Trekkies were treated to the first teaser trailer at the convention.
You could say that Paramount Plus saved the best for last Saturday afternoon in Hall H as the upcoming streaming film, Section 31, closed out the panel. On a panel consisting of Omari Hardwick, Kacey Rohl, Sam Richardson, director Olatunde Osunsami, and Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman, it wasn't long before Michelle Yeoh hacked the feed and showed off a first look at the film, which included a brand new teaser trailer.
Our fabulous co-host on the ground at SDCC, Girafe, reacted to the trailer afterward by saying, "I am mind blown at how insane and gorgeous this movie looks. It's going to be EPIC!" You may have also noticed some familiar music. That's right, the Queen Beyonce herself said yes to having her music in the film, so you know, there's THAT.
After viewing the trailer for a second time, Olatunde and Alex Kurtzman gave an update on the film, saying editing was just about wrapped on the film and that if Section 31 does well, Paramount Plus will keep making Star Trek movies on the platform. There have also been a lot of questions about Section 31 and if it would ever get off the ground, which was announced first as a series and then finally as this film.
And then, of course, Michelle Yeoh won an Oscar for the critically acclaimed Anywhere, Everywhere, All at Once, and many thought that may have been the nail in the coffin of the project. But no, it was Michelle Yeoh who made Section 31 happen, and while working on the film, she was always present and always supportive. Personally, I never thought this would see the light of day, and it's awesome to see how much her fingerprints are all over this film.
There have definitely been a lot of questions about what the tone of the film is going to be. Omari Hardwick, who stars in the movie, said, "It's going to be messy Star Trek. Guardians of the Galaxy on steroids." Another of the film's stars was present, Kacey Rohl, who was announced to be playing the future captain of the USS Enterprise-C, Rachel Garrett. Check out the tweet below for her reaction to playing the character and how many times she's watched TNG's "Yesterday's Enterprise."
Kacey Rohl about being Rachel Garrett #section31 #startrek #HallH #startrekonpplus #SDCC2024 pic.twitter.com/J3bun90laz
— Strange New Pod @ #SDCC2024 (@strangenewpod) July 27, 2024
Some other news to come out of the panel and the trailer is the casting of Miku Martineau, who will be playing a young Phillipa Georgiou in flashback scenes we saw in the trailer. Judging by what we saw, these flashbacks chronicle her ascension to the throne of the Terran Empire in the mirror universe.
Finally, we're fortunate to have made some great friends and acquaintances during our four-year run here at Strange New Pod, one of them being background actor David Jones. David, who previously played a Starfleet solider in the Strange New Worlds episode "Under the Cloak of War," revealed yesterday that he's returning to the franchise in Section 31 as one of the Terran soldiers seen in the trailer. When I asked David what he thought about being back, he told me this:
"It was surreal walking back onto another Star Trek set, it's truly a life changing moment when it's a franchise you've been so passionate about since you were a kid. And I hope everyone enjoys it."
Star Trek: Section 31 will be available to stream exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and in all international markets where the service is available in early 2025. The movie is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.
Stay tuned today for our final day of coverage of San Diego Comic Con 2024, and stay tuned for our full trailer breakdown on our socials and podcasts later this week. If you missed any coverage, we have complete wrap-ups of the Lower Decks, Starfleet Academy, and Strange New Worlds sections of the panel!
