While promoting the upcoming Star Trek: Picard season 2, Patrick Stewart recalls the inspiring reason why Whoopi Goldberg decided to join the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Set 20 years after the events of TNG and its subsequent films, Picard sees the return of its titular captain, now retired from Starfleet, who is suddenly drawn into a new series of adventures after being approached by the daughter of his late synthetic friend, Data. The show also features a number of Star Trek cast members returning along with Stewart, including Jeri Ryan, Brent Spiner, and John de Lancie.
Goldberg’s Trekkie debut as Guinan, the centuries-old bartender of the USS Enterprise-D’s Ten-Forward Lounge, occurred in the TNG season 2 episode 1. She regularly reprised the role across the series’ run, dispensing sage advice and wise-words to the crew of the Enterprise in times of trouble. Guinan’s enigmatic presence has often led to the bartender being cited as one of the best characters in Star Trek. Over the past few years, Goldberg has frequently voiced her desire to return again in newer Star Trek ventures, and she was invited by Stewart to reprise the character in Picard during his appearance on her talk show The View in 2020. However, Goldberg’s involvement in the upcoming season was only recently officially confirmed in a series of promotional images for the show, with Guinan in the latest Picard season 2 trailer.
Reflecting on her involvement with both shows, Stewart reveals the reason why the Academy Award-winner decided to join the hit sci-fi series back in 1988. Discussing Goldberg’s casting in TNG on The Late Late Show with James Corden, Stewart recalls a conversation he had with Goldberg at the time, as he himself had wondered why the successful film actor wanted to “do a syndicated sci-fi show.” He then details how Goldberg explained that she watched the original Star Trek series as a child and was inspired by Nichelle Nichols’ portrayal of communications officer Nyota Uhura. Read his full comment below:
I said [to Goldberg], you know, ‘Why would you want to come and do a syndicated sci-fi show that’s been running for years before this?’ And she said as a child she watched the [original Star Trek] show and there was an African-American woman, an actress, playing the leading role, and being highly respected and thought well of and important in her job. And Whoopi said to me, ‘And I thought to myself, Well, one of us made it.’ And I was so moved by that.
Goldberg has cited Uhura as a childhood role model before, and Nichols’ appearance in the original Star Trek had a major impact on African-American representation. Her character and Shatner’s Captain Kirk had one of the very first interracial kisses broadcast on American television, in 1968, and many Black and female NASA astronauts have also listed Nichols as an inspiration. The fact that this led to Goldberg being inspired is particularly poignant, as it implies that Nichols’ performance was not only a huge inspiration for her in joining the Star Trek universe as Guinan, but also in pursuing an acting career in the first place.
Stewart’s recounting of Goldberg’s reason for joining TNG will unquestionably be a moving story for all Star Trek fans to hear, especially devotees of the original series and TNG. For many, this context may well add an additional dimension to Goldberg’s performance, knowing just how influential Nichols’ character was for the actor. Fortunately, fans will not have to wait long to see Goldberg back as Guinan providing worldly wisdom to Stewart’s Enterprise captain, as Picard season 2 begins airing on Paramount+ on March 3.
Source: The Late Late Show with James Corden
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