McGillion filming Atlantis‘s ‘Outsiders’

The cast and crew of Stargate Atlantis head into their month-long, mid-season hiatus this week, finishing up last Friday with filming on “Outsiders” — currently expected to air as the thirteenth episode of Season Five.

Guest star and fan favorite Paul McGillion (“Carson Beckett”) took a break from filming to talk with Pop Culture Zoo.

“The episode I’m filming right now is called ‘Outsiders,'” McGillion said, “and it’s my third episode this season of the five that I’m doing, or the minimum of five. … It’s a lot of Wraiths and a lot of conflict.”

The actor is contracted for five episodes in the new season, after being killed off in Season Three’s “Sunday” and brought back from the dead in the form of a clone (“The Kindred, Part 2”). Before “Outsiders,” McGillion will appear in “The Seed” (the second episode of the season) and “Whispers” (currently slated to air seventh).

McGillion worked primarily with Joe Flanigan (“John Sheppard”) in “Whispers,” but in “Outsiders” he is back to work with one of his close real-life friends, David Hewlett (“Rodney McKay”).

“David Hewlett and I have a ton of stuff,” the actor said. “There’s a lot of Beckett and McKay stuff in it. We’re doing a scene right now that’s hopefully pretty funny. The whole crew is laughing at our scene in a Wraith Dart so it’s really funny. We’re having some really good laughs doing it.

“It’s been great. David and I are pretty much throughout the episode and we have a lot of stuff together. So it’s a big Beckett and McKay episode.”

Be sure to read the full interview with Paul McGillion now at Pop Culture Zoo! Season Five of Stargate Atlantis premieres in the U.S. on July 11.