Although Star Trek: Voyager ended in 2001, many of the series' characters have returned throughout the series to remind Trekkies that they all still exist and continue to pursue careers in Starfleet. Both Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and Tuvok (Tim Russ) appeared on “Star Trek: Picard,” with the former having a recurring role on the series. The reference-heavy “Star Trek: Lower Decks” has references to “Voyager” throughout, and even an episode of it took place aboard the USS Voyager.
Most notably, not only did Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) make a cameo appearance in 2002's “Star Trek: Nemesis,” but a holographic version of the character played a large role in the animated series “Star Trek: Prodigy.” The same show also featured the real Janeway, the Doctor (Robert Picardo), and a subplot involving Chakotay (Robert Beltran), captain of the experimental ship USS Protostar. Trekkies may say that Chakotay was first officer aboard the USS Enterprise at the time, but he was also part of a resistance group called the Maquis that sought to overthrow the Federation. The Maquis hated the Federation's repeated negotiations with enemies and often lost their homes to reckless treaties.
Chakotay was a gentle and pragmatic person, often equalizing the passions of his colleagues. He was heroic and meditated regularly. Chakotay also ensured good First Nation representation, although it was later revealed that Voyager's Indian consultant had made the whole thing up.
Beltran spoke to TrekMovie in 2023 and the actor revealed that he had the opportunity to play Chakotay in two episodes of Star Trek: Picard. However, he turned down the role because it was not attractive to him.
“Repentance” and “Assimilation”
The episodes in question are “Atonement” and “Assimilation” (March 10 and 17, 2022), which opened the story of the second season of “Star Trek: Picard.” Beltran, however, was ambiguous, announcing the offer on his Twitter account, where he wrote:
“I was offered an episode (first two, then one) of Picard, but I just didn't like what they wrote for Chakotay, so I turned it down. “I won't go into details, but I have no hostility towards the producers of 'Picard' at all. 'Star Trek: Prodigy' offers Chakotay, who I am enthusiastic about.”
Specific episodes were only revealed after TrekMovie contacted Picard showrunner Terry Matalas. Matalas, who also co-wrote “Penance,” noted that Chakotay was intended to appear as an alternate, “evil” version of himself in a parallel universe. Indeed, he would briefly serve as the series' main antagonist, casting suspicious glances at the good-natured characters of the “good” universe.
For the uninitiated, the second season of Picard began with Q (John de Lancie) sending Picard (Patrick Stewart) to an alternate timeline where Earth has become a fascist, genocidal force in the galaxy, wiping out many species. Picard, Seven of Nine and a few others would have to briefly deal with the lives of their murderous counterparts. Seven found herself in a particularly difficult situation, as she suddenly became the evil President of Earth and had to deal with the fact that her counterpart was presiding over murders and executions.
The original idea was that Chakotay would appear in an alternate timeline as the wicked and fascist husband of Seven of Nine. This would make sense in the “Star Trek” canon, as Chakotay and Seven had a brief romance in the seventh season of “Star Trek: Voyager.”
The role was taken over by Jon Jon Briones
The idea behind “Atonement” and “Assimilation” was that Seven's husband was the First Judge of the Earth, called the Confederate. Matalas really wanted to see Beltran in the role, but when he refused, they had to rewrite the role. Seven's fascist alternate-universe husband is a new character played by Jon Jon Briones, who appeared in “Ratched” and “American Horror Story: Apocalypse.” Briones is coincidentally the father of Isa Briones, who played multiple roles in the first two seasons of “Star Trek: Picard.” In the first season there was Dahj, Soji and Sutra, and in the second season there was Kore.
Casting Chakotay in the role would be apt since the final episode of Voyager took place in the future where the couple got married. However, this episode was removed from the timeline when Janeway started playing with time travel. “Picard” also revealed that Seven had a crush on Raffi (Michelle Hurd) and was trying to repair their friendship after a bad breakup. Bringing Chakotay into the series would probably have added too much of a soap opera dynamic to the drama; Seven and Raffi could solve their problems on their own without having to involve Seven's ex-boyfriend.
Moreover, Beltran clearly liked the idea that Chakotay should remain steadfast, calm and authoritative. The actor had no interest in a villainous version of the character. Fortunately, the heroic “main” version of the character had plenty to say and do in “Prodigy” season two, so “Voyager” fans weren't robbed of seeing a familiar face.
