What Happened To Jolene Blalock After Playing T'Pol On Star Trek: Enterprise?
Easily one of the most prominent Vulcans next to Spock and Tuvok in the "Star Trek" franchise, T'Pol (Jolene Blalock) proved an essential member of Earth's first warp five expedition into space as told on "Star Trek: Enterprise." For the actor behind the complicated Vulcan High Council sub-commander, the role would prove her big break. An international model who appeared in both Playboy and Maxim, Blalock had landed a handful of guest appearances on shows like "Veronica's Closet" and "JAG," but the stoic Vulcan T'Pol was her first major role. It would also turn out to be her only major role, with the actor taking only a small number of TV and film roles until seemingly stepping completely out of the limelight after 2017.
But don't worry about Blalock. She's been plenty busy living her best life with her husband of more than two decades, Michael Rapino — the Live Nation Entertainment CEO with a net worth of at least $410 million. A mother of three, Blalock helped create the Rapino Foundation (which is now known as "R3VOLVE HAITI") with her husband to help address global systemic poverty. But with all that charity work on her plate, devoted T'Pol fans would still love to see Blalock find time to revisit the stars.
Jolene Blalock is a sci-fi fan
Jolene Blalock's post-"Trek" acting career may be a bit sparse, but considering she's been raising a family and running a charity organization and had no financial pressure to work, the roles she has taken are a sign that she's doing it for the pure love of the job. Blalock was more than happy to ditch the modeling industry when the profession turned out disappointing. As the actor explained in a 2002 interview with The Sun, "I'm jaded by my experiences in the modeling industry. You're never skinny or perfect enough and it was difficult mentally making the transition to acting."
But for her, getting a leading role in the sci-fi genre was a bonus. A lifelong sci-fi and fantasy fan, Blalock recounted her childhood days watching "Star Wars" and the original "Star Trek" series to Trek Today in 2010. To the actor, science fiction is all about exploring what humanity is capable of. As she told Trek Today, "It makes us think outside of ourselves, it presents the question what if, what if we could jump the timeline, what if we could meet another intelligent species, what if we could colonize on another planet. It deals with very big ideas."
Blalock's screen appearances would include a few more sci-fi and fantasy franchises. During her run on "Enterprise," she appeared on two episodes of "Stargate: SG-1," and after the end of "Enterprise," she had roles in "Legend of the Seeker" and "Starship Troopers 3: Marauders."
Blalock could bring T'Pol back
In the late 2000s, Jolene Blalock also showed up in procedural shows like "House" and "CSI: Miami." She had a small role in the 2014 comedy "Sex Tape," starring Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel. Her last acting role was in a 2017 TV movie called "A Man for Every Month." But many fans are holding out hope that her break from acting is only temporary.
In 2021, she walked the red carpet at Paramount+'s Star Trek Day, celebrating the 55th anniversary of the franchise, meaning she still may have some interest in being connected to "Star Trek," even though it appears she didn't participate in any panels. Given the natural 200-year longevity of Vulcans — not to mention the infinitely diverse sci-fi possibilities — T'Pol could potentially make an appearance in "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," as she was canonically born in 2088 or 2089 and "Strange New Worlds" is set in 2259.