Yahoo Lifestyle Jamie Lee Curtis Makes Her 'Star Trek' Debut: Get the Scoop on How It Happened (Exclusive)
At the center of Star Trek: Section 31, the newest film in the hit sci-fi franchise currently streaming on Paramount+ is the titular organization. The clandestine group is meant to operate in the shadows, oftentimes crossing moral and ethical lines in ways that Starfleet cannot. But who would have thought the biggest secret revealed in the Michelle Yeoh feature would actually be a cameo, as an Oscar-winning legend makes her Star Trek debut.
At the beginning of the movie, the ragtag group of celestial misfits are briefed on the surreal story of Philippa Georgiou (Yeoh) via narration from their boss, simply known as "Control." By the end, the gang has successfully prevented the end of the universe and has brought Georgiou into the fold for missions moving forward. It's then that Control appears on-screen, providing a holographic message detailing their next task. And, shockingly, it's quite a familiar face, especially to fans of Yeoh's recent work: Jamie Lee Curtis.
"My better judgment has been screaming at me for two days now. It keeps saying that you lot are gonna cost me my job," the True Lies and Freaky Friday star says, after a deliberate pause and sigh. "I told my judgment to shut up and take a nap. 'Cause we have work to do."
Related: Everything to Know About Star Trek: Section 31
Despite being associated with a number of sci-fi projects, including Borderlands and Everything Everywhere All at Once, the latter of which she starred in alongside Yeoh, this marked the first time Curtis popped up in the Trek universe. So, when Parade got the opportunity to chat with the Section 31 cast and crew at the world premiere screening in New York City, we were resolved to get to the bottom of how this cameo came to be, and whether the EEAAO reunion was a happy accident.
"Well, obviously Michelle and Jamie, they are very close, right?" said Alex Kurtzman, the keeper of the keys for all things New Trek, and executive producer on Section 31. "And when I said to Michelle, 'The director of Section 31 should actually be somebody recognizable,' she was like, 'Let's ask Jamie.' And I said, 'Well, we'd be the luckiest people in the world.' And she said yes instantly. And she did it, and she came in, and she slayed, and it was pretty great."
Not only was Curtis arguably the biggest get among a cast that includes notables like Yeoh, as well as Emmy winner Sam Richardson. According to director Olatunde Osunsanmi, her cameo ended up kicking off the entire filming process.
"She ended up being the first day of principal photography," reveals Osunsanmi, a veteran of many of the modern-day Trek shows, whose work on Section 31 is his return to feature films for the first time in over a decade. "She came in like a killer. In two hours, she did it and was out. And it was amazing. I think it feels just right to have it."
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Talking to Yeoh herself, she denies being the one solely responsible for the idea of getting Curtis on board. True to her leadership skills as a starship captain–rather than the cruel individualism of a Terran emperor–she says it was truly a team effort to bring it about.
"We knew that we needed someone who, when anyone saw who was the admiral, they would go like, 'Of course, come on!'. And everyone, Alex, Tunde, we all just went, 'Jamie Lee Curtis!' And so they say, 'Can you call her?' And I thought, 'Do I really want to?' And one of her good friends said, 'Take advantage of her. She's good with it.' And Jamie is Jamie. She made time for this because she was working on something else."
While the Section 31 film does leave the door open for more adventures with Georgiou and crew, it's–appropriately on-brand–a secret as to whether there are any plans to continue with these characters. If we do, there's a chance that Curtis' Starfleet leader could get brought into the fold with more than a minute of airtime. Who knows, maybe Ke Huy Quan or Stephanie Hsu could don some alien prosthetics to make it a true reunion of the stars, among the stars!
Star Trek: Section 31 is currently streaming on Paramount+.
