Jeri Ryan had a surprise return as Seven of Nine on Star Trek: Picard
When Star Trek: Voyager ended in 2001, none of the actors could have foreseen the future of Star Trek as they said goodbye to those characters they’d played for all those seasons. Jeri Ryan had only been portraying Seven of Nine for four seasons, and there were plenty of places to go with the ex-Borg drone’s story, places we didn’t get to see. Then she was brought back for Star Trek: Picard, a surprise to the fans who’d fallen in love with her character aboard Voyager. She was given a much different storyline and a chance for the character to grow, but like her time on Voyager had to come to an end, her time on Picard is ending as well.
In a recent interview with Star Trek Explorer Magazine [via Trekmovie], Ryan discussed how season two of Picard has given her character a chance to explore the life she could have had if Seven had never been assimilated by the Borg.
"The most interesting character arc this season, for me, is she gets put on a course to really reconcile her Borg nature and human nature, and she gets to experience what life might have been like had she never been assimilated, if she’d just been human. So, this season for Seven is really about identity and embracing our humanity and self-acceptance."
Then comes the part where Jeri Ryan says goodbye to Seven of Nine
This is the second time Ryan has had to say goodbye to this character, but, in a way, her time as Seven has come full circle. She originally had four seasons, and Picard has given her three additional seasons to experience different aspects of life which she wouldn’t have gotten to do aboard Voyager. Still, Ryan isn’t looking forward to putting away the implants for good. When asked if she was sad or ready to let go of the character, she confirmed that it would be a little of both.
"I think probably a bit of both. This was so surprising, to get the opportunity to revisit this character on Picard. That is not something that I ever envisioned. It’s been really a treat to be able to do that and to continue her journey and to see her through all of this growth for these three seasons. So, yeah, it’ll be bittersweet to say goodbye to her again."
Of course, this being Star Trek and we’re seeing old characters returning more often, this might not necessarily be the end. For now, Jeri Ryan is wrapping her character’s journey, but who knows where the galaxy will take her from here?