Tapping gates to Atlantis for Season Four

[ReganX]

That is incorrect. The way I understand it, the first person in the credits (whether before or after the title) is the first lead. The second person is second lead, and so on. I've always heard that the supporting cast were those who were after the leading man and leading lady. So on SG, the supporting cast would include everyone but Ben and Amanda. Though Michael's and credit doesn't quite fall into those categories so neatly.

That's the impression I got - although there may be some slight difference in status between a lead whose name appears before the title and one whose name appears immediately afterwards.

Unless the credits are alphabetical, then the first name is the first lead, the second is second lead and so on.

I don't think the "and" gives any specific status in the cast. I think that it depends entirely on how the character in question is used. It could mean that the actor is barely a step down from first lead status, they could be wallpaper or they could be something in between.

It's a bit like an actor being a "Special Guest Star" - they could play a very prominent, even central role in the episode(s) in question, or they might make only a cameo appearance.

[ReganX]

I don't think it matters about whether or not AT's lead actress or not.

If TPTB are trying to save money by getting rid of Beckett, then bringing AT in's not helping.

Even if she's not the lead actress...she's been going through contract negotiations every year since Sci Fi picked up the show...that means it's gonna cost TPTB a hell of a lot more for her than any member of the SGA cast.

Presumably, her salary would have been covered in the contract TPTB are using to bring her to Atlantis.

[the dancer of spaz]

I don't think it matters about whether or not AT's lead actress or not.

If TPTB are trying to save money by getting rid of Beckett, then bringing AT in's not helping.

Even if she's not the lead actress...she's been going through contract negotiations every year since Sci Fi picked up the show...that means it's gonna cost TPTB a hell of a lot more for her than any member of the SGA cast.

It comes down to economics...nothing more.

I loved SG1...I love Atlantis.

And I'm sorry SG1 fans...but I seem to be seeing a lot more press attention for SG1 and a lot more bashing of SGA by SG1 fans.

Well... I don't think it's a matter of saving money when it comes to cast changes, otherwise they wouldn't have replaced RDA for Beau Bridges, Ben Browder, Claudia Black and the Special Guest Star of the Week... I think it all comes down to them (the network?) making sure that people keep watching. That's where the economics lie, I think.

If they think they'll be able to bring over Firefly and SG-1 fans to Atlantis by bringing in Jewel Staite and Amanda Tapping, whether their predictions are accurate or not, they'll do it. They did it with what they thought were mainstream fans of Bridges and Farscape fans of Browder and Black. It didn't work then, and I'm not so sure it'll work next season either.

[ReganX]

If they think they'll be able to bring over Firefly and SG-1 fans to Atlantis by bringing in Jewel Staite and Amanda Tapping, whether their predictions are accurate or not, they'll do it. They did it with what they thought were mainstream fans of Bridges and Farscape fans of Browder and Black. It didn't work then, and I'm not so sure it'll work next season either.

It will never work if TPTB think of AT and Jewel Staite as quick fixes. An actor may be able to bring fans to the show, but there's no guarantee that they will keep watching unless that actor is given decent material to work with and a role to play in the show without taking away from existing characters.

[anaM]

Sam appearing in atlantis s4 is just one of the changes the show will be facing. If it was the only one, maybe I could live with it. But it's much more than that. The show faces major changes, new characters coming, old and loved ones disappearing, more cross-overs with sg1 , all happening at the same time. Handling all that is difficult and it would certainly destroy the existing dynamic that I really love and was so successful in s3 . There is a small possibility that things will turn out well, but I'm not optimistic. I hope we'll be watching Atlantis in s4 and not another show under the same name.

[scarimor]

Wouldn't it have been TPTB's decision to exercise the option to keep AT and to move her to Atlantis? I was under the impression that, with the exception of MS, all of the SG-1 regulars had been signed up for a possible eleventh season, yet I have heard nothing about CJ, BB, CB or Beau Bridges being moved to Atlantis.

As near as I can tell, TPTB's contract with AT gave them the opportunity to keep her in the franchise if they so chose, but they weren't obliged to.

That's my understanding. If they wanted her, they could have her. They just needed to exercise their option in the contract. Their decision.

That's the impression I got - although there may be some slight difference in status between a lead whose name appears before the title and one whose name appears immediately afterwards.

RDA's name came before the title for SG-1 because of his executive producer status.

I don't think the "and" gives any specific status in the cast. I think that it depends entirely on how the character in question is used. It could mean that the actor is barely a step down from first lead status, they could be wallpaper or they could be something in between.

Yes, the "and" tag can mean pretty much what it's negotiated to mean, I believe.

[Farscapefan]

Well... I don't think it's a matter of saving money when it comes to cast changes, otherwise they wouldn't have replaced RDA for Beau Bridges, Ben Browder, Claudia Black and the Special Guest Star of the Week... I think it all comes down to them (the network?) making sure that people keep watching. That's where the economics lie, I think.

If they think they'll be able to bring over Firefly and SG-1 fans to Atlantis by bringing in Jewel Staite and Amanda Tapping, whether their predictions are accurate or not, they'll do it. They did it with what they thought were mainstream fans of Bridges and Farscape fans of Browder and Black. It didn't work then, and I'm not so sure it'll work next season either.

Firefly fans had NO IDEA Morena Baccarin is on SG-1 until people from SG-1 board went to Firefly board and said them this and invited to watch Counterstrike episode.

[Pitry]

I don't think it matters about whether or not AT's lead actress or not.

If TPTB are trying to save money by getting rid of Beckett, then bringing AT in's not helping.

Even if she's not the lead actress...she's been going through contract negotiations every year since Sci Fi picked up the show...that means it's gonna cost TPTB a hell of a lot more for her than any member of the SGA cast.

It comes down to economics...nothing more.

I loved SG1...I love Atlantis.

And I'm sorry SG1 fans...but I seem to be seeing a lot more press attention for SG1 and a lot more bashing of SGA by SG1 fans.

Whil I agree AT is prolly going to cost them a fortune (keep in mind that if she's bound by the seaosn 11 contract, they're also bound to the payment per episode of the season 11 contract, which should be much much higher than any other SGA actor) - I don't think it has anything to do with Beckett.

Spoiler:

didn't the spoilers say he's disappearing in The Ark, not First Strike? And even if it's in First Strike, the decision was made beore they got to finalise everything with AT. I think this came from SciFi - actually, I won't be surprised if both came from SciFi - rather than TPTB.

[Pitry]

RDA's name came before the title for SG-1 because of his executive producer status.

Wasn't he made executive producer at season 2? I don't recall seeing his name as a producer in season 1, and he still had his name before the title.

[sgeureka]

Well, you quoted me on that, so I'll defend myself... I did not say in any form that every SGA fan thinks like me or has to think like me, all I said was that most people here understand how I feel and from what I've read, I think that's the case.. I did not tell you what to think nor did I speak for all the SGA fans..

Why would you think that I hate everything about SG-1.. that's just plain not true... I like the show! Always have and still do and I was pretty down when I heard it wasn't renewed.. I like it as a seperate show however. As soon as they cross over too much, it just doesn't feel right to me... Out of place...

1. You don't have to defend yourself, simply because I wasn't attacking anyone.
2. I was replying to three quotes so not all of my reply was in response to your quote.
3. My last sentence was stating that this post was to all readers in this thread. My post was also kind of going off-tangent at some point. I just wanted to throw in my opinion and smooth ruffled feathers because I saw the first potential for flame wars later on. (I'm not saying that this would have happened. I just saw the (potential to) "if you say this you cannot be a true SGA fan" or the "you're not an SGA fan so your opinion doesn't count", which annoys me to no end. )

[Farscapefan]

RDA's name came before the title for SG-1 because of his executive producer status.

Are the actors in the feature movies whose names appear before the title also the exec producers of them in every case? I don't think so.

[sueKay]

Spoiler:

I reckon Beckett will "disappear" is 'Vengeance' as there's no spoilers for that ep, just the rumour of Michael's reappearance

I think the reason people are reacting badly to this, is because Atlantis has 'Seven of Nine Syndrome' in that McKay gets development and airtime, Sheppard gets airtime, Weir gets something interesting to say now and then, and everyone else stands around shuffling their feet and shrugging their shoulders.

They can barely service the cast they've got! This could prove detrimental to Sam Carter as well.

[Atlantis1]

I think the SG-1 characters should not become a part of Atlantis. There is so much which needs to be told. Backgrounds for one. We have not had any really good background on Sheppard (the character I most love on the show. We have the city, the characters, etc. to be told about. I'd like a show which tells how exactly the wraith came to be.

I don't dislike AT or her character SC but she has been a part of SG-1 for 10 years. She is an established character they are wanting to bring to a series which seriously needs to fill out the characters on Atlantis. Carter doesn't belong on the show.

[the dancer of spaz]

It will never work if TPTB think of AT and Jewel Staite as quick fixes. An actor may be able to bring fans to the show, but there's no guarantee that they will keep watching unless that actor is given decent material to work with and a role to play in the show without taking away from existing characters.

Exactly. Once again, it all comes down to WHAT the writers and producers are willing and/or able to accomplish with these additions. We can blame the network all we want when it comes to certain changes, but at the end of the day, it's the EPs of these shows that should be held accountable for the creative decisions they make.

As has been said before, I don't think they're capable of making this work, without only pleasing Carter/McKay fans. And that's unfortunate, because AT could be utilized for so much more than that.

Wouldn't it have been TPTB's decision to exercise the option to keep AT and to move her to Atlantis? I was under the impression that, with the exception of MS, all of the SG-1 regulars had been signed up for a possible eleventh season, yet I have heard nothing about CJ, BB, CB or Beau Bridges being moved to Atlantis.

As near as I can tell, TPTB's contract with AT gave them the opportunity to keep her in the franchise if they so chose, but they weren't obliged to.

That's my understanding. If they wanted her, they could have her. They just needed to exercise their option in the contract. Their decision.

Exactly. And if there are going to be any issues with this (like there were last year), then they need to be made to TPTB. Evidently they DO listen to fans sometimes...

Firefly fans had NO IDEA Morena Baccarin is on SG-1 until people from SG-1 board went to Firefly board and said them this and invited to watch Counterstrike episode.

Oy. I wasn't talking about Morena Baccarin; I was talking about Jewel Staite. But now that you mention her, yes I think Morena Baccarin applies. Just as William B. Davis, the guy from Lord of the Rings, Cameron Bright and many, many other scifi actors who've been on both SG-1 and Atlantis since 2004 apply. People here have used the term "stunt casting", and I believe that's relatively what we're looking at here.

[ReganX]

RDA's name came before the title for SG-1 because of his executive producer status.

Is that it? Thanks.

Yes, the "and" tag can mean pretty much what it's negotiated to mean, I believe.

I think it can mean whatever TPTB want it to mean. I know that it's quite a sought after position, but I don't think that it automatically comes with a fixed amount of screentime and number of character-centric episodes, so it is up to the writers, directors and producers to decide what use the character will be put to.