Editing Star Trek: Voyager (section)

===Casting===
[[File:Jeri Ryan 2010.jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Jeri Ryan]], appearing at the [[Creation Entertainment|Creation]] ''Star Trek'' convention in 2010; she joined the cast in Season 4 of the show, as the ex-Borg character [[Seven of Nine]].]]
In the initial drafts, Captain Janeway was meant to have the name Elizabeth Janeway, and the actress [[Geneviève Bujold]] was cast for the role. Bujold had previous experience in films, but not in long TV series. Feeling uncomfortable with the demanding production, she left after only two days of filming the pilot. To keep production working and meet the deadlines the role was given to [[Kate Mulgrew]], who had already been considered an option during the casting. Mulgrew also proposed to rename the character as Kathryn Janeway.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/15/arts/real-star-trek-drama-enlisting-new-skipper.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm| title=Real 'Star Trek' Drama: Enlisting New Skipper| work=[[The New York Times]]| date=September 15, 1994| access-date=May 24, 2011| first=Andy |last= Meisler}}</ref> Mulgrew, with more experience in episodic TV series, soon became a fan favorite.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.cbr.com/star-trek-why-voyager-janeway-bujold-mulgrew-quit/|title= Star Trek: Why Voyager's Original Captain Janeway Quit|author= Sean Ellard|date= June 23, 2021|publisher= CBR|accessdate=April 15, 2024}}</ref> [[Robert Beltran]] knew nothing about the ''Star Trek'' franchise or the significance within it of the role he was auditioning for. He just got the "Caretaker" script from his agent, liked the story and the character, and successfully auditioned for it. He was aware, because of being familiar with the industry, that a pilot episode may eventually lead to an ongoing series.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://treknews.net/2012/07/21/robert-beltran-star-trek-voyager-interview/|title= Robert Beltran Talks Voyager: "If People Can't Take The Truth, That's Fine With Me"|author= |date= July 21, 2012|publisher= Trek News|accessdate=April 17, 2024}}</ref> [[Robert Duncan McNeill]] had played the character of Nicholas Locarno in ''The Next Generation'''s [[The First Duty]]. Initially, Locarno would have returned in the Voyager series, but was later changed to a new character, Tom Paris. The casting notes mentioned that the producers wanted "a Robert Duncan McNeill type", which was noticed by McNeill's agent. He was eager to play the new character. He explained that "I get a call. My agent says, 'Hey, remember that ''Star Trek'' episode you did a few years ago?' He goes, 'They’re making a new show called Voyager and they literally put out a casting notice saying 'a Robbie Duncan McNeill type.' They put my name. Kinda like the character on TNG. Like, my name was in [it]. And I’m like, 'I’m right here! That’s me!' And so [my agent says], 'I think you should… you can do this.'"<ref>{{cite web |url= https://screenrant.com/robert-duncan-mcneill-star-trek-voyager-casting-story/|title= Star Trek's Robert Duncan McNeill Hilariously Explains Getting Cast As Voyager's Tom Paris|author= John orquiola|date= November 26, 2023|publisher= Screen Rant|accessdate=April 20, 2024}}</ref>

[[Robert Picardo]] auditioned for the role of Neelix, but his friend [[Ethan Phillips]] got it. Philips had already been cast in several minor roles in earlier ''Star Trek'' productions.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://screenrant.com/star-trek-ethan-phillips-characters-roles-explained/|title= Star Trek: All 4 Characters Played By Ethan Phillips|author= John Orquiola|date= August 26, 2020|publisher= Screen rant|accessdate=April 20, 2024}}</ref> Reflecting on that, Picardo said, "And in that moment, I saved myself 6,000 hours of my life spent in a makeup chair."<ref name="confused">{{cite web |url= https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/robert-picardo-star-trek-voyager-reunion-interview|title= ROBERT PICARDO ON THAT BIG STAR TREK: VOYAGER REUNION AND 25 YEARS OF BEING CONFUSED FOR A DOCTOR|author= Adam Pockross|date= May 26, 2020|publisher= Syfy|accessdate=April 20, 2024}}</ref> However, after failing in the audition he was suggested to try for the character of the Doctor, which he got. He was initially unsure of his way to manage the character because of his limited participation in the pilot, and feared that he would be compared unfavorably with [[Brent Spiner]]. Spiner played the fan-favorite [[Data (Star Trek)|Data]] in ''The Next Generation'', another non-human being. "I was afraid I would be compared to him endlessly and unfavorably because he was so lovable and kind of childlike in his role and I was kind of, you know, crusty and curmudgeonly, and ... pissed off. And not a very cuddly character".<ref name="confused"/> He secured the job by improvising a line in the pilot. When he's left alone in sickbay and all scripted lines were said, he added "I believe someone has failed to terminate my program".<ref name="confused"/> He concluded saying "I'm a doctor, not a nightlight",<ref name="confused"/> imitating the catchphrase of [[Leonard McCoy]] ([[DeForest Kelley]]), the doctor of the [[Star Trek: The Original Series|original ''Star Trek'' series]]. The people laughed, and he was hired some hours later.<ref name="confused"/>

The series added a new main character during the mid-run, [[Seven of Nine]], by [[Jeri Ryan]]. So far in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, this had only happened in ''Deep Space 9'' with [[Worf]], which was a preexisting character and not a new one. Rick Berman explained that "I think after our first three years, the feeling was we wanted to add a bit of pizzazz to the show. We all agreed that we needed something to bring something fresh to the fourth season".<ref name="seven">{{cite web |url= https://www.etonline.com/jeri-ryans-25-year-star-trek-legacy-seven-of-nines-best-moments-on-voyager-picard-flashback-190208|title= Jeri Ryan's 25-Year 'Star Trek' Legacy: Seven of Nine's Best Moments on 'Voyager' & 'Picard' (Flashback)|author= Joe Bergren|date= September 3, 2022|publisher= ET|accessdate=April 21, 2024}}</ref> Berman was interested in the character of Data, a machine that wants to be human, but inverted the formula with a human that was turned into a machine and faces humanity as a new thing. For this purpose they used the [[Borg]], villains from ''The Next Generation'' that had a positive reception. Ryan liked both the premise of the character and the optimist view of the future of the ''Star Trek'' franchise, which she preferred over the darker series she could audition for at the time, and got the job with little problem.<ref name="seven"/>