Star Trek: Voyager’s Janeway Becoming Ripley From Alien Explained By Producer

Star Trek: Voyager‘s Executive Producer Brannon Braga explained his real inspiration behind the episode where Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) becomes Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) from Alien. Although both Voyager and Alien are science fiction, there are a lot of differences between the Star Trek and Alien franchises. While Alien focuses on blending horror and suspense with its sci-fi elements, Star Trek almost always takes a more optimistic approach to the future. However, there are occasionally Star Trek episodes that take on more of a horror twist.

One such episode was Voyager season 3, episode 12, “Macrocosm,” where an alien virus managed to take over the USS Voyager, mutating to grow at least a meter in length and then proceeding to make Voyager‘s cast of characters very sick. As the lone un-infected, Captain Janeway was forced to mount a guerrilla attack on the viruses while the Doctor (Robert Picardo) worked on finding a cure. Along with similar premises, “Macrocosm” seemed to take a lot of influence from Alien, especially in how it portrayed Janeway as its heroine.

Star Trek: Voyager’s Janeway “Alien” Episode Explained By Executive Producer

Braga’s intention wasn’t actually to copy Alien

Despite Janeway’s crusade against the viruses in “Macrocosm” often being compared to Ellen Ripley, Brannon Braga, who wrote the episode’s story, claimed it wasn’t his intention to create a tribute to Alien. In an interview with Cinefantastique around the time of the episode’s release, Braga stated that “Macrocosm” actually rose out of a desire to do a solo character story with very little dialogue, and implied that any comparisons between Janeway and Ripley were completely unintentional. Read Braga’s full quote below:

“Sometimes Star Trek can be a little high-and-mighty, talky, moralistic. Sometimes it’s just time to have fun. The intention actually began, on my part, to do an episode with no dialogue. I wanted to just do a purely cinematic episode with Janeway and a bunch of weird creatures, these macroviruses, viruses as life-sized creatures. Unfortunately it was impossible to do, and I ended up having to put a couple of acts of dialogue in. I just wanted to do something that felt and looked and smelled differently than most shows. It was not an attempt to make Janeway look like Ripley.”

Despite Braga’s protestations, it is hard not to see the numerous similarities between Janeway and Sigourney Weaver’s iconic Alien role in “Macrocosm.” Stripped down to her uniform’s undershirt and equipped with a large phaser rifle for defense, Janeway embodied the recognizable sci-fi “final girl” aesthetic popularized by Weaver’s portrayal of Ripley in the first Alien film from 1979. Given what a recognizable character Ripley is thanks to Alien‘s popularity, it’s no wonder that “Macrocosm” became such a memorable episode of Voyager after it aired.

Why Captain Janeway’s “Ripley” Moments In Star Trek: Voyager Are Still So Popular

“Macrocosm’s” version of Janeway is still extremely well-liked

Despite not being one of Voyager‘s most popular episodes, Janeway’s “Ripley” scenes in “Macrocosm” left an indelible mark on the series. This is likely due to what a departure Janeway’s actions and aesthetic were from how she was usually portrayed on Voyager. “Macrocosm” allowed Janeway to be a true action hero, showing that she was able to handle more than just the scientific and diplomatic aspects of being a Captain.

However, Janeway never lost what made her such a popular character in the first place, including her stubborn determination and fierce loyalty to her crew. Her nearly single-handed defeat of the macrovirus perfectly demonstrated how far she was willing to go to make sure everyone under her protection was safe. The macrovirus itself also likely contributed to the episode’s popularity, and demonstrated its longevity when it was brought back as part of Star Trek: Lower Decks‘ tribute episode to Voyager, “Two-vix.” Lower Decks helped remind audiences just how iconic “Macrocosm” was for Star Trek: Voyager season 3.

Source: Cinefantastique, Vol. 29

Star Trek: Voyager is available to stream on Paramount+Alien is available to stream on Hulu