With ‘Section 31,’ Michelle Yeoh returns to the ‘Star Trek’ multiverse

Which Michelle Yeoh She would win an Academy Award for playing multiple versions of her lead character in multiple comedy-dramas.”Everything everywhere at once“Seems about right. And in her current guise as a ‘Star Trek’ hero, she’s still seemingly anything she wants to be, including multiple iterations of someone else.”

Since 2018, the international star has been on a tear, appearing in hit films like “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” “Wicked” (and soon, the “Avatar 4” series, “Blade Runner 2099 “), in addition to roles in several television series. This includes her role as Starship Commander Philippa Georgiou and being the mirror Doppelganger on “Star Trek: Discovery.” “Good” Georgiou died early in the series; Now the Illidious Emperor and the clever Emperor Georgiou headline the franchise’s first-ever TV movie,”Star Trek: Section 31,”Now streaming on Paramount+.

“With Captain Philippa Georgiou, she was the most respected and highly decorated captain who understood humanity and compassion,” says Yeoh of her character “Discovery,” a mentor to eventual hero Michael Burnham (Sonekwa Martin-Green). “In the Emperor Realm, there is no compassion. It never crosses their minds. You can see in everyone’s eyes in the Mirror Realm, it’s like, ‘How can I take you?'” It’s sadly reflected in our World: How many leaders want to stay there forever and ever? It’s dangerous. It’s as if they are trying to make themselves immortal.”

“Section 31” was originally conceived as a series, but was remade into a film after Covid-19 pushed back the gate and Yeoh’s schedule became busier following her Oscar win. But it was Determined to return to Star Trek.

“When we were filming ‘Discovery,’ I went to [executive producer] “We got to do Alex Kurtzman,” Yeoh said. “I thanked the writers for dreaming up a character like that. What a wonderful stadium. ”

She’s unlike any other “Star Trek” hero with her past on the field and a total lack of presence around killing. Even her behavior isn’t “trip”-like for comic effect sometimes.

“[Georgiou] He says, are you stupid? This is the way to do it. Yeoh says as she makes squeaky noises. When the vast majority of characters in the franchise act respectfully, the Emperor’s lack of politics is a breath of fresh air.

In the new movie, Georgiou is so bad, she’s good. She’s living off the radar in a corner of uncooperative space in the prime universe when Section 31’s operatives come to recruit her for a high-stakes mission that ends with profound personal resonance for her.

“You think, ‘I’m fine.’ I’m under the radar. “I don’t kill anyone,” Yeoh says. “But she can’t help herself. She needs to know what’s going on. That’s why Section 31 comes looking for her again, because if anything needs to be done — it’s not just the killer, but the brain.”

In the new film, Giorgio is so bad, she’s good: “She thinks, ‘I’m fine.’ I’m under the radar. “I don’t kill anyone,” Michelle Yeoh says.

(Jennifer McCord/For The Times)

Although some fans have long been uneasy about a military intelligence unit existing to do dirty jobs outside of the United Federation of Planetary Bases, Article 31 and Georgiou are like bitter but necessary medicine in Gene Roddenberry’s “Journey.” -utopian vision.

says Kurtzman, who… Helmms The Texpension “Star Trek” Confere “Star Trek”. “And we want to believe that this person is there to keep us safe.”

Yeoh describes “Section 31” as a “Mission: Impossible” set in space, with a “motley crew” of morally flexible spies. But it’s still a “Trek” universe and even features the non-Trek version of the character, Rachel Garrett (Kacey Rohl), who would become a hero of the Federation in one of the best-known episodes of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” But the film looks and feels different from other “trip” fare, with expansive handheld camerawork, an emphasis on action (making hay with Yeoh’s fighting skills), and modern slang worked into the dialogue. He’s kind of the face from “Star Trek,” like a mirror protagonist.

“If Georgiou doesn’t come to the main universe, she will stay [ruthless] Forever. [Even now,] It’s like, how do you take care of this problem? “Just, solve a problem,” Yeoh says. She likes to leave fans tagging along for her questionable actions: “Is she doing this to survive, or does she want to do this?”

“Section 31” director Olatunde Osunsanmi said that unpredictability is what makes Yeoh so great to watch. “The way Michelle plays the character, you never know what’s going to come out of her mouth next. You never know who she could kill next,” he says. “She’s also able to do the other side, which is the action, which I’m paid for.” , and dealing with herself physically. Now we have a character that is the full spectrum, and that’s not only what they say, but also what they do. “

Kurtzman says the 62-year-old star “works really, really hard,” pushing herself physically like no other actor she’s worked with. “When an actor playing a character plays with such confidence, it allows you to switch between comedy and drama effortlessly,” he says.

However, Yeoh’s casting was an anomaly for the franchise—an actual international star stepping into a major role in the “Star Trek” series (by comparison, William Shatner and Patrick Stewart were less well-known when they received their commissions). Therefore, many fans were subjected to gbsmackack when Georgiou died in “Discovery’s” second episode.

Michelle Yeoh on why she was interested in playing a Mirror Universe character: “Emperor Georgiou is more complex. What’s going on in that head?”

(Jennifer McCord/For The Times)

There was a lot of controversy surrounding her death. “Obviously what we did was setting up her return in the back half, but we couldn’t tell anyone at the time,” Kurtzman says. “But what was really fun was that Michelle would play the most delicious version of that character [Prime] Giorgio was a wonderful, beautiful human being, but in the end – and I think Michelle would say this too – anywhere near interesting. “

Yeoh agrees: “Emperor Georgiou is more complicated. What’s going on in that head?”

“At first, ‘friends’ is almost a bad word for her,” says Yeoh, shuddering at the thought of Ness Prime Denizens trying to befriend the Emperor. “They’re like a disease.” But the main universe was changing it: “Now, in ‘Section 31,’ is this the path to redemption?”

Playing an Asian woman who can be not only atypical, but many things at once, is exactly the kind of representation she called for, and embodies—in her decades-long career. The various incarnations of her character in Everything Everywhere and Star Trek are fitting for an actor who is practically in herself. After all, the multilingual Yeoh made her initial fame as a beauty queen (Miss Malaysia in 1983); She became one of the world’s hottest action stars in a series of hits in which she performed her own stunts, including “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”; He has received acclaim in diverse film and television roles; He has been a long-time activist for conservation, HIV/AIDS, gender equality and poverty reduction.

She hopes that, perhaps in a later role, she could be the President of the United States or M in James Bond. “Because when you see women who look like us in those types of situations, you go, ‘Oh, right.’ This is possible. Why not?’ That’s what we want to encourage our young ones to think, that anything is possible.”

It’s also apparently a lot of convincing camera work.

Director Olatunde Osunsanmi on the set of “Star Trek: Section 31.” Yeoh convinced him to appear in the background of a scene in the film.

(Jan thijs/paramount+)

“Behind the camera guy,” says Yueh N. Osunsanmi, who describes himself as a “behind the camera guy.” in The movie. He told her firmly that it wasn’t. Then, during shooting, one of the costumes told him that Yeoh had sent shoes to try on. Then a hairstylist told him, “‘Michelle has a wig for you to try.’ ‘Michelle decided you were going to wear glitter.’”

It was steady, until “Michelle came and said, ‘You have to do it, otherwise the actors won’t go on camera,’” he says with a laugh. “So I got dressed and the crew got the biggest kick out of it. If you look carefully, I’m there in [background] From the fight sequence with Michelle. “

For her part, in her current incarnation as an actress promoting “Section 31,” Yeoh has her pitch: “I want you to pull you out and put it on ‘Fun.’ There’s a lot of humor, especially [fun is] The Alex and Tunde team put it together.”

Hazar? But doesn’t the center of these spies in space appear to be a genocidal killer?

“she He was! “Her,” the actor advises He was! “

Times writer Tracy Brown contributed to this report.