Star Trek: Discovery's Michelle Yeoh Teases Emperor Georgiou's Future

Star Tek: Discovery fans said goodbye to Michelle Yeoh's Emperor Philippa Georgiou in the series' third season, but the actress hinted that Star Trek isn't done with the Terran Emperor yet. The proposed Section 31 spinoff series that would star Yeoh as Georgiou seems to be in a holding pattern with five other Star Trek series already in production. Yet, Yeoh stopped by The Pod Directive, Star Trek's official podcast, to chat about the franchise and her character's role in it. During the discussion with hosts Tawny Newsome and Paul F. Tompkins, Yeoh reflected on Georgiou's Star Trek: Discovery exit.

"We all know that the portal is to weigh you and really it's to see if you deserve a second chance, and I think in life that's what we all hope, that if we do something wrong, do something bad, we hope there is redemption, and we will be given a second chance to redeem ourselves," Yeoh says. "And I think that has always been the most interesting part, for me, for Georgiou. That final sequence with Michael Burnham Was so exquisite. It really was. It's like two people finally accepting I love you for you, not who I want you to be, someone that I have lost. And I think we go through life doing that.

"Emperor Georgiou was learning to understand that you can't keep killing to stay on top. One day there will be no more people left to kill. And then when Kovich turned around and said to Emperor Georgiou, 'You know, the Terrans have not been heard of in the last 500 years,' that's just to say you have wiped yourself out. And I think that was when Georgiou heard and understood and felt that the only way to go around that is to rule with peace and compassion."

Yeoh goes on to say that she's confident Georgiou remains too interesting for Star Trek's writers and producers not to bring her back at some point. She says, "I think when she went through the portal that time, for me it's like saying... 'Goodbye until we meet again.' Because this is Star Trek, who knows? One day Emperor Georgiou is going to find out that Michael Burnham is in dire straits or the other way around, and something has to be done. I don't know, but I'm just putting it out there. She walks through because Carl has said to her, 'You have another journey to undertake. And it's so obvious you have more things to do. It's not going to be a smooth ride. It will be bumpy. It will be full of heartaches. It will be full of pain.' But I think it's true. That is life… So I think there's so much more possibilities for Georgiou, and I know my executive producers and showrunners and writers have a lot more things in store for such an amazing character."

Are you eager for Georgiou to return? Let us know in the comments. Star Trek: Discovery is available to stream on Paramount+.