Articles and interviews by Avery Kaplan
red alert! This article contains spoilers Star Wars: Episode 31currently available to stream on Paramount+. If you haven’t had a chance to watch it yet, please consider returning to this page after viewing.
Finally, Emperor Philippa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) returns in the special event movie Star Wars: Episode 31. Disappeared in the Forever Guardian after 31 yearsYingshi century Star Wars: Discovery In Season 3’s “Earth, Part 2,” fan-favorite Terran tyrant Georgiou finally returns for a new adventure.
To commemorate the moment, the manga defeats Team Captain Avery Kaplan Interviewed several cast and crew members via Zoom on January 22ND2025. On the same day, Trek team members George Carmona 3rd place Opportunity to attend the film’s special premiere in New York. His photos appear throughout the article, along with official PR images from Paramount+.
These interviews have been edited for clarity, length and context. Cover image source: Carmona 3rd.
It’s a long way from there to here
Star Wars fans have been anxiously awaiting his return ever since the character of Georgiou stepped out of the narrative of Earthbound Part II . Now, in the second of three (and counting?) spin-offs Discoverour prayers for koalas have finally been answered. But it’s been brewing for a long time Article 31 Things changed on the way from concept to Paramount+.
In fact, as the executive producer explains Alex Kurtzman, Article 31 A different format was originally envisioned. Article 31Its journey to the screen was “long and winding,” Kurtzman said, “because it started out as a TV show.” A year into the series, work on the series was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic Forced to stop. The hiatus has changed Paramount+’s show release schedule.
Plus, as you may have heard, Michelle Yeoh also won an Academy Award at the same time. “Her schedule changed a lot after that,” Kurtzman said. “Then we got into a writers’ strike. So there was a series of things that really affected the timing of it. However, Yeoh doubled down on Article 31claiming she still wanted to find a way to make the film fit her schedule.
Kurtzman further explained: “Craig Sweeney“I thought what we could do was condense Georgiou’s storyline in season one into a two-hour story,” said the actor, who served as showrunner on the show and developed several scripts.
The result? “It works great,” Kurtzman said. “Because this is really Georgiou’s redemption story. So she’s pretty much Clint Eastwood in a StarCraft West. In fact, it’s a blessing in disguise. It turned out to be good for the story to be able to tell it in the time we had.
FROM DISCO TO SECTION 31
How is the work going? Olatunde Osusunmi Get involved in directing Article 31 Compared to directing fourteen episodes Discover Across all 5 seasons?
“Directing a feature film is very much a sprint,” Osunsanmi said. “Directing a TV show is a marathon. You pack a lot of story, character, and logic together in a very short period of time. We shot Article 31 Within 37 days. It’s very exciting because everything is new. Unlike a series, you start to get used to it, especially once you get to the end of seasons one and two.
Osunsanmi said this also had an impact on the cast and crew. “The effort and intensity from everyone on the crew and cast is much higher because everything is new; it must be great. At the same time, maybe it will take a little more time. Because it takes a little time to get used to it again. Article 31 is specifically requested, not an automatic that you get into throughout the season.
Osunsanmi used an apt metaphor to describe the experience: “At the end of the day, it’s like building a rocket ship, then getting in it and launching it into space. How much gravity do you feel? That’s what the production feels like. Article 31“. But Osunsanmi stresses that the experience is great fun for participants, and he believes the fun they have will translate into the final product on the streaming screen.
You know every captain needs a crew
But of course, heroine Georgiou needs some support to accomplish such a task Article 31. Some of the characters are new, including entirely new species. At first glance, Faz (Sven Ruygrok) appears to be Vulcan. But it’s just a mechanical transport operated from within by Fuzz’s true self, a microscopic entity called a Nanokin.
from beginning to end Article 31viewers can see Faz’s vehicle and His microscopic form. But how to depict this microscopic form on screen? It turns out it is also Ruygrok, wearing a magic Discover alum glen hetrick In the Alchemy Studio. Combined with digital enhancement Jason Zimmerman (“JZ”), Fuzz’s true form does appear to be alien.
“We actually shot Fuzz in a real pod,” Osunsanmi explains. “Sven was wearing this head. Then all the octopus arms were added with visual effects by JZ. Ruygrok would move as if those octopus arms were there, and then he would make a funny accent. With the prosthetics on, Ruygrok Gram can’t see because Faz’s eyes don’t match Ruygrok’s human physiology.
Ruygrok shared his thoughts on prosthetic performance with The Beat. “It’s very tricky,” Ruygrok explained. “I’m glad it came in three pieces. The body armor underneath, then the helmet, and then the closure. I was hooked.
“The difficult and beautiful thing is that I can’t see it,” Ruygrok continued. “And I couldn’t hear. So when I climbed aboard my little space shuttle, people had to hold me, and then I was encroached on in this small cavity of space… But there was a kind of being trapped there. The feeling inside. It speaks to the Nanokin species that they’re trapped and their numbers are dwindling, and there’s just a sense of frustration about being seen as equals. I think that affects everything I do.
Born for action
The magic of Hetrick’s prosthetics also begins to work on another character, the human robot Zeph (Rob Kaczynski). Kaczynski shared what it was like to wear the mecha suit. “It was fun, but very difficult,” Kaczynski said. “They had to give me a special chair because you couldn’t sit or lie down. You carry this thing with you and it digs into your back… It just hurts, that thing hurts. But it’s still better than easy to put on Humberly GonzalezBald Cap (Melle) or Joe PingerHead (Dada Noe). It’s difficult.
However, the suit did inform Kazinski’s portrayal of the character. “I was talking to Hetrick about it this morning,” Kaczynski said. “I said to him, by the time I get there, he’s done sixty percent of my job. Because the way you have to move, the way you have to walk, the way it looks, it’s made of all these different parts. And the fact that the parts are composed, tells a lot about what I’ve done and who this character is… it makes my job really, really easy.
Unfortunately, Zeff didn’t survive the second act. Article 31. However, it’s far from unprecedented to consider that a slain character might return in some form. StarCraft— You do know Montenegro, right?? — I’d be curious to see if Kaczynski would be interested in reprising the role in some form.
“I mean, in trek This is something I’ve always wanted to do my whole life,” Kaczynski said. “I’m going to do this for free for the rest of my life. trek It’s my business. I wish we could do more Article 31 The movie and Zeph will come back and we’ll do all of this a hundred times. I’m going to be a wolf because Michael DornHas the most episodes. if i exist in StarCraft I will be very happy for the rest of my life.
Kaczynski wouldn’t be averse to playing another character, either. “If it’s not Zev, it could be his brother Jeff, I don’t care,” he quipped. “As long as I can stay StarCraftthat’s everything I want.
Titan Canon of the Franchise
rounding Article 31The Alpha Team are two characters with important ties to the series’ canon: humans Enhance Alok(Omari Hardwick) and a young man Rachel Garrett (Kathy Rohr). I’m curious if Lorre or Hardwicke had any personal history with the series before joining the cast.
“I’ve had some unrelated experiences StarCraft,” Rohr said. “I didn’t have television growing up, so I wasn’t involved in it. But I’ve now found my way into it and I understand the requirements to join. I don’t take it lightly – I’m doing my homework, I promise.
Rolle continued: “Being able to play a character that already exists, a character created by Tricia O’Neill exist StarCraft: The Next Generationof “Yesterday’s Business”…big boots! Really excited to fill them up. It’s just an honor. Rachel and I have so much fun together and I love her so much.
Hardwick approached Alok on a different trajectory. “I will definitely accompany you StarCraft,” Hardwick said. and performances by other actors – including William Shatner (James T. Kirk) – Hardwick was particularly influenced by: Leonard NimoySpock’s image. “As a young man, a person of color, he felt alienated from life at times, especially in America,” Hardwick said. “Spock was probably the first person who made me feel cool about things that people might not know.” people.
“I grew up with racism — I’m a ’70s baby,” Hardwick continued. “Our actor Kaczynski always said: You can definitely find a safe haven in it. StarCraft if. So being asked to contribute to this safe haven, especially on behalf of black people… avery brooks (Benjamin Sisko), LeVar Burton (Geordi LaForge), women of color can also add— Sonequa Martin-Green (Michael Burnham), of course, everything she did, shouting out to her — that meant a lot to me. I am very aware of the responsibility that comes with accepting invitations from Kurtzman, Osunsanmi, Paramount+ and Yeoh.
Star Wars Episode 31 is now streaming on Paramount+
Do you have a chance to live stream? Article 31 Are you on Paramount+? What do you think of this special event movie? Be sure to let The Beat know in the comments section or on Bluesky @comicsbeat.bsky.social.
Star Wars: Episode 31 Currently available to stream on Paramount+.
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