Seven of Nine’s (Jeri Ryan) conception on Star Trek: Voyager was originally inspired by Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the Borg Queen (Alice Krige). Although Voyager seasons 1-3 didn’t include Seven of Nine, the show brought her on as part of Voyager‘s cast of characters in season 4 after Kes (Jennifer Lien) left the series. Seven rose to become one of Voyager‘s most popular characters, but started out under very different circumstances, as a former Borg drone that Voyager‘s crew unwittingly rescued from the Collective.
Throughout her time on Voyager, Seven’s Borg origins and time in the Collective were the central focus of her storyline. Through her, Voyager expanded Borg lore in the Star Trek timeline and explored the true horrors drones experienced after assimilation. Although it was inevitable that Seven would forever be associated with the Borg given her backstory, her first appearance on Voyager actually had two surprising Borg-related inspirations for one specific aspect of her character.
Related
How To Watch All Star Trek TV Shows In Timeline Order
The Star Trek TV franchise has existed for 57 years and consists of 12 shows (and counting). Here’s how to watch them all in timeline order.
How Picard & The Borg Queen Inspired Star Trek: Voyager’s Seven Of Nine
The Borg Queen and Picard were integral to Seven’s development
In an interview with Cinefantastique about season 4, Voyager writer Joe Menosky explained that the show’s creative team was inspired by the Borg Queen and Captain Picard’s time as Locutus on Star Trek: The Next Generation when creating Seven of Nine. Menosky detailed how the Queen and Locutus were the only two Borg who spoke as individuals while still connected to the Collective, which the writers wanted Seven to do as well. This allowed Seven to begin her time on Voyager in a unique position and set her up as an individual from the start. Read Menosky’s full quote below:
“The original inspiration was a couple of things. One was when Picard became the voice of the Collective as Locutus, so there was an individual speaking for the Collective. Another was when the Borg Queen did the same. Rick Berman was pretty adamant that you get bored with the Collective voice pretty quickly, and someone had better step forward.”
As executive producer Rick Berman stated, the Borg’s collective consciousness, while a terrifying concept in the grand scheme, doesn’t work as well on a small scale when interacting with individual characters. Therefore, it was necessary to include a character like Seven during Voyager‘s alliance with the Borg at the beginning of season 4 to be an individual voice for the group. In “Scorpion, Part II,” the episode where Seven was introduced, Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) even referenced Locutus when asking for a single representative to continue negotiations with.
Picard & The Borg Queen Both Became Important To Seven Of Nine
Seven’s later storylines involved both Picard and the Borg Queen
Ironically, both the Borg Queen and Picard became integral to Seven of Nine’s arc in Star Trek: Voyager and beyond. Seven and the Borg Queen (Susanna Thompson) had some truly memorable Voyager episodes together, including episodes like “Dark Frontier” which explored Seven’s past in detail and provided a look at how important she still was to the Collective. Throughout Voyager‘s run, the Borg Queen acted as a dark maternal figure to Seven, versus Captain Janeway’s more positive mentoring after she was separated from the hive.
Likewise, Seven’s return in Star Trek: Picard not only brought her back to the franchise for modern audiences but also gave her some incredible new character development. Jeri Ryan played the evolution of Seven’s humanity since Star Trek: Voyager beautifully in Picard, and season 3 brought the biggest update to her character yet with Seven becoming Captain of the USS Enterprise-G. Without Jean-Luc Picard and the Borg Queen, Seven of Nine would have been a much less interesting character.
Source: Cinefantastique, Vol. 30
Star Trek: Voyager
*Availability in US
- stream
- rent
- buy
Not available
Not available
Not available
The fifth entry in the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Voyager, is a sci-fi series that sees the crew of the USS Voyager on a long journey back to their home after finding themselves stranded at the far ends of the Milky Way Galaxy. Led by Captain Kathryn Janeway, the series follows the crew as they embark through truly uncharted areas of space, with new species, friends, foes, and mysteries to solve as they wrestle with the politics of a crew in a situation they’ve never faced before.
- Cast
-
Kate Mulgrew
, Robert Beltran
, Roxann Dawson
, Jennifer Lien
, Robert Duncan McNeill
, Ethan Phillips
, Robert Picardo
, Tim Russ
, Garrett Wang
, Jeri Ryan - Release Date
-
May 23, 1995
- Seasons
-
7
- Network
-
UPN
- Streaming Service(s)
-
Paramount+
- Franchise(s)
-
Star Trek
- Writers
-
Michael Piller
, Jeri Taylor
, Brannon Braga
, Kenneth Biller - Showrunner
-
Michael Piller
, Jeri Taylor
, Brannon Braga
, Kenneth Biller - Where To Watch
-
Paramount+
Star Trek: Picard
*Availability in US
- stream
- rent
- buy
Not available
Not available
Not available
After starring in Star Trek: The Next Generation for seven seasons and various other Star Trek projects, Patrick Stewart is back as Jean-Luc Picard. Star Trek: Picard focuses on a retired Picard who is living on his family vineyard as he struggles to cope with the death of Data and the destruction of Romulus. But before too long, Picard is pulled back into the action. The series also brings back fan-favorite characters from the Star Trek franchise, such as Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), Worf (Michael Dorn), and William Riker (Jonathan Frakes).
- Cast
-
Patrick Stewart
, Jonathan Frakes
, Jeri Ryan
, Michelle Hurd
, Ed Speleers
, Gates McFadden
, Todd Stashwick
, Michael Dorn
, Brent Spiner
, LeVar Burton
, Marina Sirtis
, Amanda Plummer
, Isa Briones
, Alison Pill
, Santiago Cabrera
, Evan Evagora
, Orla Brady
, John de Lancie
, Whoopi Goldberg - Release Date
-
January 23, 2020
- Seasons
-
3
- Network
-
Paramount
- Streaming Service(s)
-
Paramount+
- Franchise(s)
-
Star Trek
- Writers
-
Terry Matalas
, Akiva Goldsman
, Michael Chabon - Directors
-
Jonathan Frakes
, Terry Matalas - Showrunner
-
Michael Chabon
, Akiva Goldsman
, Terry Matalas - Main Genre
-
Sci-Fi
- Where To Watch
-
Paramount+