Tapping in 14 Atlantis episodes

Amanda Tapping will appear in 14 episodes of Stargate Atlantis when she joins the cast in Season Four, executive producers Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper said in new interviews at StargateSG1.com, MGM’s official site. Tapping has played the role of Samantha Carter on Stargate SG-1 for the past 10 years.

“Amanda Tapping is coming to join the Atlantis team,” Wright said. “She’ll be coming in her own spaceship and joining the crew in Atlantis. And we’re delighted by that.”

Wright said that the producers have been considering bringing Colonel Carter to Atlantis for some time now, but were hindered by SG-1‘s continued renewal. The two series were initially only expected to run simultaneously for one year.

“It’s something that we’ve been thinking about for a long time, but SG-1 just kept going!” Wright said. “And she’s a good fit for Atlantis. … She’s going to be a welcome addition.”

Though Cooper recognizes that some fans are concerned about the move — injecting an established show that is loved by fans with a character from its cancelled predecessor — he believes that Tapping and the character she plays will convince them when Season Four premieres later this year. “It’s such a likeable character, [and] she’s such a good actress, I don’t think anyone will have a problem with it once they see it,” he said.

Whether or not the addition of Tapping to the cast of Stargate Atlantis will be permanent remains to be seen, of course. Tapping signed a two-year deal with the franchise last year, anticipating that Stargate SG-1 would be renewed for an eleventh season.

“I am contractually obligated to the franchise for another year when I signed that contract at the beginning of Season Ten,” Tapping recently told GateWorld. “I knew it was a possibility that if SG-1 went down that I might be doing some Atlantis. And they exercised their option, which is fine. I think there’s a potential for a lot of fun.”

Sam visits the city of Atlantis in the SG-1 episode “The Pegasus Project.”

The fourth season of Atlantis has the show’s writers excited — and working hard in the off-season.

“I’m very excited about it,” Cooper said. “I think there are some very interesting developments in the storyline. … We’re finally at the point where there are a lot of interesting touchstones to hit on. … Now there’s a lot of interesting doors to choose from. There’s the Genii and the Wraith, and the human-form Replicators. I think what Joe [Mallozzi] and Paul [Mullie] are doing is they’re [also] continuing to open new doors.”

While Cooper and Wright devote most of their energies to the two SG-1 movies this year, SG-1 and Atlantis executive producers Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie will step up as show-runners for Atlantis.

“They’re going to be the go-to guys for Stargate Atlantis,” Wright said. But he added that he and Cooper will continue to play a role as producers of the TV series. “It’s their turn to have a shot at running the show and having the final say. Robert and I are going to go off and do a couple of movies. … Robert and I, we’re very much a part of breaking the first stories for this year, and we’ll be a part next year. … Paul and Joe are my guys, and I’m going to support them in any way I can.”

Season Four of Stargate Atlantis goes before cameras next month, and is expected to premiere on SCI FI Channel in the U.S. this summer.