Summary

• Dr. Julian Bashir's involvement in a Section 31 movie could solidify his status as a double agent and continue his mission to dismantle the organization from within.
• The conflict between Bashir and Georgiou would be a battle of wits, with both characters equally armed and their intelligence playing a key role.
• While Bashir may not appear in the Section 31 series, he could potentially return in a 25th-century sequel if the show performs well, offering room for exciting new characters and the restoration of Starfleet Intelligence's integrity.

The legacy Star Trek character that cast of Star Trek: Section 31 features Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh as Emperor Philippa Georgiou from Star Trek: Discovery, and several other newcomers to Star Trek in unnamed roles. No familiar Star Trek characters besides Georgiou are in sight, not even Discovery's Lt. Ash Tyler (Shazad Latif), Georgiou's 23rd-century contemporary within Section 31.

Section 31, Starfleet's covert intelligence division, was introduced in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 6, episode 18, "Inquisition", in which Deputy Director Luther Sloan (William Sadler) puts Dr. Bashir through psychological tests to determine that Bashir isn't a Dominion spy before recruiting Bashir as an agent of Section 31. Bashir refuses, but Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) requests that Bashir accept Sloan's invitation to Section 31, so the organization can be dismantled from within. Bashir remains the central character in Section 31's subsequent DS9 appearances, which place Julian's morals at odds with deceptively uncovering information for the benefit of the Federation.

Why Section 31 Movie Needs Star Trek: DS9’s Dr. Bashir

Julian Bashir still has an important Section 31 mission to complete.

Dr. Julian Bashir was featured in the earliest Section 31 episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, making Bashir an important player in the Section 31 story. The DS9 documentary What We Left Behind suggested Bashir was still d with Section 31 in DS9's hypothetical season 8, and Bashir's involvement in a Section 31 movie could canonize Julian's status as a Section 31 double agent, especially since Sisko's directive to destroy Section 31 from within was never completed on DS9. Even though Sisko ascended to become a Prophet of Bajor, Bashir's story could continue with reports to a commanding officer who shares Bashir's goal of ensuring Starfleet maintains its moral stance, even in its intelligence division.

Julian Bashir's mission to dismantle Section 31 as a part of Starfleet Intelligence would put Bashir at direct odds with Emperor Philippa Georgiou, whose Mirror Universe methodology meshes well with Section 31's Machiavellian spycraft. The conflict between Bashir and Georgiou would be a battle of wits in which both combatants are equally armed, with Bashir's superior intelligence as a genetically enhanced individual playing against Georgiou's perfectly placed strategies as a tactical mastermind. Alexander Siddig and Michelle Yeoh would be a joy to watch in a game of cat-and-mouse espionage where the stakes are Starfleet's moral soul -- especially when both players think they're the cat.

Section 31’s Potential Setting Means Dr. Bashir Can’t Appear

The 25th century would make a great Section 31 sequel.

It's likely that Section 31 will be set in the 23rd century, long before Dr. Julian Bashir's time. In Star Trek: Discovery, the Guardian of Forever (Paul Guilfoyle) was very clear in specifying that Philippa Georgiou had to exist at a time closer to her own 23rd-century origin in order for Georgiou to remain in the Prime Universe. While Georgiou's home Mirror Universe was still close enough to the Prime Universe to allow for crossovers between the two in the 24th century, as evidenced by DS9's 5 Mirror Universe episodes, the 100-year gap may still be too wide to maintain Georgiou's molecular integrity.

Star Trek: Section 31 will focus on Philippa Georgiou and new characters, but that doesn't mean Julian Bashir can't return to Star Trek. If Yeoh's Section 31 does well, Paramount+ plans to release a new Star Trek movie every 2 years. Bashir's inextricable links with Section 31 could spell a potential 25th-century sequel, with room for Captain Worf (Michael Dorn) and Commander Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd) to be Bashir's moral accomplices to restore Starfleet Intelligence's integrity. Even without Bashir, however, Star Trek: Section 31 promises a great vehicle for Michelle Yeoh and the debut of an exciting new chapter for Star Trek on television.

Star Trek: Section 31 will stream on Paramount+.