Summary

  • Guinan's mysterious past includes having "a lot" of children, with one son who took "several hundred years" to come around.
  • Guinan's species, the El-Aurians, were not named onscreen until Star Trek Generations, adding to her enigmatic nature.
  • In Star Trek: Picard season 2, Guinan makes a return, showcasing her unique ability to summon a Q and adding more layers to her character.

The mysterious Ten Forward bartender Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg) revealed that she had "a lot" of children in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Guinan joined the cast of TNG in season 2 after lifelong Star Trek fan Whoopi Goldberg asked for a role on the show. Goldberg was particularly inspired by Nichelle Nichols' Lt. Uhura in Star Trek: The Original Series. Guinan remained an enigma for much of TNG's run, with the show only revealing small tidbits of information about her past.

In Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3, episode 1, "Evolution," Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) seeks advice from Guinan about her own son, Ensign Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton). When Dr. Crusher asks Guinan whether she has any children, Guinan simply replies: "a lot." Guinan then reveals that she only had difficulty relating to one of her sons because he "wouldn't listen to anybody." Dr. Crusher points out that all kids go through this phase, but Guinan says: "Not in a species of listeners." She goes on to say that it took "several hundred years" for her son to come around, which hints at Guinan's lengthy Star Trek timeline.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine almost featured a story about one of Guinan's sons, but the plan was changed because Whoopi Goldberg was unavailable.

Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan with DS9 as a background
Related
Star Trek: DS9 Almost Gave TNG’s Guinan A Son

Whoopi Goldberg's Guinan is Star Trek: TNG's most enigmatic character, but one episode of Deep Space Nine would have changed this by giving her a son!

Star Trek Should Tell The Story Of Guinan's Children

One of Guinan's children should join the other TNG legacy kids.

Star Trek: Picard season 3 reunited the crew of the USS Enterprise-D and revealed that Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Dr. Beverly Crusher had a son named Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers). Picard season 3 also introduced Sidney (Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut) and Alandra (Mica Burton) La Forge, the daughters of Commodore Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), and focused a great deal on family and legacy. After Star Trek: Picard season 3 became a resounding success, fans clamored for a spin-off featuring the newly rechristened USS Enterprise-G and Star Trek's legacy characters.

Guinan's species were not officially named El-Aurians onscreen until Star Trek Generations.

Although the long-rumored Star Trek: Legacy remains little more than a hope, this story would provide the perfect opportunity to introduce Guinan's children. Considering the extremely long lifespans of El-Aurians, Guinan's children could pop up anywhere in the galaxy in any number of Star Trek shows. Guinan and Picard have always been close, so it would be fun to see one of Guinan's children interact with Picard's son, Jack. Much about Guinan remains a mystery, and introducing one or more of her children would allow Star Trek to explore more about El-Aurians as a species.

Star Trek: TNG's "Evolution" Sets Up Guinan From "A Species of Listeners"

Star Trek: Picard season 2 revisits this idea.

After appearing in 28 episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and two feature films, Guinan returned in Star Trek: Picard season 2, which revisited the concept of the El Aurians as "a species of listeners." In Picard season 2, Q (John de Lancie) also returned and altered the past, plunging Admiral Picard and his friends into a dark, dystopian future. Picard then had to travel back in time to repair what Q had broken. Not only did Picard meet with Guinan in the present, but he also encountered the younger Guinan in the past, played by Ito Aghayere.

As she helped Admiral Picard, Aghayere's Guinan also revealed a heretofore unseen ability — El-Aurians could summon a Q and the Q had to answer. Guinan does so with John de Lancie's Q, but his powers are on the fritz, rendering him unable to comply quickly. Much about Guinan's connection to Q still remains a mystery, but Star Trek: Picard season 2 added more layers to the El-Aurians. Whether or not Star Trek ever reveals more information about Guinan or her children, she remains one of Star Trek: The Next Generation's most compelling secondary characters.

Star Trek: The Next Generation & Star Trek: Picard are available to stream on Paramount+.