Michelle Yeoh is opening up about the failure of the Section 31 movie and how she feels about her turn in what’s now seen as the worst Star Trek film!
For years, fans often considered Star Trek V: The Final Frontier as the worst Star Trek movie ever. It’s easy to slam it on the low budget, weak story, bad effects, and William Shatner’s terrible direction. However, in 2025, a new contender took the crown of bad Trek movies.
Section 31 was originally intended to be a TV show focusing on the black-ops division of Starfleet. A decision was made to narrow it down to a TV movie on Paramount+, which was going to lead to more spinoff films.
The big pull was Michelle Yeoh returning as Philippa Georgiou. The Hong Kong action icon had been the draw for Star Trek: Discovery, only for her captain to be killed off. However, Georgiou returned in the form of her counterpart from the Mirror Universe, who reigned as Empress of the Terran Empire. She would be a recurring face for the next two seasons.
The character remained a favorite with the plans for a series about her, which were put off by Yeoh’s schedule, especially her historic Oscar-winning turn in Everything Everywhere All At Once. It finally came together for the Section 31 movie, where Georgiou is recruited to gather a band of renegades on a secret mission.
Paramount+ premiered the movie in early 2025 to terrible reviews with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 22%, basically tied with Final Frontier. The fan reaction was just as poor, citing the weak storyline and how rushed it seemed. Now Yeoh herself is opening up about it.
Talking to Collider, Yeoh finally addressed her feelings on the Section 31 movie. She praised director Olatunde Osunsanmi for maintaining a balancing act regarding the film's relationship with the rest of the franchise while talking about how she doesn’t regret it.
"Well, as all things go, you do your best for what you believe in. I think there were some things that we could have done better, but on the whole, I thought, Olatunde, our director, our showrunner, our writer… Because we are walking a very fine balance between Star Trek and Section 31, because we wanted to push the boundaries of what Star Trek: Section 31 is about, but really being so respectful to the Star Trek world. So, I think we treaded carefully. But I think visually, the characters that we built and the rapport that we had with each other was amazing. Every time I finish a movie or something, I always think, 'I could have done better,' so it’s nothing new. That’s how you always have to think to improve yourself and to hopefully be better the next time. But it’s very hard to please all of your audience all of the time."
A common complaint about the film was how it was clearly smashing the plans for a Section 31 TV show into one movie, rushing the plot lines and not helping the characters develop as they should have. While Yeoh got good raves for her performance, the rest of the cast seemed lacking, and the weak storyline didn’t help.
Yeoh makes a good point on how Section 31 was meant to explore the darker edges of the Star Trek universe, something some fans may not have taken to. That doesn't make up for the movie showing a lack of care and polish that could have made it more entertaining.
It’s a shame, as Yeoh was sensational in the role and could have carried a well-made series or movies. She seems upbeat about it all, yet her words also show how Section 31 was a misfire for modern Star Trek.
Star Trek: Section 31 streaming on Paramount+.