Jeri Taylor, a writer, producer, and co-creator of Star Trek: Voyager, has passed away at the age of 86. Star Trek designer and consultant Michael Okuda shared the news of Taylor’s passing on social media, stating Taylor passed away on Thursday, October 24th and then sharing a touching tribute. You can find his full statement below, and our thoughts are with Taylor’s family and friends.
On Instagram Okuda wrote, “The world of Star Trek lost one of its giants yesterday with the passing of writer-producer Jeri Taylor. Jeri became a supervising producer on Star Trek: TNG’s fourth season, eventually becoming co-executive producer. Along with Rick Berman and Michael Piller, she co-created Star Trek: Voyager, on which she served as executive producer. Jeri brought humanity and compassion to her work and to Star Trek. Her scripts include “The Drumhead” (TNG), which remains one of Star Trek’s most powerful hours.
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Working for Jeri Taylor was always a delight. She always welcomed ideas and suggestions, even from designers in the art department. She was thoughtful and warm, and she always made us feel like we were an important part of her team. Jeri Taylor passed away yesterday (Thursday, Oct 24) at the age of 88. She will be missed.”
Taylor helped bring Star Trek: Voyager to the screen alongside Michael Piller and Rick Berman, and she also ran the writers’ room for four years (via TrekCore). She was already a part of the Star Trek family after working on The Next Generation, and she would take over as showrunner in the series’ final season, but it is Voyager that she is most synonymous with.
Taylor would hand the writers’ room to Brannon Braga when she departed the show, and Braga also took to social media to share a tribute to Taylor. On Facebook Braga wrote, “Jeri Taylor died. She was a great writer and showrunner and, to me, a cherished mentor. Jeri was generous with her wisdom and her time, she nurtured an entire staff of young writers which is a testament to her patience. I would not have a career without Jeri’s intricate guidance. She taught us all so much. Her memory will live on in many ways, but perhaps most of all in the character of Captain Janeway, who reflected the best dimensions of Jeri herself. Jeri Taylor, we were lucky to know you.”
Over the course of her time as part of the Star Trek franchise, Taylor wrote or co-wrote over 30 episodes of Star Trek, encompassing The Next Generation, Voyager, and Deep Space Nine. She also wrote two novels set in the Voyager universe, and overall she was the executive producer for 93 episodes of Voyager. Outside of Star Trek, Taylor also worked on a number of popular shows, including Quincy M.E., Magnum P.I., In the Heat of the Night, and Jake and the Fatman.
Our thoughts are with Taylor’s family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.