Star Trek: Picard‘s series finale ending really put the future of the The Next Generation era in Jeri Ryan‘s hands. With Seven of Nine Captain of the Enterprise G, and fans advocating for a Legacy spinoff, it seemed obvious we’d see her return in a new series soon. That didn’t happen, of course, though Ryan recently revealed she was approached for a series, and her reason for turning it down reminds me why she’s the best.
Ryan recently spoke about the situation at Spacecon in San Antonio, Texas, and TrekMovie was able to catch her comments about the pitch of a Seven of Nine spinoff. The actress, who needed several glasses of wine to be convinced to do Star Trek: Picard, explained why she wasn’t down for the idea thrown her way:
There has been talk. And there was an idea that was actually pitched to me after Picard ended, which was not the Legacy show that I know the fans are asking for, that I want to do. But it just wasn’t me… It didn’t feel like the right kind of thing… But there has been talk. And if there is one thing I have learned with this franchise it is: never say never. You never know.
I would assume that due to NDAs, Jeri Ryan wasn’t able to go into detail about the pitch that she heard, but we know she wasn’t a fan. It’s possible the project did not include showrunner Terry Matalas, who is currently signed on with Marvel for the Vision series. I could certainly see the actress feeling uneasy about proceeding without the showrunner, considering he helped guide her award-winning reprisal as Seven of Nine.
Whatever the case may be, I can confidently say that if Jeri Ryan felt the spinoff wasn’t something that Star Trek fans wanted, I believe her. She played a bit part in portraying one of the best Trek characters, and has remained dialed into the fandom over the years. She is one of, if not the best ambassador between fans and creatives in speaking to what will and won’t work, which is a rare thing to have. Without specifically naming names, I’m sure fans can point to other actors in the franchise who may be a bit out of touch with what people want to see.
Ultimately, this brings us all back to the debate of whether or not Star Trek: Legacy will ever happen. Unfortunately, we’re nowhere closer to the answer over a year after the finale of Picard. At the very least, we know from the upcoming Trek show schedule that it would may take a couple of years to get something started that won’t conflict with the current plans for Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy, and at least take solace in the fact that there are people within the Paramount family interested in seeing it happen in some way.
Those with a Paramount+ subscription can enjoy Jeri Ryan’s performance as Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Picard as well as Voyager. Seven has one of the best character arcs across the franchise in my opinion, so anyone who hasn’t had a chance to witness that should check it out for themselves.