Deanna Troi is a main character in the

science-fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel univers ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

'' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' and related TV series and films, portrayed by actress

Marina Sirtis Marina Sirtis (; born 29 March 1955) is a British actress. She is best known for her role as Counselor Deanna Troi on the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' and four ''Star Trek'' feature films, as well as other appearances ...

. Troi is half-human, half-

Betazoid ''Star Trek'' is a science fiction media franchise that began with Gene Roddenberry's launch of the original ''Star Trek'' television series in 1966. Its success led to decades of films, novels, comics, and spinoff series. A major motif of the ...

and has the

psionic In American science fiction of the 1950s and 1960s, psionics was a proposed discipline that applied principles of engineering (especially electronics) to the study (and employment) of paranormal or psychic phenomena, such as telepathy and psycho ...

ability to sense emotions. She serves as the ship's counselor on USS ''Enterprise''-D. Throughout most of the series, she holds the rank of lieutenant commander. In the seventh season, Troi takes the bridge officer's examination and is promoted to the rank of commander, but continues as counselor. Troi appears in all four ''Next Generation'' theatrical films, and also made guest appearances on '' Voyager'', ''

Enterprise Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to: Business and economics Brands and enterprises * Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company * Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company * Enterpris ...

'', '' Picard'', and '' Lower Decks''. Her romantic interests, family, and personal life are plot elements in many ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' episodes.

Depiction

Deanna Troi was born on March 29, 2336, near Lake El-Nar, Betazed. Troi’s parents are Betazoid Ambassador

Lwaxana Troi This is a list of characters from the science fiction television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation''. Characters are ordered alphabetically by family name, and only characters who played a significant recurring role in the series are list ...

(portrayed by

Majel Barrett Majel Barrett-Roddenberry (; born Majel Leigh Hudec;
, ''

Amick Byram). An older sister, Kestra, died in a drowning accident during Troi’s infancy. Although Deanna Troi has little exposure to

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

culture, she attended

Starfleet Academy In the Setting (fiction), fictional universe of ''Star Trek'', Starfleet Academy is where recruits to Starfleet's officer corps are trained. It was created in the year 2161, when the United Federation of Planets was founded. The Academy's mot ...

from 2355 to 2359, as well as the University of Betazed, and earned an advanced degree in

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

. Deanna Troi serves as the ship's

counselor Counselor or counsellor may refer to: A professional In diplomacy and government * Counsellor of State, senior member of the British royal family to whom the Monarch can delegate some functions in case of unavailability * Counselor (di ...

aboard the Starfleet starships USS ''Enterprise'' (NCC-1701-D) and ''Enterprise''-E under the command of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Jean-Luc Picard Jean-Luc Picard is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, most often seen as the captain of the Federation starship . Played by Patrick Stewart, Picard has appeared in the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (''T ...

. In '' Star Trek: Nemesis'', Troi leaves the ''Enterprise'' with her new husband

William Riker William Thomas "Will" Riker is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' universe appearing primarily as a main character in '' Star Trek: The Next Generation''. Throughout the series and its accompanying films, he is the ''Enterprise''s first ...

, who has just been promoted to captain of the USS ''Titan''. Troi's empathic abilities prove key to main shows, and other popular areas are her relationships and sexuality. In " The Child", she gives birth to an alien child. The Betazoid race has

telepathic Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...

abilities. Due to her half-human heritage, Troi has only partial telepathic abilities, and as a result, is more of an

empath Empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference, that is, the capacity to place oneself in another's position. Definitions of empathy encompass a broad range of social, co ...

with

clairsentience Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...

. In ''Star Trek: Nemesis'', Troi has expanded her empathic abilities, as she is able to connect to another psychic and follow that empathic bond to its source. In this instance, her ability enables ''Enterprise''-E to target and hit the

Romulan The Romulans () are an extraterrestrial race in the American science fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. They first appeared in the series ''Star Trek'' (1966–1969). They have appeared in most subsequent ''Star Trek'' releases, including '' The A ...

vessel ''Scimitar'', despite the fact that it is cloaked. She is also able to communicate telepathically with her mother and other telepathic Betazoids or races with sufficient aptitude. Several species are resistant to the telepathy and empathy of Betazoids, such as the Ferengi, the Breen, and the Ulians. Early in the series, Troi finds herself working with a former lover, the newly assigned first officer to USS ''Enterprise'',

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

William Riker. In season one, she meets a potential spouse in " Haven". In later episodes, Troi has romantic involvements with several others, including a brief relationship with

Klingon The Klingons ( ; Klingon: ''tlhIngan'' ) are a fictional species in the science fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. Developed by screenwriter Gene L. Coon in 1967 for the original ''Star Trek'' (''TOS'') series, Klingons were swarthy humanoids c ...

Starfleet officer

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

Worf Worf, son of Mogh is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' franchise. He appears in the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (''TNG'') and seasons four through seven of '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (''DS9'') as well as t ...

. A major exploration of their relationship begins with " Parallels", in which Worf encounters parallel universes where they are married with children. Another episode that explores a Troi-Worf relationship is " Eye of the Beholder". However, in both cases, they are not revealed to be dating aboard the "real" ship, although both episodes are oriented towards exploring this concept. In " All Good Things...", the beginnings of real-world relationship are briefly explored, though this is abruptly dropped as Worf explores other love interests in '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'', and Troi's romantic relationship with Riker is rekindled through the ''Next Generation'' films. As a main cast member, Troi appears in nearly every TNG episode, though particular episodes, starting with "The Child", feature her as the primary protagonist. Her name is included in the show title " Ménage à Troi", which is oriented towards an adventure her mother and she have (besides

Data In the pursuit of knowledge, data (; ) is a collection of discrete values that convey information, describing quantity, quality, fact, statistics, other basic units of meaning, or simply sequences of symbols that may be further interpreted ...

and Q, this is one of the few cases where a character's name is in the episode title). Other episodes principally about Troi include: " Face of the Enemy", " Man of the People", " Violations", and "

Night Terrors Night terror, also called sleep terror, is a sleep disorder causing feelings of panic or dread and typically occurring during the first hours of stage 3–4 non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and lasting for 1 to 10 minutes. It can last long ...

". She is addressed in various ways by fellow officers. Captain Picard calls her "Counselor", but when he is concerned about her, or in emergencies, he calls her "Deanna". Picard also refers to her as "Commander" in the pilot episode, "

Encounter at Farpoint "Encounter at Farpoint" is the pilot episode and series premiere of the American science fiction television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', which premiered in syndication on September 28, 1987. It was written by D. C. Fontana ...

", which is consistent with her uniform's rank pips. Riker addresses her as "Lieutenant" a single time in the pilot episode; her service rank is not referred to again for several seasons. Doctor Crusher (one of her most noted female friends) usually calls her "Troi". Data very rarely calls her by her first name, usually calling her "Counselor Troi". Depending on the situation, Commander Riker calls her "Deanna" or " Imzadi", which means "beloved" in the Betazoid language. In several episodes, Troi falls victim to aliens. In an episode of season four (" Clues"), the ''Enterprise''’s crew loses a day's memory. As events unfold, Troi is taken over by an entity to communicate with the crew. She temporarily gains "superhuman" strength and effortlessly tosses Worf across the bridge, breaking his wrist. In the season-five episode, "Violations", the ''Enterprise'' encounters an alien species who are telepathic and specialize in being able to bring back lost memories. One of the aliens mentally assaults Deanna and also tries to physically assault her in her quarters. She is saved by Worf and one of his security teams. In the film, ''Star Trek: Nemesis'', she is mentally violated by Shinzon's viceroy, who is also telepathic. This occurs in her quarters when she is with her new husband, Commander Riker; it also occurs in the ''Star Trek: Nemesis'' bonus deleted scenes, where she is attacked in the turbolift. She eventually is able to turn the tables on the viceroy using the same connection. Troi is an avid connoisseur of chocolate, a fact that is significant in multiple episodes, including one in which she tells Commander Riker how to properly enjoy eating it. In the episode " Remember Me", Beverly Crusher briefly describes Troi to Captain Picard to jog his memory and mentions that she "loves chocolate". She is known for ordering chocolate-flavored desserts in Ten-Forward, and her love for desserts is a common point of dialogue in many shows. She talks about this with a visiting-alien ambassador in " Liaisons", who takes up her love for desserts as in their culture they do not have this type of food. Dream-themed episodes include " Phantasms", where Troi appears as cake in Data's dream and in "Night Terrors", her dreams help save the ship. The dreams a suitor thinks he is having about her in "Haven" become a major plot point in that episode.

Development and casting

at first read for the role that would become

Tasha Yar Natasha (russian: Наташа) is a name of Slavic origin. The Slavic name is the diminutive form of Natalia. Notable people * Natasha, the subject of '' Natasha's Story'', a 1994 nonfiction book * Natasha Aguilar (1970–2016), Costa Rican sw ...

in 1986. She had, in total, five readings, all with

Gene Roddenberry Eugene Wesley Roddenberry Sr. (August 19, 1921 – October 24, 1991) was an American television screenwriter, producer, and creator of ''Star Trek: The Original Series'', its sequel spin-off series ''Star Trek: The Animated Series,'' and ''Sta ...

and other executives. Notably, Roddenberry took a liking to her almost immediately.

Denise Crosby Denise Michelle Crosby is an American actress and model known for portraying Security Chief Tasha Yar mainly in season one of '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', and Yar's daughter, the half-Romulan Commander Sela, in subsequent seasons. She ...

, who eventually won the role of Tasha, auditioned for the role of Deanna Troi. Sirtis was said to have had a more "exotic" feel about her. She was just about to return home, in debt and jobless, when she received the phone call alerting her that she had the role of Deanna Troi. She stated that if it had been an hour later, she would have missed that call and been on her way to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Sirtis' US visa was expiring that day, and if she had stayed any longer, she could have run into legal trouble. For Sirtis, ''Star Trek'' was her first big break. Prior to Deanna Troi, her acting career was going nowhere: "What they told us about ''The Next Generation'' when we first started was that we were guaranteed 26 episodes. So that was the longest job I've ever had." Initially, series creator

intended Troi to be "eye candy" - beautiful, sexy, and not very bright. He also conceptualized her as having four breasts, before his wife told him this was a bad idea. Prior to filming, Sirtis was told to lose , but thought to herself that she had to drop even more, and was often wearing plunging necklines and form-fitting dresses. After six years, the producers decided to drop the "sexy and brainless" Troi and make her a stronger character:

I was thrilled when I got my regulation Starfleet uniform... it covered up my cleavage and I got all my brains back, because when you have cleavage, you can't have brains in Hollywood... I was allowed to do things that I hadn't been allowed to do for five or six years. I went on away teams, I was in charge of staff, I had my pips back, I had phasers, I had all the equipment again, and it was fabulous. I was absolutely thrilled.

Reception

One reviewer compared her to

Leonard McCoy Dr. Leonard H. McCoy, known as "Bones", is a character in the American science-fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. McCoy was played by actor DeForest Kelley in the original ''Star Trek'' series from 1966 to 1969, and he also appears in the anim ...

from the original ''Star Trek'' television series. In 2018, CBR ranked Counselor Troi as the 25th-best

Starfleet Starfleet is a fictional organization in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. Within this fictional universe, Starfleet is a uniformed space force maintained by the United Federation of Planets ("the Federation") as the principal means for conduc ...

character of ''Star Trek'', in 2018; they note her role as an empath aboard ''Enterprise'' 1701-D. In 2017, ''

IndieWire IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...

'' ranked Troi as the 9th-best character on ''Star Trek: The Next Generation''. In 2016, Troi was ranked as the 24th-most important character of Starfleet within the ''Star Trek'' universe by ''Wired''. In 2017,

Screen Rant ''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and film theories. ''Screen Rant'' was launched by Vic Holtreman in 2003, and originally had its primary office in Ogden, Utah. ''Scr ...

ranked Troi the 12th-most attractive person in the ''Star Trek'' universe. In 2018, CBR ranked Troi the 25th-best member of Starfleet. In 2019, Troi was ranked the sixth-sexiest ''Star Trek'' character by

SyFy Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Lau ...

. In 2020,

Tom's Guide ''Tom's Hardware'' is an online publication owned by Future plc and focused on technology. It was founded in 1996 by Thomas Pabst. It provides articles, news, price comparisons, videos and reviews on computer hardware and high technology. The si ...

recommended the ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' episodes " Ménage à Troi", " Face of the Enemy", and " Thine Own Self" as having some of the best moments for this character. In 2020,

SyFy Wire Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Launc ...

was very positive about her performance in the ''Star Trek: Picard'' episode "Nepenthe", explaining that "It features Deanna Troi at her very best, with Marina Sirtis at the height of her powers."

Franchise appearances

Besides being a regular in ''The Next Generation'' and its films, Deanna Troi appears in three episodes of '' Star Trek: Voyager'' ("

Pathfinder Pathfinder may refer to: Businesses * Pathfinder Energy Services, a division of Smith International * Pathfinder Press, a publisher of socialist literature Computing and information science * Path Finder, a Macintosh file browser * Pathfinder ( ...

", "

Inside Man ''Inside Man'' is a 2006 American heist thriller film directed by Spike Lee and written by Russell Gewirtz. It centers on an elaborate bank heist on Wall Street over a 24-hour period. The film stars Denzel Washington as Detective Keith Frazi ...

", and " Life Line") together with

Reginald Barclay Reginald Endicott Barclay III is a fictional engineer from the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. On television and in film, he has been portrayed by Dwight Schultz since the character's introduction in the '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' th ...

, and in the final episode of ''

Star Trek: Enterprise ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', titled simply ''Enterprise'' for its first two seasons, is an American science fiction television series created by Rick Berman and Brannon Braga. It originally aired from September 26, 2001, to May 13, 2005 on Uni ...

'', "These Are the Voyages...", with William Riker. Troi appears in the '' Star Trek: Picard'' episode "Nepenthe", set twenty years after ''Nemesis'' where she is married to Riker and they have two children, Thad (deceased) and Kestra. When Jean-Luc Picard and his android companion Soji visit the Rikers' home, Deanna and her husband welcome them with open arms. Deanna and Will are both retired from Starfleet, although Will is described as being on "active reserve". Troi appears in the first season finale of the animated '' Star Trek: Lower Decks'', set a year after the events of ''Nemesis''.

References

External links