Lien’s life continued to spiral out of control after she left Voyager, according to media reports. Jennifer Lien who played Kes on Voyager lives one county over and I also work with an officer that has arrested her many times…as has her husband who works at another Dept in another adjoining county. My six degrees of Star Trek is kind of sad. Lien Faced a String of Arrests in Tennessee However, Lien’s personal issues prevented that from happening, according to Robinson and Wright’s exploration. Though the writers admitted they were having trouble realizing the concept they’d had for Kes at the beginning, they were hoping to have the chance to bring the character back on track, they said. They’d intended to explore Kes’ character over the entire six- or seven-season run of the show. The abrupt departure of the actress and the character wasn’t what the showrunners wanted at all, they told the authors. Though they didn’t want to, Robinson and Wright reported, the showrunners decided to terminate Lien’s contract and write Kes off the show. “But she wouldn’t talk or let us offer to help.” “We knew that there was something going on,” Taylor said. Showrunner Jeri Taylor told Robinson and Wright that she tried to provide Lien support. It became apparent to her costars and the producers that she was struggling with mental health issues and possibly addiction, they said, and her personal issues started impacting her ability to truly show up for her performances. Many said they saw glimpses of Lien’s inner pain in the episode Warlord, when a warrior entity possessed Kes’ body.Īfter a few seasons on the show, more of Lien’s troubled waters began to seep out, Robinson and Wright reported. Her costars, the writers and the producers got to see those dark waters in the rare scenes where her character, Kes, got upset or angry, they told Robinson and Wright. They also said that the emotional well she was tapping from seemed to be filled with dark waters. Each of her costars described Lien in the book as a talented actor who was able to access a deep well of emotion and bring that into her character effortlessly. She stopped giving interviews after she retired from acting, which happened shortly after her exit from Voyager. Robinson and Wright spoke to each of the main cast members for the book except Lien. They say it had nothing to do with contracts or budget restraints, and it definitely didn’t have to do with Ryan’s addition to the main cast. Their 2020 behind-the-scenes book Star Trek Voyager: A Celebration revealed what they say is the real story behind Lien’s exit. A post shared by Diana one of the rumors came close to the real reason that Lien left the show, according to authors Ben Robinson and Mark Wright.