Wesley Crusher was written as an "acting" lieutenant even as a teenager

Wesley Crusher, played by Wil Wheaton, got a lot of hate during his tenure aboard the Enterprise. As the youngest crew member once he became an acting ensign, he stood out for both his intelligence and his hubris at times. And that didn't sit well with fans. But if Wesley had been played in the manner in which the character was originally devised, he probably would have been despised even more.

The Trek Files uploaded a memo to Gene Roddenberry from Bob Justman dated November 8, 1986 that provided detail about the teenager for Star Trek: The Next Generation. Three must haves for the character were: he must be resourceful, he must be brilliant, and he must be cool. Justman provided an idea of just how brilliant the character must be, one in which Wesley devised a way for crew members to beam down to planets with non-breathable atmospheres and crushing gravimetric forces. That wasn't shown on The Next Generation, but Wesley solved enough problems that left fans irritated.

On top of his sheer brilliance, Wesley was supposed to be an acting lieutenant not ensign, and his youth would have caused problems for him, like when he first tried to get onboard the bridge, he wwould have been denied access because it was a restricted area that required an adult to accompany him. If that wasn't enough, the Wesley described in this memo wouldn't wear the uniform. That would have been a big issue aboard the Enterprise.

Wesley was universally disliked enough, and the implementation of these guidelines would have created even more animosity, especially if he was an acting lieutenant refusing to wear the proper attire. It's a good thing that Wheaton's character was changed as the last thing he needed was more hate from Star Trek fans who thought the boy wonder was a bit too much.