Jeri Ryan On The Challenges Of Reprising Seven Of Nine In Star Trek: Picard

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Jeri Ryan has explained why it was difficult for her to return to the role of Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Picard. She famously played Seven of Nine for four seasons on Star Trek: Voyager, and the character remains a fan favorite years after Voyager concluded in 2001.

The 2020 series Star Trek: Picard reunited fans with the character Seven of Nine, bringing her together with Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his team to save the galaxy. Since her time on Star Trek: Voyager, Seven had faced challenges and built a new life with the Fenris Rangers in the Beta Quadrant before this new chapter.

Jeri Ryan recently appeared with her Star Trek: Voyager co-star, Tim Russ, at the ST: CHI – Trek to Chicago convention, as reported by TrekMovie. During a panel discussion, Ryan explained that her character, Seven, was initially developed to help Voyager attract a wider audience, and she also shared her opinions on Seven’s iconic catsuits.

Jeri Ryan says it was more challenging to reconnect with the character of Seven of Nine when she joined Star Trek: Picard due to differences in the writing. She gives credit to Brannon Braga, the executive producer of Star Trek: Voyager, for originally creating such a well-written character, and felt the initial portrayal of Seven in Picard didn’t quite capture that same essence. Here’s what Jeri Ryan had to say:

Everything my character said on Voyager was either written or heavily revised by Brannon Braga. He truly shaped her; she was his creation and his vision. He consistently developed her perfectly, and the writing was so strong that I never questioned her dialogue. He understood her inner thoughts completely, which made my job as an actor much easier.

Working on the character of Picard was challenging. It took me a while to really find her voice, because I was so familiar with how it had been done for years. There were moments where I wasn’t sure if I was on the right track, but the team was really receptive to my suggestions and ideas.

Michael Chabon, a well-known novelist, led the first season of Star Trek: Picard, exploring the histories of the Romulans and the Borg. The season differed significantly in both its style and how it was built from what fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager were used to.

Twenty years after her time on Star Trek: Voyager, Seven of Nine was a very different character in Star Trek: Picard. She had become isolated from her former crewmates and was living a harsh life as a Fenris Ranger, dealing with violence and loss in the Delta Quadrant. Picard also shifted her character, turning her into a more hesitant, but action-oriented hero who frequently used a phaser.

During a 2023 interview on The Shuttlepod Show, Brannon Braga admitted he likely wouldn’t have taken Seven of Nine’s storyline in the direction Star Trek: Picard did. Braga, who was in a relationship with Jeri Ryan while they worked on Star Trek: Voyager, also expressed his belief that Seven of Nine should have died at the end of that series.

Season 3 of Star Trek: Picard was the show’s biggest success, and Jeri Ryan was thrilled with how her friend, Terry Matalas, developed her character, Seven of Nine, who ultimately became Captain of the USS Enterprise-G. It’s currently unclear if Ryan will reprise her role as Captain Seven in the potential Star Trek: Legacy spin-off series.

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2025-12-01 03:48