Vancouver Convention Report: Saturday

For fans of Stargate and specifically Stargate Atlantis, the third day of Creation Entertainment’s official Stargate convention in Vancouver was — as Vala Mal Doran would put it — “certainly packed with jam!”

After hundreds of conventioneers had the chance to visit The Bridge Studios and various Stargate sets throughout the morning, the first person to hit the convention stage was actor Paul McGillion (“Dr. Carson Beckett”). McGillion’s first comments as soon as he took the stage were words of thanks to all fans of Atlantis, as he felt that the character of Beckett would not have returned without their support.

McGillion, who next will be seen in a small role on the big screen in next month’s feature film reboot of the Star Trek franchise, was asked whether he preferred roles that were comedic or dramatic in nature.

“I love both. It’s nice to play both and to have that balance,” McGillion said. “Sometimes with comedy, when you play off of someone else, it just doesn’t work. The timing’s not right. But with David Hewlett, that’s never an issue. It was great fun to do both types of scenes with him.”

Following McGillion on the stage was actor Robert Picardo (“Richard Woolsey”), who talked at length with the crowd about his time on both Atlantis and Star Trek: Voyager. While admitting that Woolsey may not have been the best choice in terms of personality for the job as Atlantis leader, he did admit he felt it made sense to continue to have a civilian in that role.

Before leaving the stage, Picardo also took the time to auction off a signed and framed Atlantis photo featuring the cast of Season Five. The photo was a hot item, going to the highest bidder for $700 with all proceeds going to Together In Mission, a Los Angeles-based Catholic charity.

Last up for the day was actor Joe Flanigan (“Col. John Sheppard”). Flanigan immediately had the crowd in stitches as he talked about a prank he pulled on McGillion during filming — one which brought about payback on McGillion’s part.

Flanigan mentioned how much of a family atmosphere the cast of Atlantis shared and that he truly felt that the show could have had a couple of years left in it — but was happy the series was able to end on a high note. He also singled out “Vegas” as one of his favorite episodes of Season Five.

“It was nice to have a strong Sheppard episode as we reached the end,” Flanigan said. “We all love team-based episodes, but I think as actors, we all enjoy the opportunity to flex our muscles with the character-specific ones, too.”

“For me, ‘Vegas’ had some long hours involved, and there were some brutal dust storms we had to deal with, but it was a lot of fun to shoot.”

Keep your browser locked to GateWorld for more exclusive Vancouver convention coverage, including our report on the final day of the con and guests N. John Smith, Brad Wright, Robert C. Cooper, Michael Shanks and Amanda Tapping. And keep watching for more photos in our gallery from the convention, and a Vancouver-based podcast with some very special surprises.

Browse through GateWorld’s Saturday convention photo gallery now!