British actress (born 1955)
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 in the
Star Trek
franchise.
Early life
[
edit
]
Marina Sirtis was born in
Hackney
, London,
[2]
the daughter of Greek parents, Despina, a tailor's assistant, and John Sirtis.
[1]
[3]
She was brought up in
Harringay
, North London.
[1]
[4]
When she was three years old, Sirtis says, the teenage sons of her babysitter sexually molested her. Sirtis suffered from an eating disorder, which emerged due to the trauma of the assault. After suffering from the disorder for 20 years, she went into therapy in the 1990s and was able to manage the trauma and learn to eat healthily again.
[5]
While still in secondary school, Sirtis secretly auditioned for drama school against her parents' wishes, ultimately being accepted to the
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
.
[6]
In 1976, at the age of 21, Sirtis graduated from Guildhall and began her career by joining the
Connaught Theatre
.
[7]
In 1986, Sirtis emigrated to the United States, settling in Los Angeles to boost her career. She later became a
naturalized
US citizen
.
[1]
Career
[
edit
]
Early work
[
edit
]
Sirtis started her career as a member of the repertory company at the
Connaught Theatre
,
Worthing
, West Sussex, in 1976. Directed by Nic Young, she appeared in
Joe Orton
's
What the Butler Saw
and as Ophelia in
Hamlet
.
[8]
Before her role in
Star Trek
, Sirtis was featured in supporting roles in several films. In the 1983
Faye Dunaway
film
The Wicked Lady
, she engaged in a whip fight with Dunaway. In the
Charles Bronson
sequel
Death Wish 3
, Sirtis' character is a rape victim. In the film
Blind Date
, she appears as a
sex worker
who is murdered by a madman.
Other early works include numerous guest-starring roles on British television series. Sirtis appeared in
Raffles
(1977),
Who Pays the Ferryman
(1977),
Hazell
(1978),
Minder
(1979), the
Jim Davidson
sitcom
Up the Elephant and Round the Castle
(1985), and
The Return of Sherlock Holmes
(1986). She also played the flight attendant in a 1979
Cinzano Bianco
television commercial starring
Leonard Rossiter
and
Joan Collins
, in which Collins was splattered with drink.
Star Trek
[
edit
]
Star Trek: The Next Generation
[
edit
]
In 1986, Sirtis relocated to the United States. When casting
Star Trek: The Next Generation
,
Gene Roddenberry
was inspired to ask Sirtis, whose appearance he considered "exotic", to audition for a role after seeing the film
Aliens
with
Bob Justman
, which featured the prominent
Latina
character Vasquez, played by
Jenette Goldstein
.
[9]
Sirtis and
Denise Crosby
initially tried out for each other's eventual roles on
The Next Generation
. Sirtis' character was going to be named Lt. Macha Hernandez, the Security Chief. Gene Roddenberry decided to switch them, and Macha Hernandez became
Tasha Yar
. Sirtis recalls that on the day she received the call offering her the role, she was actually packing to return to Britain because her six-month
visa
had expired.
Deanna Troi is a half-human, half-
Betazoid
. Her Betazoid abilities allow her to read the emotions of others. Her position on the Enterprise-D is ship's counselor, looking after the crew's well-being and serving as trusted advisor to Captain Picard, with a position next to him on the bridge. Initially, the writers found it difficult to write for Troi and even left her out of four first-season episodes. Sirtis felt her job was in jeopardy after the first season, but was overjoyed when Roddenberry took her aside at
Jonathan Frakes
' wedding and told her that the season-two
premiere episode
would center on Troi.
[10]
Sirtis appeared in all seven seasons of
Star Trek: The Next Generation
, and her character was developed from a more passive therapist to a tougher Starfleet officer. She has stated her favourite episode is season six's "
Face of the Enemy
", in which she is kidnapped and surgically altered to pose as a
Romulan
. Troi's switching to a standard
Starfleet
uniform in the same season in "
Chain of Command
" elevated the character's dignity in Sirtis' eyes, and her enthusiasm in playing her, with Sirtis commenting, "It covered up my cleavage and, consequently, I got all my brains back, because when you have a cleavage you can't have brains in Hollywood. So I got all my brains back and 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."
[11]
During her time on the show, she became close friends with her co-stars Jonathan Frakes (who played
Commander Riker
),
Michael Dorn
(
Lieutenant Worf
) and
Brent Spiner
(who played
Lieutenant Commander Data
). The latter cast members were groomsmen at her wedding.
[12]
She wore black-coloured contact lenses during the seven-year run of
Star Trek: The Next Generation
and the subsequent films because her character had black eyes.
[13]
Her own eyes are
light brown
.
She usually wore hairpieces for her role as Troi. Sirtis' real hair was slightly shorter and, although curly, was not as bouffant as her character's. However, Sirtis' real hair was used in the pilot episode, and also in the first six episodes of season six, in which Troi sported a more natural looking pony-tailed style. She was also asked to create an accent (described as a mixture of Eastern European and
Israeli
)
[14]
for her character, although her natural accent is
Cockney
. Over time, the accent was adjusted and became more Americanized.
[
citation needed
]
Other
Star Trek
works
[
edit
]
Sirtis reprised her character in the feature films
Star Trek Generations
(1994),
Star Trek: First Contact
(1996),
Star Trek: Insurrection
(1998), and
Star Trek: Nemesis
(2002).
Sirtis was delighted to get the chance to do some comedy in
Star Trek: First Contact
and said, "I loved it because it opened the door to a different side of Troi we'd never seen before. That door has stayed open and that whole kind of wacky, zany Troi thing has continued into the next movie, which is great for me because I like to do things that are different."
[15]
Sirtis stated of her role in
Star Trek: Nemesis
, "I sort of had an inkling that I was going to have a good part in this film because John Logan was such a big fan of the character. So I knew that he would do her some justice."
[16]
Sirtis also appeared in
Star Trek: Voyager
for three episodes toward the end of the series (1999 and 2000), and the series finale of
Star Trek: Enterprise
(2005). She next returned to her role as Deanna Troi in 2020 in
Star Trek: Picard
episode "Nepenthe".
[17]
She also reprised the role in "No Small Parts", the first-season finale of
Star Trek: Lower Decks
.
Sirtis voiced the
Enterprise
'
s computer in the web series
Star Trek Continues
.
[18]
[19]
Other work
[
edit
]
While filming
Star Trek: The Next Generation
, Sirtis returned to the UK during the hiatus between seasons three and four in 1990 to film a drama special entitled
One Last Chance
for the BBC. In 1992, she appeared in an episode of the short-lived series
The Fifth Corner
and had a cameo in the horror/fantasy film
Waxwork II: Lost in Time
. After the end of
Star Trek: The Next Generation
in 1994, Sirtis continued to work regularly. Her first role was a departure from previous work, an abused wife in the series
Heaven Help Us
.
She provided the voice of
Demona
in the animated Disney television series
Gargoyles
for two seasons starting in 1994. Her
Next Generation
co-stars, Frakes (as the voice of
David Xanatos
), Spiner and Dorn, also lent their voices to the show. She voiced the character again for an episode of the unmade animated series
Team Atlantis
.
In 1996, Sirtis starred as a villainous police detective in the British made-for-television film,
Gadgetman
. She played a villainess once again when she guest-starred as a race-track owner under investigation following the death of a driver in
Diagnosis: Murder
in 1998. The independent film
Paradise Lost
, with Sirtis in a starring role, was released in 1999.
Beginning in 1999, Sirtis returned to science-fiction television in a number of roles starting with
The Outer Limits
. The same year, she appeared in
Earth: Final Conflict
, originally created by Gene Roddenberry. In 2000, she played a Russian scientist in
Stargate SG-1
. Sirtis was interviewed in the October 2000 issue of
SFX
magazine in the UK; the cover stated, "Marina Sirtis is Everywhere", also referring to her reprisal of her character Deanna Troi on
Star Trek: Voyager
.
In 2001, Sirtis made a highly publicised appearance on the long-running British hospital drama
Casualty
. She played a politician with controversial views on the
National Health Service
. When she meets with a man with whom she is having an affair at a hotel, she is caught in an explosion. She appeared in the made-for-television films
Terminal Error
in 2002 and
Net Games
in 2003. Also in 2003, she guest-starred in the
ABC
series
Threat Matrix
playing a biological weapons scientist from Iraq.
Sirtis starred in the film
Spectres
in 2004, and at ShockerFest International Film Festival, she won the best actress award.
[20]
Sirtis had a minor role in the
Academy Award
-winning ensemble film
Crash
as the wife of the
Persian
shopkeeper. Following this, she played another Middle Eastern role in the series
The Closer
in 2005. In 2006, she had a three-episode recurring role as a love match-maker on
Girlfriends
, and she guest-starred in
Without a Trace
.
In 2007, Sirtis starred in the
SyFy
channel production of
Grendel
, where she played
Queen Onela
. Independent film
Trade Routes
,
The Deep Below
, and
Lesser of Three Evils
were released. She provided the voice for Matriarch Benezia in the critically acclaimed video game
Mass Effect
on
Xbox 360
,
PlayStation 3
and
PC
.
In 2008, she made a guest appearance in an episode of the
Casualty
spin-off show
Holby City
. The same year, the sci-fi/drama film
Inalienable
, written by
Star Trek
alumnus
Walter Koenig
, was released. Sirtis said of her role, "I actually play the Deputy Attorney General of the United States, so I'm a bad guy, a mean lawyer, which was fantastic."
[21]
The direct-to-DVD sequels
Green Street 2
and
The Grudge 3
, featuring Sirtis, were released in 2009. She co-starred in the British film
31 North 62 East
as the prime minister's top aide; it had a limited theatrical release in the UK. Sirtis guest-starred in the first episode of the short-lived hospital drama
Three Rivers
. She returned to SyFy in December 2009 in the disaster film
Annihilation Earth
.
In 2010, Sirtis guest-starred as a Swiss doctor in two episodes of ABC Family's
Make It or Break It
. In May 2010, Sirtis announced that she would be providing the voice for comic-book villainess
Queen Bee
in the
Young Justice
animated series.
[22]
She provided her voice for a number of episodes from 2011 until its cancellation in 2013. In March 2011, Sirtis guest-starred on an episode of
Grey's Anatomy
. She played an Iranian mother who was at the hospital to participate in a medical trial for
Alzheimer's disease
.
[23]
In 2012, the vampire film
Speed Demons
, in which Sirtis co-starred, was released to pay-per-view services.
[24]
The same year, she played a fortune teller in the
Castlevania
fan-made series posted on YouTube. She accepted a recurring role as director of
Mossad
on
NCIS
.
[25]
Her character, Orli Elbaz, succeeds Eli David (portrayed by
Michael Nouri
) and was introduced in the
season-10
episode "
Berlin
", which aired in April 2013. She subsequently appeared in the second episode of season 11, which aired in early October 2013, and in the
season 13
finale "Family First".
In 2014, she co-starred in the SyFy channel horror film
Finders Keepers
. The following year, she appeared in the British film
A Dark Reflection
, and in 2016, Sirtis starred in the Hallmark Channel film
My Summer Prince
.
[26]
In 2019, Sirtis made her London
West End stage
debut in
Dark Sublime
, playing the character of Marianne, a freelance actor and now-forgotten icon of a British sci-fi TV show, whose encounter with a fan changes both of their lives.
[27]
In 2019, the video game
Elite Dangerous
released an alternative voice (named Carina) for the 'COVAS' in-game ship computer, voiced by Sirtis.
[28]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Sirtis married Michael Lamper, an actor and rock guitarist, in 1992.
[5]
[29]
Lamper died in his sleep on 7 December 2019.
[30]
In 2021, Sirtis moved back to London, citing Lamper's death, growing tensions in the U.S. surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic response, and a desire for career opportunities in British film and television.
[31]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Film
[
edit
]
Television
[
edit
]
Year
|
Title
|
Role
|
Note
|
1977
|
Raffles
|
Faustina
|
|
Who Pays the Ferryman?
|
Ariadne
|
|
1978
|
Hazell
|
Melina Stassinopolus
|
|
The Thief of Baghdad
|
Harem Girl
|
Television film
|
1979
|
Cinzano
commercial
|
Stewardess
|
TV commercial
|
Minder
|
Stella
|
Episode: "Aces High...And Sometimes Very Low"
|
1982
|
Kelly Monteith
|
Uncredited
|
|
1985
|
Up the Elephant and Round the Castle
|
Lisa
|
|
1986
|
Room at the Bottom
|
Carla
|
Episode "The Big Prize"
|
Call Me Mister
|
Sally
|
|
The Return of Sherlock Holmes
|
Lucrezia Venucci
|
Episode: "The Six Napoleons"
|
1987
|
Hunter
|
Kate Scanlon
|
Episode: "Down and Under"
|
1987?1994
|
Star Trek: The Next Generation
|
Counselor
Deanna Troi
|
176 episodes
|
1988
|
Reading Rainbow
|
Herself
|
Episode: "
The Bionic Bunny Show
"
|
1990
|
One Last Chance
|
Maria
|
Television film
|
1993
|
Griffin and Sabine
|
Sabine
|
Voice
|
1994
|
Heaven Help Us
|
Carolyn Paris
|
|
1994?1996, 1997
|
Gargoyles
|
Demona, additional voices
|
Voice, recurring role
[32]
|
1996
|
Gadgetman
|
Detective Inspector Walker
|
Television film
|
1997
|
Duckman
|
Aurora Abromowitz
|
Voice, episode: "Where No Duckman Has Gone Before"
|
1998
|
Diagnosis: Murder
|
Mary Ann Eagin
|
|
1999
|
Earth: Final Conflict
|
Sister Margarette
|
|
The Outer Limits
|
Olivia 'Liv' Kohler
|
Episode: "
The Grell
"
|
1999?2000
|
Star Trek: Voyager
|
Counselor Deanna Troi
|
3 episodes
|
2000
|
Stargate SG-1
|
Dr. Svetlana Markova
|
Episode: "Watergate"
|
2001
|
Casualty
|
Jane Taylor, MP
|
|
2003
|
Threat Matrix
|
Dr. Nabila Hassan
|
|
2005, 2009
|
Family Guy
|
Marina Sirtis, Herself
|
Voice
|
2005
|
The Closer
|
Layla Moktari
|
Episode: "L.A. Woman"
|
Star Trek: Enterprise
|
Counselor Deanna Troi
|
Episode: "
These Are the Voyages...
"
|
2006
|
Without a Trace
|
Alexas Soros
|
|
Girlfriends
|
Gina Richards
|
|
2007
|
Grendel
|
Queen Wealtheow
|
Television film
|
2008
|
Holby City
|
Lucy Simmonds
|
|
2009
|
Annihilation Earth
|
Paxton
|
Television film
|
The Cleveland Show
|
Athena the Greek Prostitute/Woman at Party
|
Voice, episode: "Ladies' Night"
|
Green Street 2
|
Veronica Mavis
|
|
Three Rivers
|
Layla Rahimi
|
|
2010
|
Make It or Break It
|
Dr. Anna Kleister
|
|
2010?2019
|
Young Justice
|
Queen Bee
/ L-4, Sandra Stanyon
|
Voice, recurring role
[32]
|
2011
|
Grey's Anatomy
|
Sonya Amin
|
Episode "This is How We Do It"
|
2013
|
Star Trek Continues
|
Computer voice
|
|
Adventure Time
|
Samantha
|
Voice, episode: "The Pit"
[32]
|
2013?2016
|
NCIS
|
Mossad Director Orli Elbaz
|
3 episodes
|
2016
|
My Summer Prince
|
Penelope Sheridan
|
Television film
|
2017
|
Scandal
|
General Fletcher
|
Episode: "The Box"
|
OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes
|
Cosma
|
Voice, recurring role
[32]
|
2018
|
The Last Sharknado: It's About Time
|
Winter
|
|
Titans
|
Marie Granger
|
Episode: "Hank and Dawn"
|
2019
|
The Orville
|
Schoolteacher
|
Episode: "Sanctuary"
|
2020?2023
|
Star Trek: Picard
|
Commander Deanna Troi
|
7 episodes
|
2020
|
Star Trek: Lower Decks
|
Commander Deanna Troi
|
Voice, episode: "No Small Parts"
|
2023
|
Love’s Greek To Me
|
Athena
|
Television film
|
Video games
[
edit
]
Audiobooks
[
edit
]
Awards and honours
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Marina Sirtis biography"
. Filmreference.com
. Retrieved
30 August
2010
.
- ^
Sirtis, Marina [@Marina_Sirtis] (14 April 2018).
"I was born in 'Ackney and grew up in Harringay. Went to school in Tottenham"
(
Tweet
)
. Retrieved
14 April
2018
– via
Twitter
.
- ^
"Jolly Good Shows"
. Oddsagainstyou.net. 4 November 1990. Archived from
the original
on 3 March 2016
. Retrieved
30 August
2010
.
- ^
Folsom, Robert (18 April 1997).
"Counselor Troi remains the accent of actress' career Marina Sirtis to join other 'Star Trek' stars at weekend convention"
.
The Kansas City Star
. p. 16.
(subscription required)
- ^
a
b
Craine, Debra (20 June 2019).
"Marina Sirtis: 'What happened to me was awful and I've never talked about it in public'
"
.
The Times
. Retrieved
8 December
2019
.
- ^
"Sirtis, Marina"
. startrek.com. Retrieved 29 March 2014.
- ^
Clark, Mark (1 June 2013).
Star Trek FAQ 2.0 (Unofficial and Unauthorized): Everything Left to Know About the Next Generation, the Movies, and Beyond
. Hal Leonard Corporation, 1 June 2013.
- ^
Full Circle
by John Willmer, pub. Optimus Books 1999
- ^
Nemeck, Larry (2003).
Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion
. Pocket Books.
ISBN
0-7434-5798-6
.
- ^
"Empathetic Marina Sirtis"
. Littlereview.com
. Retrieved
17 May
2009
.
- ^
"BBC Online ? Cult ? Star Trek ? Marina Sirtis ? Cleavage or Brains?"
. BBC
. Retrieved
17 May
2009
.
- ^
"24"
. Marinasirtis.tv. Archived from
the original
on 27 April 2009
. Retrieved
17 May
2009
.
- ^
"Betazoids"
.
StarTrek.com
. Retrieved
6 August
2018
.
- ^
Mitchell, Maurice (27 March 2020).
"The Strange History Of Deanna Troi's Accent"
.
thegeektwins.com
. The Geek Twins
. Retrieved
30 September
2020
.
- ^
"Scifi and TV Talk"
. Sci-fi and TV Talk
. Retrieved
4 April
2013
.
- ^
"Review"
. Sfrevu.com
. Retrieved
30 August
2010
.
- ^
Blauvelt, Christian (5 March 2020).
"
'Star Trek: Picard' Review: Riker and Troi Return for a TNG Reunion That's Everything You Hoped For"
.
IndieWire
. Retrieved
6 March
2020
.
- ^
"Cast and Crew ? Star Trek Continues"
. Archived from
the original
on 17 November 2012
. Retrieved
14 February
2014
.
- ^
"Star Trek Continues Webseries on Kickstarter"
. Retrieved
14 February
2014
.
- ^
"ShockerFest 2004"
. ShockerFest 2004. Archived from
the original
on 30 December 2013
. Retrieved
4 April
2013
.
- ^
"Interview with Star Trek actress Marina Sirtis"
. Paula Hammond. 9 October 2008. Archived from
the original
on 15 December 2014
. Retrieved
4 April
2013
.
- ^
Marina Sirtis will be playing Queen Bee in Young Justice for Cartoon Network
on
YouTube
- ^
"Interview: Grey's welcomes Star Trek actress Marina Sirtis in tonight's episode!!"
. Jim Halterman. 24 March 2010. Archived from
the original
on 16 October 2017
. Retrieved
25 March
2011
.
- ^
Speed Demon (2012)
Dread Central.
- ^
"Sirtis Lands NCIS Role"
. T'Bonz. 27 March 2013
. Retrieved
27 March
2013
.
- ^
"My Summer Prince Cast"
.
hallmarkchannel.com
. Crown Media Family Networks
. Retrieved
9 September
2020
.
- ^
Gillinson, Miriam (1 July 2019).
"Dark Sublime Review ? Marina Sirtis enters parallel sci-fi universe"
.
www.theguardian.com
.
- ^
"IMDB"
.
- ^
Byrne, Suzy (20 June 2019).
"
'Star Trek' actress Marina Sirtis reveals she was molested at age 3 by her babysitter's teen sons"
.
Yahoo News
. Retrieved
8 December
2019
.
- ^
Perine, Aaron (8 December 2019).
"Star Trek: The Next Generation Star Marina Sirtis' Husband Michael Lamper Dead at 61"
. comicbook.com
. Retrieved
14 December
2019
.
- ^
Brown, Jack (27 June 2021).
"Star Trek star Marina Sirtis on leaving America: "I can't be in that country anymore"
"
.
DailyStarTrekNews.com
. Retrieved
27 June
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
"Marina Sirtis (visual voices guide)"
. Behind The Voice Actors
. Retrieved
6 December
2023
.
A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
- ^
"Cockpit Voice Assistant Carina - Elite Dangerous - Game Extras"
.
www.frontierstore.net
. Archived from
the original
on 22 July 2019
. Retrieved
22 July
2019
.
- ^
a
b
Pascale, Anthony (4 February 2024).
"
'Star Trek: Picard' Wins 4 Saturn Awards, 'Strange New Worlds' Wins 1"
.
TREKMOVIE.com
.
Archived
from the original on 5 February 2024.
Further reading
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
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