Posted in: CBS, Star Trek, streaming, TV | Tagged: alex kurtzman, Annika Hansen, jeri ryan, seven of nine, star trek, Star Trek Picard, star trek: voyager

Star Trek: Jeri Ryan Looks at Seven's Journey from Voyager to Picard

Published Tue, 29 Mar 2022 07:08:11 -0500

by Tom Chang

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The second major franchise return in Star Trek: Picard aside from the series star in Sir Patrick Stewart is Voyager's Jeri Ryan, who plays Annika Hansen aka Seven of Nine. The character was originally introduced in the UPN series fourth season as a Borg drone eventually freed from the Collective to serve as a member of the U.S.S. Voyager for the remainder of the series as they're trying to make their way back home to Earth. Ryan spoke with Entertainment Tonight about what Seven meant during Voyager's original run and how she was pitched to return for Picard, currently in season two.

"It's crazy. That's a really rare gift as an actor," Ryan said. "It was a rare gift, to begin with, to have a character that was so beautifully written and had so much growth, since she didn't even start out human. But then to be able to revisit her this many years later and continue her journey, It's been pretty astonishing." When the series ended in 2001 after seven seasons, the actor was at peace with closing that chapter. "I did four years on 'Voyager' and I really thought that was it," she said. "And when I said goodbye to the character, then I really thought that was it. I was saying goodbye to that character."

Ryan's friend in Star Trek writer James Duff approached her about the idea of returning for the Paramount+ series. "[He] had mentioned it to me in passing at the Hollywood Bowl, after several glasses of champagne — which he knew would be the appropriate moment to bring it up," she recalled with a laugh. "I thought he was joking and then he kept bringing it up." Ryan knew things were serious after talking with executive producer Alex Kurtzman sharing, "[They'd] been talking a lot about Seven in the writers' room." The new series sees Seven disillusioned with Starfleet following the events of Voyager and joining the Fenris Rangers, a scrappy group fighting against injustice however they can. "[Patrick's] a legend, obviously, and these two characters, it was exciting to get these two characters, especially, together in this world," she said. Star Trek: Picard streams Thursdays on Paramount+.

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