Summary
- Jaylah from Star Trek Beyond should join Star Trek: Strange New Worlds for a new storyline.
- Jaylah's non-Starfleet perspective could provide a unique and valuable addition to the show.
- Star Trek: Strange New Worlds offers the perfect opportunity for Jaylah to further develop her character.
I want to see Star Trek Beyond's Jaylah (Sofia Boutella) in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. In Star Trek Beyond, the 3rd of J.J. Abrams' Kelvin Timeline Star Trek movies, Montgomery Scott (Simon Pegg) encounters Jaylah, a scavenger stranded on the planet Altamid, who is living in the downed husk of the USS Franklin. Jaylah defends Scotty and the rest of the stranded Enterprise crew members from Altamid's other scavengers, and she ultimately helps re-launch the Franklin and defeat Star Trek Beyond's villain, Krall (Idris Elba). From there, it's implied that Jaylah joins Starfleet and becomes part of the USS Enterprise crew.
Canon-adjacent material like IDW's alternate-reality Star Trek: Boldly Go comic series has Jaylah as a Starfleet Academy cadet. Jaylah also appears in Star Trek: Fleet Command, where she is assimilated by the Borg before being liberated in-game. None of these supplemental Star Trek stories are official canon, however, leaving the doors wide open for Jaylah's official future in the Star Trek franchise. With Star Trek 4 in production limbo, the best way to see more Jaylah on-screen might actually be in the Prime Universe. Fortunately, there's one ongoing Star Trek show that can make that happen.
I Want To See Star Trek Beyond's Jaylah On Strange New Worlds
Captain Pike's Enterprise Could Find Jaylah Earlier
I want to see Jaylah in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds because we never really got to see what happened to Jaylah after Star Trek Beyond, and Jaylah was too cool of a character to waste. Sofia Boutella probably would have joined the cast of Star Trek 4 and become an interesting asset to the USS Enterprise crew, but as the years pass, Star Trek 4 actually happening looks less and less likely.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is not only the last remaining Star Trek show set in the 23rd century, but Strange New Worlds is also willing to take risks in pursuit of a good story. Jaylah could join the Prime Timeline without having to remake Star Trek Beyond.
Previous Kelvin Timeline movies have already shown significant differences between the two Star Trek timelines, like the USS Enterprise encountering Khan Noonien Singh (Benedict Cumberbatch) much earlier than expected in Star Trek Into Darkness.
Because of the differences in the two Star Trek timelines, Jaylah could meet the Prime Timeline Enterprise crew earlier than she did in the Kelvin Timeline. Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) in Strange New Worlds could meet Jaylah at any time, whether Jaylah has been stranded on Altamid, or another planet with a crashed Federation ship. As a character, Jaylah is fiercely independent but curious about the Federation from living in the USS Franklin, and willing to work with the Enterprise crew to achieve a common goal. As long as those traits are there, the details of Jaylah's past can change.
What Would Jaylah Bring To Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?
Non-Starfleet Perspectives Have Helped Star Trek Before
To tell more of Jaylah's story, she could stay on the USS Enterprise as an ancillary crew member with unique knowledge and skills, instead of enrolling at Starfleet Academy. Non-Starfleet characters have been a boon to Star Trek shows in the past, with different approaches to problems and different cultural values. Civilian characters like Cleveland Booker (David Ajala) in Star Trek: Discovery or Gwyndala (Ella Purnell) in Star Trek: Prodigy have circumvented direct orders to accomplish the crew's goals without breaking rules. Pike isn't much of a rule-breaker, but Jaylah could be this for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
Jaylah already navigates different tones as easily as Strange New Worlds does.
Jaylah was a fun character with a multifaceted nature that would fit right in on Strange New Worlds. I'd expect Jaylah to bring the same levity to Strange New Worlds that she did to Star Trek Beyond, while still being a formidable force to reckon with. From Jaylah's humorous first meeting with Scott to Jaylah's vengeful showdown with Krall, Jaylah already navigates different tones as easily as Strange New Worlds does. Whether Sofia Boutella returns or Jaylah is recast, I think Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is a great place to see Jaylah's story play out after Star Trek Beyond.
