‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Producer On Lorca And Those Section 31 Theories

There’s a lot of mystery surrounding Star Trek: Discovery‘s light-averse Captain Gabriel Lorca, played by Jason Isaacs, but co-creator and executive producer Alex Kurtzman is hinting that answers are on the way.

Lorca’s hawkish demeanor and the secretive nature of the USS Discovery‘s operations has led to some speculation that the ship could be involved with the black ops organization known as Section 31. Kurtzman wouldn’t offer an indication one way or another as to whether these Section 31 theories are on to something, but he did say that he is well aware of them.

“Section 31, obviously if you saw the black badges – I’ve seen a lot online about whether or not Section 31 is involved in the show,” Kurtzman told ComicBook.com at New York Comic Con. “You’ll have to wait and see. I can’t tell you too much about that.”

However, when asked about the significant amount of freedom that Lorca has been given to accomplish his mission, Kurtzman says there are reasons for that which will be explored on Discovery, and also hinted that Lorca may have taken some of that freedom for himself.

“And yes, you absolutely will find out why Lorca’s been given that latitude and you’ll also come to understand how much he’s taken himself,” Kurtzman said.

Lorca stands out from past Star Trek captains for being much more a soldier than an explorer or a scientist. Isaacs comments during the Star Trek: Discovery panel at New York Comic Con reflected his character’s unique place in the Star Trek canon.

“Lorca is a war-time captain on a science ship,” Isaacs said. “The stories will reflect that and present an ethical minefield. ‘Is Lorca right? Is Lorca wrong.’ Hopefully, someone somewhere agrees with Lorca.

“If I saw anything like [Star Trek: The Original Series] I would have run in the opposite direction. It’s wartime, it’s a time of uncertainty. He’s a wartime captain. What I love about this story was this wasn’t something we had seen before. He’s trying to stop everything from being destroyed.”

New Star Trek: Discovery episodes become available to stream Sundays at 8:30 p.m. ET on CBS All Access.