With less than a week to go until the North American premiere of Stargate Universe, the press and promotion machine is going full-tilt, to the credit of Syfy and MGM. There have been few if any negative reviews of the three-parter, “Air,” which was screened by the press. Rather, the reactions have ranged from cautiously optimistic to positively glowing. A recent selection includes:
Stargate Universe has one of the finest ensemble casts I’ve seen in a long time. When someone of the caliber of Robert Carlyle is cast in a lead role there is always the concern that they will overshadow the others (John Noble through most of Fringe’s first season is an excellent example of that). Here all worries are quickly dispelled as every actor that shares a scene with Carlyle easily holds their own and that amazing acting continues when he is absent.
If ‘Air’ sounds a bit downbeat, that is because it is. The episode is dark (literally as well as figuratively, since there seem to be few lights on Destiny) and less humorous than Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis. The plot also gives our heroes few major victories to cheer about.
It’s no “Star Wars,” or even “Star Trek,” but 15 years after the 1994 sci-fi adventure “Stargate” — which has already spawned the TV spinoffs “Stargate SG-1” and “Stargate Atlantis” — the franchise soldiers on with the debut of “Stargate Universe” (above). Robert Carlyle and Lou Diamond Phillips star. (SyFy, 9 p.m.)
There are also many interviews coming out with the cast. The Province of Canada just posted interviews of Robert Carlyle, Louis Ferreira, Ming Na, and Lou Diamond Phillips.
Twitter reveals many tidbits as well (follow our superfeed here!). The cast and crew will gather tonight to watch the premiere together for the first time, as revealed by numerous Tweeters from the show.
Filming this week included a major action sequence involving Louis Ferreira, Lou Diamond Phillips, Jamil Walker Smith, and Brian J. Smith. LDP reported he was bruised as a result.
Amanda Tapping was on set this week and had lunch with the ladies of SGU. Ming Na tweeted the photo below here.
It’s not clear whether Tapping will be appearing in an additional episode of SGU or if she was just visiting the set for some actor bonding. Meanwhile, it appears Richard Dean Anderson is on set for filming of the season finale, as “not” confirmed by Joe Mallozzi:
To those of you asking, I can neither confirm nor deny the presence of Richard Dean Anderson on the lot. However, in the event I was to confirm it (which I’m not), I’d say he was in great spirits yesterday when he joined us for lunch in the writers’ room – joking away, his charming old self, simply happy to be back. IF he is back. Also, in the event he has returned for a guest spot(s), it’s possible he could have started shooting his scenes today.
Filming of Season 1 is scheduled to continue into October. Whether there is a Season 2 will depend of course on the ratings for the first few episodes of Season 1, as the decision will need to be made before the year is out.