Ben Browder as John Sheppard

[angelfire east]

I was reading the offical stargate magazine and I came upon something I heard a long time ago but it know if it was true. This is probably one of those things everyone knew but me but I still want to talk about it lol

Ben Browder was reportedly originally the first choice for the role of John Sheppard. However, Browder was unable to accept the role due to his fliming commitments for Farscape: Peacekeeper Wars. So, actor Joe Flanigan hired instead.

How different do you think the show would be if Ben played John instead of Joe? Can you imagen Ben as John fighting with Rondey, fliting with everything that moves and going head to head with Elizabeth. I think Ben is a amazing actor but I sometimes find it hard to image anyone else as Sheppard becuase once I see someone in a role I find it really hard to picture someone else in it. I think Ben could have made a brilliant Sheppard since like I said, Ben is a amazing actor. Not that Joe is a bad actor or anything.

I was just thinking about what could have been. What do you guys think? Please no bashing - thanks

[Major Tyler]

Ben would have made an amazing John Sheppard!

[sueKay]

How about this though

According to Ivy Isenberg, at one point these were two strong contenders...

Dean Cain as John Sheppard

and...

Teri Hatcher as Elizabeth Weir

NOT a joke, but OMG how funny would that have been!

[ColCaldwell]

Browder would have made a better Sheppard than what we are currently experiencing.

[sueKay]

Joe's doing a great job...not the actors' fault the writing's not up to scratch.

Please people, keep away from insulting the actors. It's rude and against GW rules.

[expendable_crewman]

I was really into Farscape and feel like I lost the character Crichton too soon, along with a series that I loved.

So I think I would have done cartwheels upon hearing Browder was joining the new Stargate series in the lead role. With that said, I remember watching the first Atlantis episode 100% unspoiled but knowing I'd never seen Joe Flanigan in sci-fi. Although I'd seen the actor in Profiler, I had no expections as to how he'd look or fit in a sci-fi show. Example: Scott Bakula, who had done science fiction / fantasy before, never fit (for me) as the lead in Enterprise. Something was missing, again for me, and it impacted my viewing experience.

I was really nervous about that, because I wanted to feel as good about Atlantis as I did about SG1.

Ten minutes into Rising, I was sitting back, smiling and happy.

Could Browder have fit in? Sure. He had a distinct lack of rapport with Rodney in Pegasus Project, IMO, but that was because he was Mitchell, not Sheppard, and if he'd been Sheppard, he would have had two seasons of interaction to play upon.

Using 20-20 hindsight, would I rather have Browder over Flanigan? Not on your life.

That's not a tick against Browder, but rather a nod to Flanigan. In Pegasus Project ...

Spoiler:

... Mitchell and Sheppard share a scant thirty or sixty seconds of screen time alone -- that was a slice for me, btw, although I did not, as predicted, suffer in the least from sensory overload. Mitchell was tidy and Mitchell-like and Sheppard was Sheppard and I liked it. Loved the way they got along, too.

Could Browder play a loose but more defiant Air Force pilot? Probably. As well as Flanigan? Not sure. Both Mitchell and Sheppard show intense, almost profound loyalty to their people, and they show that in the same way.

Can I throw a question back at the topic creator? Can you see Joe Flanigan as Cameron Mitchell?

[Randy_Watson]

Joe's doing a great job...not the actors' fault the writing's not up to scratch.

Please people, keep away from insulting the actors. It's rude and against GW rules.

Nobody insulted the actors any more than you just insulted the writers.

[parisindy]

I was reading the offical stargate magazine and I came upon something I heard a long time ago but it know if it was true. This is probably one of those things everyone knew but me but I still want to talk about it lol



How different do you think the show would be if Ben played John instead of Joe? Can you imagen Ben as John fighting with Rondey, fliting with everything that moves and going head to head with Elizabeth. I think Ben is a amazing actor but I sometimes find it hard to image anyone else as Sheppard becuase once I see someone in a role I find it really hard to picture someone else in it. I think Ben could have made a brilliant Sheppard since like I said, Ben is a amazing actor. Not that Joe is a bad actor or anything.

I was just thinking about what could have been. What do you guys think? Please no bashing - thanks

wow! hehe i'm totally torn.. i can't imagine anyone other then joe being sheppard...that being said i absolutley adore Ben!

interesting thought for sure!

[Ripple in Space]

I haven't really watched Farscape, so I've never seen Ben's true acting range, since they rarely wrote Mitchell a good joke, or emotional scene. On Atlantis, Joe has showed off some versatility, since Shepp has had some good humor & emotional scenes. I've also seen Joe play a humorless abusive character on CSI Miami.

I'd say Joe could play either part, and I don't know of Ben could play the sarcastic rebel.

[parisindy]

I haven't really watched Farscape, so I've never seen Ben's true acting range, since they rarely wrote Mitchell a good joke, or emotional scene. On Atlantis, Joe has showed off some versatility, since Shepp has had some good humor & emotional scenes. I've also seen Joe play a humorless abusive character on CSI Miami.

I'd say Joe could play either part, and I don't know of Ben could play the sarcastic rebel.

i love both actors, i would like to see ben get more but i am also happy with joe

i'm a huge farscape geek, ben was amazing in that lots of range.,. i highly recommend it

[Rootortoise]

i think this is a difficult question because now joe flanigan IS john sheppard and so BB doesnt come into it. its hard to imagine anyone else as JS.

that said im glad it was joe and not ben. i think it wouldve been too soon after farscape had he accepted this role. i was really into farscape and i think i wouldve just seen this as JC in space again.

i also find now watching atlantis that i prefer joe to ben, both good actors dont get me wrong, i just prefer joe and ive been blown away by his performances on SGA. i cant really imagine BB doing an ep like Common ground and pulling it off as amazingly as joe did imo.

BB is mitchell, and JF is Sheppard.

[Ripple in Space]

parisindy, your Joe pic is pretty funny. It's so airbrushed he looks 15 years old, lol.

[Sallygoround]

I really like Joe Flanigan in the role (I had never seen him in anything prior to this). He's done a very credible job, IMO. Ben Browder probably would have done a good job as John Sheppard, and I liked him a lot in Farscape, but I think I would have been expecting John Crichton, and I doubt Browder would play John Sheppard that way. His Sheppard would be very different from Flanigan's take. Not better or worse, just different.

[Atlantis1]

JF was a fresh face to science fiction. While I couls imagine BB as Sheppard I don't think it would have worked for me. I decided to watch the plot with the thought I wouldn't enjoy it. JF came into the picture with his newness to scifi and created a character I really love. He had no background shows in the genre to fall back on to compare him with. When I see BB on SG-1 I see a little bit of John Crichton and that ruins it a bit for me. I would not have watched SGA with BB. I was not really in love with SG-1 and was only still watching Scifi channel to finish Andromeda.

I have nothing against BB. I just love JF as Sheppard alot more.

[Death_Glider44]

I think that JF has done a phenomonal job playing the role as Sheppard. BB does a great job as Cam. I think that since I have watched the 9th and 10th seasons and those of Atlantis, I cant see the characters any other way!