Jeri Ryan

Jeri Ryan: biography

"Don't be born beautiful but be born happy" is a phrase that can describe the fate of American actress Jeri Ryan. She was constantly unlucky. The girl came close to winning the beauty pageant; then she had to face the envy of her colleagues on the set.

The actress rose to prominence after the role as the Borg, Seven of Nine, in the science-fiction series Star Trek: Voyager. Thanks to her participation and the patented jumpsuit, the ratings increased 60%.

Childhood and youth

Jeri Ryan was born on February 22, 1968, in Munich, Germany, where the family of military officer Gerhard Florian Zimmermann lived at that time. He served as a master sergeant in the United States Army, and his wife, Sharon, was a social worker. The full name of the movie star is Jeri Lynn Zimmermann; she has Jewish ancestry on her father's side. She has an older brother.

Due to her father’s occupation, the family always moved. Jeri spent her childhood at military bases in Kansas, Maryland, Georgia, Texas, and Hawaii. Such life ended when her father retired. She was 11 years old then. The family settled in Paducah, Kentucky, where Jeri graduated from high school and entered Northwestern University.

In 1989, the girl participated in the Miss Illinois beauty pageant and won it. Then, Jeri had a new goal to win the Miss America 1990 pageant. She began to prepare for it in advance. The preliminary swimsuit competition turned out to be successful for her because Jeri impressed the audience and judges with her appearance and figure, and the girl won it. She reached the finals but finished third.

Jeri was disappointed with the result but did not give up. Thanks to the competition, she got acquainted with influential people who helped her career development. The same year, Ryan graduated from the university with a degree in Theater.

Movies

Jeri moved to Los Angeles, where she found a steady job. She made her acting debut in the television series Who's the Boss?, then she played bit parts in the films Melrose Place, Matlock, The Sentinel, and others. The young woman participated in television shows.

Ryan landed the first significant role in 1996 in the series Dark Skies, in which she portrayed alien Juliet Stuart. In the story, inhabitants of other planets live with people. The action takes place in the 60s. After the release of the first season, the creators decide to close the project; thus, the movie had an ambiguous ending.

In 1997, the actress got an important role in her career, Seven of Nine, in the science-fiction series Star Trek: Voyager. It is the fourth season of the legendary series. Jeri Ryan played a representative of the Borg race, who became a person named Annica Hansen in the end.

Viewers liked the appearance of a new character, but the cast, who worked together for three years, was not glad to meet her. As for Jeri, she did her best on the set, but the tension remained. She had difficult relations with the main actress of the series, Kate Mulgrew, who played the captain of the starship, Kathryn Janeway.

Mulgrew believed that when Ryan’s heroine appeared in the series, the scriptwriters began to pay more attention to Jeri's appearance instead of the storyline. The actresses often starred together. Jeri later said that it was difficult for her and if there were an opportunity, then Kate Mulgrew would have avoided even looking at her partner. They could slacken tension only when Jeri began dating series producer Brannon Braga.

After the role of Seven of Nine, Ryan had an army of fans. She was pleased with the popularity, but at the same time, her life was at stake. She began to receive threatening letters from an obsessive fan, Marlon Estacio Pagtakhan. Before his arrest, he managed to send her several hundred messages.

After the space adventures of Voyager, Jeri was invited to play in the series Boston Public in 2001. Producer David E. Kelley wrote the role of Ronnie Cooke, who got a teaching job, specifically for Ryan.

The actress became in demand and filmed a lot. She participated in such popular TV shows as Two and a Half Men, Shark, Body of Proof, Warehouse 13, Helix, Bosch. Besides, her filmography includes the films Dracula 2000, Down with Love, Mortal Kombat: Rebirth.

Personal life

In 1990, immediately after participating in the Miss America beauty pageant, Jeri attended a charity event where she impressed investment banker Jack Ryan. The following summer, the couple celebrated the wedding. But due to work, the spouses were forced to live in different cities. In 1994, they had a son, Alex. Constant traveling affected the relationship, and in 1999, Jack and Jeri divorced.

After five years, Ryan began running for an open United States Senate seat in Illinois. The candidate was required to provide full information about his life, including marriage and the reasons for the divorce from Jeri. The former spouses agreed, but ask not to make the information about custody of the son public.

The court rejected the request. The reporters got the materials, including a transcript of the court hearing, in which Jeri said that Jack took her to sex clubs. So, Ryan’s political career came to an ended.

In 2007, Jeri got married again. Her husband became French chef Christophe Émé. The wedding took place in the Loire Valley, France. Soon, the actress announced her pregnancy. In early March 2008, the couple had a daughter, who was named Gisele.

The star still looks beautiful. She is 5.67 ft. (173 cm) tall, weighing 138.89 lbs. (63 kg). Her personal life is happy, as evidenced by the photos of Jeri and Christoph on Ryan’s Instagram page.

Jeri Ryan now

The actress continues to act in films. Two projects, Suspicion and Devil's Revenge, are going through the post-production stage and will premiere in 2019.

Nowadays, Ryan and her family live in a new house, which she bought on Toluca Lake for $ 3.25 million.

Jeri Ryan has a net worth of $30 million.

Filmography

• 1995 - Murder, She Wrote
• 1997 - Dark Skies
• 1997 - Star Trek: Voyager
• 2000 - Dracula 2000
• 2003 - Down with Love
• 2005 - The O.C.
• 2006 - Shark
• 2009 - Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
• 2010 - Mortal Kombat: Rebirth
• 2011 - Warehouse 13
• 2014 - Helix
• 2016 - Bosch
• 2018 - Suspicion
• 2019 - Devil's Revenge