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When Marina guested for the first time on STAR TREK: VOYAGER, there wasn't any suggestion that be called in again. Marina says, "It went well and I was told the ratings were good, so I thought I might be asked to do another one, but I didn't think it would be until this season; I was really surprised to be called back so soon. I was quite flattered - and very pleased, actually that they wanted me back."
Technical Challenges
'Lifeline' gave Marina the chance to work with a member of VOYAGER's regular cast, Robert Picardo, for the first time. "I know Bob quite well because we've done some conventions together" she says. "He's one of my favorite STAR TREK people. It was really great because he's so good, and he's so easy to work with. Also, it was a very challenging episode because of the whole concept of him having to play two parts; we were using a motion control camera, which basically means everything has to be so precise. You have to be standing in a fixed spot; yon can't move an inch, and you're having to think of so many other things apart from your performance. He of course had the main challenge because he was on stage the whole time, and he was still fantastic to work with. The pressure didn't seem to affect bins negatively at all; he was a joy And of course Dwight was a doll - I love working with Dwight. So it was a really fun episode to do."
Troi Flips Out
In the show. Troi had to cope with two stubborn men - the holographic EMH and the flesh-and-blood Dr. Lewis Zimmerman. "This time there was an element to her that we possibly had not seen; I'm trying to think if we ever saw her being quite so brusque with her patients. I had to figure out whether she was losing her temper with them, or whether it was a ploy I just felt that knowing Troi, and knowing how controlled she is -she's a psychologist, and she's seen everything, I would think - that it was probably done with intent rather than being just her losing her temper It was kind of interesting to bring that element to her."
Current plans include a feature film. "It's a British independent movie; well, it was, but we’re going to be shooting it in Canada, and the backing is from a Canadian production company, so I don't quite know how British it's going to remain. I know they were looking for some American teenage actors and it sounds like a teen adventure movie, but the producer and the director do very dark stuff, so I think it's going to be filmed with a twist. I play the totally evil bad person, who doesn't seem to have any redeeming qualities at all: just bad, horrible, through and through. Which is great, obviously, because the bad people are usually so much more fun to play!" But there's a downside
"If that goes as planned I think I'm probably going to have to pass on a play I was going to do in Oklahoma! As always happens, you sit on your butt not working and then you get more than one job offered at the same time"
There are personal implications too for the actors, who have to spend weeks away from home. "I might be in Montreal for nine weeks shooting this movie, and although I'm dying to do it it's going to be hard being away from everyone for that long."
Sci-fi Roles
''Then I did an episode of ‘Stargate SG-l,' and that I had to audition for. I got a call from my manager saying 'How good is your Russian accent,' and I said. 'Well, it's passable.' and he said, 'How good can it be by tomorrow morning! And so I went in, and there were real Russian actresses there. I read for it and I totally forgot about it, because I thought, 'There is no way, when they have real Russians, that I'm going to get this!' But I did, and it was great; there's a really nice atmosphere on that show. And it was funny because, after doing the Russian accent the first day, they said 'Could you tone it down a bit? We can't understand what you're saying!"
Marina doesn't mind that she might get typecast in sci-fi, but the danger seems to have receded, with her upcoming movie and her recent theater work in a Neil Simon play "Well, you know, at this point it's not like I have hundreds and hundreds of choices. I avoided sci-fi as long as I could. I'd rather be working than not working, so if it's sci-fi, then I'll do it!" She'll be doing it next year; in the eagerly awaited 10th STAR TREK movie. "I just can't wait," says Marina. "I'm really excited about the whole thing." Rick Berman has said the story is going to he "a whopping good tale" and "a lot more grand in scale" this time; is Marina going to be upset if Troi doesn't get quite as much to do? "I just want to be in it!" she says. "If we're talking galactic and battles, it's bound to be more the boys. I know that sounds a little sexist that girls can be involved in battles too - but the genre does tend to suit males better. And you've just got to be realistic; Patrick is the star of the show and then it's Brent, and they pay those guys the most money They're not going to pay them and have them sitting in their trailers! For me it's not about how big my part is; it's about meeting up with all my buddies again."
Acting in STAR TREK has obviously been a major part of Marina's life, but does she feel it might have actually closed some doors for her? "You know I don't think it has," she says. "I think if any doors were closed, I totally did it myself. I really didn't prepare for the end of TNG, and suddenly it was 10 months and I hadn't worked. The year before it ended, I should have started auditioning and meeting people. But you can't have regrets; you have to look at it all as a learning experience."
Marina would still like to be acting in a few years' time, but meanwhile she and her husband, musician Michael Lampet; have branched out with a new venture a restaurant named Casa Coyote's in Lake Arrowhead, not far from Los Angeles.
Charities and Conventions
"I support PETA [People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals], but my main charity is a no-kill sanctuary in Utah called Best Friends for Animals."
Marina is also a regular guest at conventions, in the States and worldwide. But doesn't she ever get tired of regaling the fans with stories from TNG days? She says, "I don't get tired of telling jokes; I'm just amazed that people don't get tired of hearing them. But as long as they want to hear them I'll show up!" And as long as she continues to show up in STAR TREK shows and movies, her legions of fans will be content.
Fans saw Marina in an episode of Majel Barrett Roddenberry's 'Earth: Final Conflict.' and in 'Stargate SG- 1.' "Earth: Final Conflict' came our of the blue," she says. "I had always told Majel I'd like to do her show Then I called her one day and we were just chatting and she said, 'Do you still want to do a show?' and I said 'Sure,' and she said. 'Well, there's a script that's come in, and I thought of you; let's see if you like it.' And I did, because again it was an interesting. very complex character.
"I think we'll be spending more time up there because it's so beautiful, but I think I'll still be acting whenever I can. The older you get in this town, the harder it is to get jobs, but we will have that second career -Michael's thinking of a chain! And if I've got more time, if I'm not hustling for work as much, maybe I'll get more involved in my animal charities.