Like its predecessors, the series used a large filming model of the starship where the show takes place. It wasn't until the last few seasons that a CGI starship replaced the six-foot model. Nevertheless, the "U.S.S. Voyager" seen in the opening credits (which dates back to late 1994), is completely CGI.
“Voyager” originally aired from January 16, 1995, to May 23, 2001, on UPN, with 172 episodes over seven seasons. It is the fifth series in the Star Trek franchise.
Paramount Pictures commissioned the series after the cancellation of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” to accompany the ongoing “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”. They wanted it to help launch UPN, their new network. This was reminiscent of Paramount's earlier plans to launch its own network by showcasing “Star Trek: Phase II” in 1977.
The pilot episode "Caretaker" took 31 days to shoot and was one of the most expensive television pilots shot to that date.
Captain Kathryn Janeway, being the first female Captain on a Star Trek show (but not the first female captain in the Star Trek universe) was predicted by Majel Barrett, Gene Roddenberry's widow, during an Entertainment Tonight (1981) segment on January 4, 1993, called "The Women of Star Trek." In it, Majel Barrett Roddenberry sat down in the Captain's chair on the Enterprise set, and stated that "One day, a woman will sit here where she belongs, in the Captain's chair." Two years later, her dream came true.
Geneviève Bujold was originally cast to play Captain Janeway, but a few days into filming the first episode "Caretaker" (1995), she abruptly quit
At one point, several male actors read for the role of Captain Janeway, in the event Paramount had cold feet over casting a female lead. Among the actors who read for the part were Nigel Havers and Gary Graham.
Garrett Wang does not actually play the clarinet. But anytime Harry Kim plays it, Wang chose (on his own) to learn the correct finger placements to match the music playing in the professional recording he was following, making the illusion more convincing.
Chakotay was the first Native American character to be featured regularly on a Star Trek series. B'Elanna Torres was Star Trek's first regular character of Hispanic or Latino heritage, and Tuvok was the first full-blooded Vulcan featured as a main character. Contrary to popular belief, Saavik from "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982), "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock "(1984) and "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986) was not a full-blood Vulcan: she was half Vulcan, half Romulan.
When auditioning for the part of the holographic doctor, Robert Picardo was asked to say the line "Somebody forgot to turn off my program." He did so, then ad-libbed "I'm a doctor, not a light bulb" and got the part.
Captain Janeway's first name was originally Elizabeth, later changed upon the request of French-Canadian Geneviève Bujold, who originated the role, to Nicole. After Kate Mulgrew replaced Bujold, the first name was changed to Mulgrew's own first name.
The introduction of Seven of Nine is sometimes credited with saving the series from possible cancellation after its first few seasons, as the sexy character sparked a revival of publicity in the show. In reality, however, her arrival did little to increase ratings aside from the first few episodes in which she appeared; afterwards, the show's ratings continued to drop below the levels of the previous season. Still, despite initial backlash for the character's overt sexuality, fans and critics responded favorably to Seven's story line, and critical appreciation of the show grew in response.
Guest stars included two Oscar winners (Paul Williams and Joel Grey) and four Oscar nominees (Brad Dourif, Virginia Madsen, Bruce Davison, and Michael McKean).
In the first six seasons, Neelix (Ethan Phillips), a Talaxian, had yellow eyes. In season seven, Ethan Phillips stopped wearing his yellow contact lenses.
Prince Abdullah of Jordan (now king) played an unnamed ensign (science officer) in the episode “Investigations”.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson portrayed the Pendari Champion with whom Seven of Nine and Tuvok are forced to compete in the season six episode "Tsunkatse”.
While at Dragon Con, Jeri Ryan and Garrett Wang revealed that each would often try to sneak up on the other and smack the other on the butt. Garrett claims that Jeri was much better at the game than he was.
Jerry Goldsmith won his fifth and final Primetime Emmy for composing the theme for this show.
Jeri Ryan wore a catsuit, corset, and heels for four seasons to play Seven of Nine. Having said that, going to the bathroom while on set was a 20-minute ordeal for her (She even had her own radio code: "Code Jeri-Twenty").
Alice Krige and Susanna Thompson both played the Borg Queen. Krige, who had originated the role in the movie “Star Trek: First Contact”, returned for Voyager's series finale; Thompson had portrayed the character earlier in the show's run.
Captain Janeway's (Kate Mulgrew) final line in the first episode of season one, "Caretaker" (1995), is the same as her final line in the last episode of the series finale, "End Game" (2001). "Set a course for home."
Kate Mulgrew (Captain Kathryn Janeway), Robert Beltran (Chakotay), Tim Russ (Tuvok), and Robert Duncan McNeill (Tom Paris) are the only cast members to appear in every episode of the series.
By the time of Voyager's conclusion, a precedent had been set by TNG and DS9, and seven seasons was the perfect length for a Star Trek series, even though Voyager could presumably have lasted longer because of its 70-year journey premise.
In August 2015, the main cast members (except Jennifer Lien, who had retired from acting in 2002) appeared together onstage in Las Vegas for the 20th anniversary of "Star Trek: Voyager" at the 2015 Las Vegas Star Trek convention.
Garrett Wang who played Harry Kim currently co-hosts The Delta Flyers Podcast with Robert Duncan McNeil, who portrayed Tom Paris in Voyager.
Almost 19 years after the finale "Endgame" (2001), Jeri Ryan would return as Seven of Nine in the web series "Star Trek: Picard" (2020), in which her character meets Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), who's now retired from Starfleet.
