Section 31, the movie about a clandestine agency that works within Starfleet Intelligence, is scheduled to premiere on Paramount+ on January 24th. There has been a lot of buzz about the movie, but not necessarily all for the good. There are plenty of fans who, having seen the trailer, are dead set against watching it. But, according to director Olatunde Osunsanmi, tuning in could very well have a positive effect on those looking for future Star Trek streaming movies, like, say, even a Lower Decks film.
In an interview with SFX Magazine [via Trekmovie], Osunsanmi said "“Hopefully the fans love Section 31 and love this format, and we’re able to continue this format with other stories and be able to expand the universe so much faster, because it doesn’t have to all be television series. It can just be one pop, one pop, one pop. If the audience – the fans – they love it, the sky’s the limit with what we can do…"
Yes, the director is saying tuning in and loving it, but the viewing numbers matter most of all. While there are bound to be people that will love it, money speaks louder than love in the film industry, and more sets of eyes on the film tells Paramount that this, as well as films like it, are ones that will have Star Trek fans tuning in. And, honestly, even if you don't like the premise of this movie, the fact that it has Michelle Yeoh as its star, that it is Star Trek, and it could lead to even more Star Trek could be reasons enough for you to tune in.
We all know that no two films are alike so whatever the franchise decides to deliver next by way of a streaming channel movie will be vastly different than Section 31. Perhaps we could get a Lower Decks' movie or a Star Trek: Legacy film that could then lead to a series. So we should all consider that watching Section 31 isn't just something to do for that movie; it could very well be for the future of other movies in the franchise.