I have a theory about Star Trek: Section 31, and what Michelle Yeoh’s Emperor Philippa Georgiou is doing in Star Trek‘s first streaming movie. Section 31 is Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh’s long-awaited return to Star Trek. Georgiou was written out of Star Trek: Discovery season 3 so that she could topline a Section 31 spinoff, which was originally to be an ongoing series before it was refashioned into the first Star Trek movie made for streaming on Paramount+. But what is Georgiou up to in Star Trek: Section 31?

Aside from Emperor Georgiou, the cast of Star Trek: Section 31 has not had their character names revealed – except for one. We know that Kacey Rohl is playing Rachel Garrett, the younger version of the doomed Captain of the USS Enterprise-C from Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s “Yesterday’s Enterprise”. We also know that Star Trek: Section 31 is at least partly set in Star Trek‘s early 24th century “lost era” before the events of TNG. Even without knowing who they are playing, some of Star Trek: Section 31‘s actors resemble younger versions of other Star Trek legacy characters, so Rachel Garrett may be the tip of the iceberg in Paramount+’s Star Trek streaming movie.

I Think Michelle Yeoh’s Emperor Georgiou Is Recruiting Star Trek Legacy Characters Into Section 31

Rachel Garrett may not be alone in Star Trek: Section 31

I theorize Emperor Georgiou is recruiting several Star Trek legacy characters into Section 31, possibly to bring the organization down from the inside or to create her own splinter version of Starfleet’s black ops agency. And, like Rachel Garrett, Georgiou could be tapping idealistic, young Starfleet officers to join her squad. Looking at Star Trek: Section 31‘s actors, it’s not out of the question that Sam Richardson could be playing Joseph Sisko (Brock Peters), the father of Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Joseph harboring a secret past with Section 31 could explain his distrust of Starfleet later in life which often frustrated Ben.

Another Star Trek: Section 31 possibility is that Rob Kazinsky could be playing a young Edward Jellico (Ronny Cox) or a young Erik Pressman (Terry O’Quinn) from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Captain Jellico is the infamous hardliner future Captain of the USS Enterprise-D, while Admiral Pressman broke a treaty with the Romulans to develop a secret Starfleet cloaking device. The seed of either controversial TNG guest star could be planted in Star Trek: Section 31. In addition, Sven Rugyrok could be a young Luther Sloan, who may learn Section 31’s playbook from Emperor Georgiou.

Section 31 Will Set Up Star Trek: DS9

Starfleet’s black ops agency is about to go underground

One of Star Trek: Section 31‘s mission statements is to bridge the version seen in Star Trek: Discovery with the secret agency introduced in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. In Star Trek: Discovery‘s early seasons, Section 31 was common knowledge within Starfleet. But in DS9, Section 31’s existence was off the books, and not even Captain Sisko knew of them at first. Star Trek: Section 31‘s producers indicated that the movie explains how the black ops division was wiped from records so that an entire generation of Starfleet Officers didn’t know they existed. And it could reveal why anyone previously associated with Section 31 would keep their mouths tightly shut.

Would Star Trek: Section 31 revealing that popular legacy characters like Joseph Sisko and the future Captain Rachel Garrett were part of the black ops agency be canon-breaking? Not necessarily. Rather, it could be canon additive. Recruiting the right Star Trek legacy characters to join Section 31, if that is indeed what Emperor Georgiou is doing in Paramount+’s streaming movie, could add fascinating new layers to familiar ancillary characters. Done properly and with cleverness, Star Trek legacy characters in Section 31 could enhance their prior appearances in Star Trek and further explain their motivations and behavior. If I turn out to be right, Star Trek: Section 31 could let us see certain Star Trek legacy characters in an intriguing new way.