‘Sister Act’: The Movie’s Surprising Connection to ‘Star Trek’
Whoopi Goldberg is an extraordinarily distinctive talent. The performer — one of the few living entertainers to achieve EGOT status by winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony — has seemingly conquered every aspect of the business. And yet, even with all she’s accomplished, 1992 comedy Sister Act remains one of the biggest hits of her career. Remarkably, the movie has a surprising connection to the Star Trek franchise.
Whoopi Goldberg appeared on ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’
Star Trek fans are probably already mystified the connection between that perennial sci-fi franchise and Sister Act is even a question. After all, Goldberg appeared in the recurring role as Guinan in 28 episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation between 1988 and 1993. She also appeared uncredited in two films, 1994’s Star Trek Generations and 2002’s Star Trek: Nemesis.
Considering how much Goldberg does, her role in such a fan-favorite multimedia franchise as Star Trek is impressive. And Guinan — a bartender in the Ten-Forward lounge on the starship USS Enterprise-D — was always a pleasant addition to an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. But the tie to Sister Act runs a bit deeper than that.
She shared credit on the show with another ‘Sister Act’ actor
In fact, Goldberg isn’t the only actor to appear in both Sister Act and Star Trek: The Next Generation. Isis Carmen Jones — who stars as the young version of Goldberg’s Deloris Van Cartier in the former — also plays a young Guinan in an episode of the latter. The episode in question is the season 6 episode titled “Rascals.”
Although Jones plays younger versions of Goldberg’s characters in two projects, the reasons why are very different. Sister Act opens with a flashback of Deloris as a sassy student. But in “Rascals,” a few crew members — including Guinan — are transformed into young versions of themselves, with Jones as the “de-aged” Guinan. Unfortunately, these two credits are the only ones listed on Jones’ IMDb page.
Which other actors will join Whoopi Goldberg in ‘Sister Act 3’?
Chances are slim that Jones’ services will be needed in Sister Act 3. But now that Goldberg is officially onboard, fans are beginning to speculate what situation Deloris will find herself in and which actors will be along for the ride. This could include a wide range of actors from both the first film and 1993’s Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.
Chief among the prime candidates are Kathy Najimy, Wendy Makkena, and Maggie Smith. Unlike many of the actors who played nuns in previous entries, all three are active and would lend some fine support for Goldberg and Deloris alike. The big question is whether Lauryn Hill would reprise her role from the sequel. Only time will tell as more details are released.
