June issue of Sci Fi Magazine now on stands
Season Four of Stargate Atlantis is in full production in Vancouver and SCI FI MAGAZINE had a chance to talk with executive producer Robert C. Cooper and actors Amanda Tapping (Col. Samantha Carter) and David Hewlett (Dr. Rodney McKay) about Tapping’s joining the show’s cast. The article didn’t address the issue of how Carter’s promotion will affect the dynamics of the SG-1 team in the two upcoming direct-to-DVD movies.
The article implies that Tapping’s Carter will be a full-bird Colonel when she becomes the Atlantis base commander in civilian Dr. Elizabeth Weir’s stead. Concerning Weir’s replacement and Torri Higginson’s reduction to recurring status, executive producer Robert C. Cooper stated:
“I can’t make people feel better who just love Torri and Dr. Weir and want to see her on the show,” sighs [Robert C.] Cooper. “Unfortunately, that’s just not going to happen. All I can say is that Sam Carter is a wonderful character, and Amanda Tapping is a wonderful actress, and I think she will fill the role on Atlantis admirably. I’m excited about seeing the evolution of her character. Brad [Wright] and I created the character Dr. Weir and we love the character and Torri, but the change needed to be made.”
Hewlett, who plays Dr. Rodney McKay, was enthusiastic about Tapping’s joining the cast. His character and Carter have a “love-hate” relationship that Hewlett is anxious to develop further:
“I think there’s a lot of potential there. The great thing is that Amanda’s character is struggling to be a leader now, after being someone in the field getting dirty with the troops. She’s being thrown into a leadership position, and McKay has never been very good at taking commands from anybody. I think there is a lot of potential for some fun, because they are both brilliant. […] There’s also the fact of the matter that McKay is absolutely smitten with her. It’s great for me on a completely selfish level. First off, I love working with Amanda.”
Tapping was cautious about the decision to make the move to Atlantis, but is looking forward to establishing positive relationships with the current cast:
“I’m certainly going onto Atlantis knowing that it’s not my show. I’m not going to try and put my stamp all over it. I really do feel, like the character, that there has to be a lot of tact involved, for Carter and Amanda. I’m very cognizant and respectful of their show and their dynamic. For Carter and Amanda it will just be finding my place. I don’t want to make ripples in the lake.”
Cooper compares Carter’s move to become the leader of the Atlantis Expedition to that of O’Neill’s when he left his team and became the commander of the SGC. But, Cooper also stressed that the characters and their leadership styles are different enough that they will not “be stepping on well-trodden territory there.” For Cooper, Carter’s promotion to command the Atlantis base is a natural step in the character’s evolution:
“It’s about time she [Carter] got a command, and we had to keep that from happening on SG-1 because we wanted her to be part of the team. This is a perfect opportunity to evolve her character in the natural way that it should have in the franchise.”
Tapping looks forward to her character’s evolution:
“I really love the Atlantis cast, and they are a great cast of people. Plus, the way Joe [Mallozzi] and Paul [Mullie] presented it to me, when they sat me down and asked how I felt about it, they presented it in such a way that it seemed like a really exciting opportunity for the character. Not only is it for me personally, but also for Carter. It’s a whole new level to her, and I thought, ‘This is actually going to change her.'”
Read the complete article in the magazine, available on stands now, or order it through their website at: http://www.scifi.com/scifimag/
I read the article in the scifi magazine and I don’t believe they ever explicitly state that Carter will be promoted to full bird Colonel. They do state hint at it, but referring her as (Col.) rather than (Lt. Col) but I’m pretty sure they never state that she was being promoted.
They did of course say she was taken over command of Atlantis, which would imply that she gets promoted to outrank Sheppard. I guess I was just wondering if you were assuming she gets promoted or I misread the article or you have another source that states she will be promoted in the new season?
Ace