page_title: Kes (Star Trek)
section_title: Creation and casting
hierarchical_section_title: Kes (Star Trek) / Development / Creation and casting
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context_page_description: Kes is a fictional character on the American science fiction television show Star Trek: Voyager. She is portrayed by actress Jennifer Lien. Set in the 24th century of the Star Trek universe, the series follows the crew of the starship USS Voyager, stranded far from home and struggling to get back to Earth. Kes is a member of the Ocampa who joins the crew in the series' premiere episode along with her Talaxian boyfriend, Neelix. She subsequently works as the Doctor's medical assistant and develops her mental abilities with Tuvok's assistance.
  Kes' storylines focus on her relationships with Neelix, the Doctor, Tuvok, Tom Paris, and Captain Janeway. Her psionic powers are also central and secondary themes of some episodes. Lien was removed from the series in the fourth season, but reprised her role in a season six episode, "Fury". Kes has been featured in non-canon novels and short stories adapted from the show.
  Critical response to Kes was mostly negative, though some critics praised Lien's performance. Although Kes' relationship with Neelix was panned, critics had a more mixed-to-positive reaction to her friendships with Tuvok and Tom Paris.
context_section_description: Early development of Star Trek: Voyager, including the Ocampa, began in July 1993. Producers initially imagined the Ocampa as an androgynous alien species. In later meetings, they agreed on the idea of the Ocampa having a short lifespan, similar to a mayfly. Kes was intended to live for only seven years, and changes in her appearance were planned for each season, emphasizing her age progression. The androgyny concept was dropped, as the first cast description identified Kes, who was initially named Dah, as a female. Producers proposed a second Ocampa, shown near the end of his lifespan, as part of the main cast, though this idea was abandoned in favor of Neelix, who was a late addition to the series. Kes was initially created as a scout for Voyager's journey through the Delta Quadrant, before Neelix assumed the role instead. Kes was then reimagined as a medical intern. In an August 1993 memo, series creator Jeri Taylor suggested Kes have a superhuman ability and be caught in a war between two factions. Producers debated the nature of the character's psionic powers, leading them to ask production associate Zayra Cabot and the Joan Pearce Research Associates to gather information on parapsychology. They later agreed to portray Kes with "some measure of telepathic ability" for the pilot episode ("Caretaker"), and planned to address it further in future episodes.
  When casting Kes, "Caretaker" director Winrich Kolbe looked for an actress who was "fragile, but with a steely will underneath". The casting call was for only women in their early-twenties or younger. Producers hired Jennifer Lien based on their belief that she could embody the character's "somewhat childlike and fragile" qualities. Lien was one of the first cast members hired for the series; at the age of nineteen, she was the youngest actor on the show at the time of its debut. Lien only had a basic understanding of the Star Trek franchise prior to receiving the part. She said this allowed her to approach her performance without anxiety. She had auditioned for the show due to the opportunity to play a new alien species, and explained "it meant that anything could happen, offering me the chance to learn and grow as an actress". Jennifer Gatti was considered as a runner-up for Kes, and she would later guest star in the episode "Non Sequitur".
  Series creator Michael Piller was concerned the pilot was  too "passionless" due to its focus on an action-adventure storyline over individual character development; he explained: "The biggest danger in the pilot was in creating a story that nobody cared about." Part of Kes' role in the episode, for Piller, was to encourage the audience to care about Neelix. The costumes in "Caretaker" were created by Robert Blackman. He said designing Kes' clothing was a challenge since producers were still unclear about the character and Lien was very introverted. Although he had difficulty with Lien, Blackman said the cast and crew enjoyed working with her. Kes' original costume was pastel colored and based on a sprite, but the producers rejected it after a wardrobe fitting.
  The Ocampa prosthetics for "Caretaker" were designed by Michael Westmore. While the early scenes of "Caretaker" were filmed, Lien tested various combinations of wigs and prosthetics; cinematographer Marvin V. Rush filmed each version for series creator Rick Berman to receive his final approval. During the show's first two seasons, it took Lien three hours a day to get into her character's hair, make-up, and wardrobe. As the series progressed, Lien developed an allergic response to the ear prosthetics; starting with the episode "Before and After", Lien no longer wore the ear prosthetics and Kes was portrayed with longer hair to cover her ears and hide this.
caption: An image of one of Kes' costumes and her prosthetics
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