attempts to protect the United Federation of Planets while dealing with the “sins of her past.”
The movie is a spinoff of Star Trek: Discovery and has been in some form of development since the end of Discovery‘s first season. Craig Sweeny will be writing and executive producing Star Trek: Section 31, while Olatunde Osunsanmi will handle directing duties on the film. Section 31 itself has been around since Deep Space Nine, and the shadowy organization has been featured in Star Trek: Enterprise, Discovery, Lower Decks, Picard, and even J.J. Abrams’ much-maligned Into Darkness.
Unfortunately for Shazad Latif, the actor might be waiting quite a while before he hears anything. Star Trek: Section 31 was set to go into production later this year, but the current WGA strike that is throwing all of Hollywood into chaos could very well delay the project.
Meanwhile, fans of Latif can see him later this year when Disney+ releases its live-action adaptation of Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea titled Nautilus. The series will tell the origin of Latif’s Captain Nemo as he has adventures in the aquatic depths of Earth’s oceans.
