David Hewlett (Dr. Rodney McKay) is doing an Ask Me Anything (AMA) over at Reddit at 7 pm EST on 23 Jan 2014. For those who don’t know, Reddit is a general discussion forum that often hosts AMAs by famous people, who must verify they are ‘them’ by taking a picture referencing the AMA. Any user can ask a question, and the guest answerer can choose which ones to answer.
Anyone can read the AMA, but to ask a question, you need to be a Reddit member.
Canadian multi-media company Bell Media has announced 29 new drama projects in development. Several Stargate alums from in front of and behind the camera are ‘attached’ to the projects, meaning they have agreed to participate in the project if it goes forward. This includes one in which David Hewlett and Kate Hewlett would once again ‘play’ brother and sister! Stay tuned to see which projects make it all the way to the small screen, in Canada and elsewhere. Here are the projects with Stargate folks attached:
AKA
A serialized drama about a woman with the perfect life – and a dark secret that could change everything. Attached:
Thunderbird Films
Paul Mullie and Joseph Mallozzi (STARGATE SG-1)
ECHOES
Serialized series in which Earth becomes the battlefield for two warring extraterrestrial species, and humanity struggles to survive. Attached:
Don Carmody Productions
Carl Binder (STARGATE UNIVERSE)
SOUL HUNTER
After literally making a deal with the Devil, a young woman must capture 100 escaped souls and return them to Hell in order to get her life back. Attached:
Thunderbird Films
Robert C. Cooper (STARGATE SG-1)
STRAIN
When an estranged brother and sister inherit their mother’s sci-fi-writing empire, they learn the truth behind some surprising lies. Attached:
Pier 21 Films
David Hewlett (STARGATE SG-1), Kate Hewlett (INSECURITY), and Craig Wallace (TODD & THE BOOK OF PURE EVIL)
State of Syn, an unconventional sci-fi series, is now available for viewing on Hulu Plus! Starring Stargate alums Jewel Staite and David Hewlett, State of Syn is set in a corporate-ruled world of 2043. Its first season consists of 10 seven-minute episodes and is described by USA Today as a ‘futuristic motion comic’. Staite plays the main character, investigating the mysterious death of her father. Hewlett appears to be her nemesis, as he is her father’s former business partner and head of a corporation producing a highly addictive new drug.
As the preview below shows, the series is not filmed as conventional action, but rather a hybrid of motion and comic-like still images, with narration. It looks very interesting, and we hope it earns a following on Hulu Plus!
The 2014 nominations for the Canadian Screen Awards (CSA) were announced today. The CSAs honor movies, television, and digital media created in Canada. We are very happy to see that Michael Shanks is nominated, and projects he has worked on in the past year are also honored with nominations. Here are the nominations for Michael and his projects (here is the full list):
Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story
Best Dramatic Mini-Series or TV Movie
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic
Program or Mini-Series: Michael Shanks
Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series: Andy Mikita (also a Stargate director!)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series: Kathleen Robertson
Saving Hope
Best Original Music Score for a Series, Episode: Wishbones
Best Production Design or Art Direction in a Fiction Program or Series, Episode: The Face of the Giant Panda
Best Sound in a Dramatic Program or Series, Episode: Wishbones
Best Writing in a Dramatic Series, Episode: Wishbones
Best Achievement in Casting, Episode: I Watch Death
Saving Hope is currently airing its second season in Canada. Unfortunately, it is not airing in the US or most other countries. We are hopeful it will be released on DVD or on-line media for non-Canadian viewers very soon.
Congratulations to all of the nominees, and good luck at the awards events from March 3-9, 2014 in Toronto and Montreal!
This weekend is the annual Stargate convention in Chicago, run by Creation Entertainment. This year as always features many of the Stargate actors, including Joe Flanigan, David Hewlett, Amanda Tapping, Ben Browder, and many others! To see all the great photos and very abbreviated con reports, check out the #sgchi tag on twitter:
Also be sure to follow @dhewlett, who has been tweeting funny tidbits as well One definite highlight was the lady who got Joe’s permission to touch his hair while David looked on. It looks like she took full advantage of the opportunity!
Their page seems to indicate that next year, 2014, will be the last Stargate convention by Creation.
7:30 pm UPGRADES for 2014: THE LAST OFFICIAL STARGATE CONVENTION AUGUST 15-17, 2014 IN CHICAGO AT THE WESTIN O’HARE: Here’s where folks who signed up for next year get to try to get an even better seat! You See next page for details.
A rather sad statement on the passing of an era, we suppose. 🙁
Cory Monteith guest starred in SG-1’s “200” episode in Season 10.To Stargate SG-1 fans, he was the young Mitchell in the “young, hip SG-1 team” vignette in the iconic episode “200,” but guest star Cory Monteith made his mark as Finn Hudson in the hit musical show Glee. He was 31.
The actor was found at noon Saturday on the hotel’s 21st floor, Vancouver police said in a news conference. He checked into the hotel July 6, and was expected to check out Saturday. When Monteith missed his checkout time at noon, hotel staff went to his room and discovered his body.
Police said Monteith was with other people Friday night. An examination of hotel video footage showed him returning to his room alone early Saturday morning. Police believe he was alone when he died. No cause of death was given and no foul play is suspected, police said. Police are questioning the people he was with Friday night. It was unclear if he was with any Glee castmates or his longtime girlfriend and co-star Lea Michele. An autopsy is scheduled for Monday.
We at Solutions extend our condolences to Monteith’s family and friends.
Michael Shanks as Dr. Charlie Harris in Season 2 of SAVING HOPE (Photo credit: CTV)Stargate star MICHAEL SHANKS returns to our television screens tonight on CTV at 10PM ET with the Season 2 premiere of Saving Hope, “I Watch Death.”
Shanks was recently awarded Canada’s Leo Award for “Best Lead Performance by a Male in a Dramatic Series” for his portrayal of Dr. Charlie Harris, the former Chief of Surgery at Hope Zion Hospital. In the first season, Charlie spent his time in a coma after the taxi he and his fiance Dr. Alex Reid is hit hard at an intersection while en route to their wedding. While Alex tried everything she could to get him back, Charlie roamed the hospital in spirit form, caught between the living and the dead. He was able to see and talk with the spirits of other coma patients and the recently deceased and offered some kind of support in their journeys. At the end of the season, Charlie awoke, hoping to pick up where he left off and marry Alex, but he’s distracted by the realization that he can still see the spirits of the dead.
Season 2 will pick up a little while after the end of Season 1 in tonight’s premiere, described by The Examiner: “In the Season 2 premiere, entitled ‘I Watch Death’ (Tuesday, June 25 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CTV), Alex (Erica Durance) and Charlie (Michael Shanks) are caught in the middle of a shooting on their way to their first shift back at Hope Zion. It’s all hands on deck when the victims of the shooting end up at Hope Zee. In the midst of the commotion, Alex treats a bullied teenager and deals with her own emotions about everything that’s happened in the past year. Meanwhile, Charlie is caught off guard when he realizes that he’s still able to see the spirits of deceased patients. As well, new Chief of Surgery Joel (Daniel Gillies) works alongside Charlie’s ex-wife Dawn to perform an intense surgery.”
Michael Shanks’s new movie, Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story, is finally premiering in Canada and the US in the coming week! Michael plays the title role in the story of the comeback of one of the greatest hockey players of all time, Gordie Howe.
In Canada, the movie airs on the CBC (channel 13) on Sunday, April 28, at 8 pm.
In the US, the movie airs on the Hallmark Channel on Saturday, May 4 at 9 pm/8 pm central.
The DVD, including Blu-ray, first becomes available at Walmart stores in the US on May 7 and then expands elsewhere on July 9.
Michael has been featured in several fun interviews about the roles:
The social networking company NetBase quoted Stargate producer Joe Mallozzi today when it announced support for inter-galactic languages in its products. From the press release:
“The post-Stargate era has been difficult for many of the extra-terrestrial species that appeared on the sci-fi franchise, chiefest among them the Goa’uld. While other races have found some small measure of success since the series’ end, the going has been tough for these once proud symbiotes,” said Joseph Mallozzi, executive producer of Stargate SG-1/Atlantis/Universe/VP Alien Neighbors Universal Society.
“Having worked on several parasitic alien outreach programs, I can confirm that the problem stems from a general unwillingness to accept and understand them, so this recent announcement is heartening news. Finally, like so many others, they can enjoy the universal right to have their voices and needs as online consumers heard. That and hilarious online cat photos,” Mallozzi continued.
We salute Joe for his tolerance and courage, on this auspicious 1st day of April, 2013!
The original SG-1 team is back for another adventure! This time in Stargate SG-1 Unleashed, a tablet game to be released on iOS and Android platforms. “Episode 1” is slated for release this coming March. Richard Dean Anderson, Michael Shanks, and Amanda Tapping have all tweeted about doing voice work for the game (we’re hoping that Christopher Judge recorded for the game, too, so that the original team is reunited once more)!
Embedded below is the teaser. What do you make of it? Will you be playing this adventure game from MGM and Arkalis Interactive? What season do you think is the setting and who is that Goa’uld that is threatening Earth? Make sure to register to leave your comments below (if you’re on LiveJournal, we’ve got a thread going there as well).
David Hewlett (Dr. Rodney McKay) is doing an Ask Me Anything (AMA) over at Reddit at 7 pm EST on 23 Jan 2014. For those who don’t know, Reddit is a general discussion forum that often hosts AMAs by famous people, who must verify they are ‘them’ by taking a picture referencing the AMA. Any user can ask a question, and the guest answerer can choose which ones to answer.
