David Hewlett Chicago Tribune Article
Aug. 20th, 2004 12:18 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
castaliaCame across an interview with David Hewlett from July which is kinda cute. The Chicago Tribune site wants you to register to view the article (and for some reason bugmenot.com isn't working today), so here's a reproduction instead:
Maureen Ryan
Tribune staff reporter
Published July 9, 2004
David Hewlett, who plays the prickly scientist Dr. Rodney McKay on "Stargate Atlantis," is a big ol' sci-fi nerd. So he and I had plenty to talk about. After outlining plans for the character's upcoming fun kit for kids (action figure, thick glasses, comes with its own inhaler), Hewlett, who guested as McKay on "SG-1" a couple of times before joining the "Atlantis" cast, talked about how the show's trying to carve out its own niche.
On guesting on "SG-1," and coming back for "Atlantis."
I was really lucky, I knew the lay of the land before I got here.
Those guys are amazing. I arrived on "SG-1" and I didn't know a ton about it, I didn't know the people and I hopped off a plane and suddenly I'm doing all this technobabble (laughs). But I've never felt more at home. The people were so pleasant and the producers were so approachable and so into everything, it's all the reasons I got into acting. It was like coming home to me.
I was as surprised as the next guy to come back. As a horrible egotistical actor, of course you always like to think it'll work into an ongoing role. Failing that you can just refuse to drink the hemlock (laughs).
On the fan love.
The fan base can be very intimidating. My sister had to read me one message she found on the Internet, "Of all the people to return, why McKay?" (laughs) So we've got to prove ourselves. With "SG-1" and now "Atlantis," it's all about people getting along or not getting along, and that's what makes it work. The premise of the show is the stargate and the technology and the travel, but what keeps you interested is the characters.
On why McKay will be the most-loved character on the show.
He's just that kid at the front of the classroom who always had his hand up and answered every question. He's just that kid in school who everyone hated, but who ends up running a billion dollar corporation in the end. (laughs)
On "Atlantis" as a the new kid on the block.
My big thing is that I've been saying we're not here to replace "SG-1," we're here to complement it. We allow fans to see another side of the whole stargate phenomenon. Our universe is different, and we're really able to do some things that they weren't doing, in the case of my character, insulting and offending everyone (laughs).
There aren't any rules for the universe we're exploring. We're out there exploring and we don't know what we're supposed to be doing -- we don't have all the answers. We're making horrible mistakes in some cases -- we go onto planets and screw things up. In one case we went looking for food, and two or three episodes later [people from that planet] try to kill us.
Our politics are terrible and we're desperate and we're all there for different reasons. It's in our grasp to do good, but we can do so much damage in the process. I was very surprised at how dark we can get.
What balances all the technology is that you get to see humans act like humans. They make mistakes. Things don't work. In good science fiction, it works that way, there's no black and white, and it's nice to see that honesty. Torri said that that was the cool thing about scifi, you get to explore things that are taboo in other genres, [you see] what humans are capable of.
I think this cast is aware of "SG-1" and the impact that it's had, we're very much trying to carve out our own niche and go our own way. There's a conscious effort not to be [a replica] of "SG-1." This is a group with different foes, different technology, and the entire team is there for different reasons. At the same time, we stick to the same rules and the backstory of "SG-1." All that stuff is not forgotten.
On the "Atlantis" cast, onscreen and off.
I don't think you can orchestrate chemistry. It's a chemical thing. You don't see it until it's on the screen. I hope it's there. Certainly it's there offscreen. It's like a family, with all the positives and all the negatives. We'll have these snappy little dialogues with each other [on set] and then we'll see something very similar in the scripts. It bleeds through into the shows.
On doing a genre show.
It's a much maligned genre, if you don't understand it. It seems to get ignored, there's no middle ground; either you like it or don't like it. Once you get into [genre fare] that has very strict rules to obey, that's a problem. But with "SG-1," they have a great sense of humor and a very contemporary view of the future.
Personally, I want a McKay action figure (but without the glasses - that he doesn't wear - and inhaler, thank you). Then I can get a Carson figure too and pose them in suggestable positions on my computer desk.
Poor David, seeing anti-McKay stuff on the 'net. I need to send the man a fan letter. And one to Paul, so he'll know we all adore him and want to see more of him on the show.
Hey, it's offically Friday. Carson ep tonight, woohoo!!!
ETA: Oh, and if you go to the MovieNetwork Atlantis page and click on "behind the scenes", you can watch some interviews with the cast. Everyone's cute, you can hear Torri Higginson's real accent, and David is adorable.
Maureen Ryan
Tribune staff reporter
Published July 9, 2004
David Hewlett, who plays the prickly scientist Dr. Rodney McKay on "Stargate Atlantis," is a big ol' sci-fi nerd. So he and I had plenty to talk about. After outlining plans for the character's upcoming fun kit for kids (action figure, thick glasses, comes with its own inhaler), Hewlett, who guested as McKay on "SG-1" a couple of times before joining the "Atlantis" cast, talked about how the show's trying to carve out its own niche.
On guesting on "SG-1," and coming back for "Atlantis."
I was really lucky, I knew the lay of the land before I got here.
Those guys are amazing. I arrived on "SG-1" and I didn't know a ton about it, I didn't know the people and I hopped off a plane and suddenly I'm doing all this technobabble (laughs). But I've never felt more at home. The people were so pleasant and the producers were so approachable and so into everything, it's all the reasons I got into acting. It was like coming home to me.
I was as surprised as the next guy to come back. As a horrible egotistical actor, of course you always like to think it'll work into an ongoing role. Failing that you can just refuse to drink the hemlock (laughs).
On the fan love.
The fan base can be very intimidating. My sister had to read me one message she found on the Internet, "Of all the people to return, why McKay?" (laughs) So we've got to prove ourselves. With "SG-1" and now "Atlantis," it's all about people getting along or not getting along, and that's what makes it work. The premise of the show is the stargate and the technology and the travel, but what keeps you interested is the characters.
On why McKay will be the most-loved character on the show.
He's just that kid at the front of the classroom who always had his hand up and answered every question. He's just that kid in school who everyone hated, but who ends up running a billion dollar corporation in the end. (laughs)
On "Atlantis" as a the new kid on the block.
My big thing is that I've been saying we're not here to replace "SG-1," we're here to complement it. We allow fans to see another side of the whole stargate phenomenon. Our universe is different, and we're really able to do some things that they weren't doing, in the case of my character, insulting and offending everyone (laughs).
There aren't any rules for the universe we're exploring. We're out there exploring and we don't know what we're supposed to be doing -- we don't have all the answers. We're making horrible mistakes in some cases -- we go onto planets and screw things up. In one case we went looking for food, and two or three episodes later [people from that planet] try to kill us.
Our politics are terrible and we're desperate and we're all there for different reasons. It's in our grasp to do good, but we can do so much damage in the process. I was very surprised at how dark we can get.
What balances all the technology is that you get to see humans act like humans. They make mistakes. Things don't work. In good science fiction, it works that way, there's no black and white, and it's nice to see that honesty. Torri said that that was the cool thing about scifi, you get to explore things that are taboo in other genres, [you see] what humans are capable of.
I think this cast is aware of "SG-1" and the impact that it's had, we're very much trying to carve out our own niche and go our own way. There's a conscious effort not to be [a replica] of "SG-1." This is a group with different foes, different technology, and the entire team is there for different reasons. At the same time, we stick to the same rules and the backstory of "SG-1." All that stuff is not forgotten.
On the "Atlantis" cast, onscreen and off.
I don't think you can orchestrate chemistry. It's a chemical thing. You don't see it until it's on the screen. I hope it's there. Certainly it's there offscreen. It's like a family, with all the positives and all the negatives. We'll have these snappy little dialogues with each other [on set] and then we'll see something very similar in the scripts. It bleeds through into the shows.
On doing a genre show.
It's a much maligned genre, if you don't understand it. It seems to get ignored, there's no middle ground; either you like it or don't like it. Once you get into [genre fare] that has very strict rules to obey, that's a problem. But with "SG-1," they have a great sense of humor and a very contemporary view of the future.
Personally, I want a McKay action figure (but without the glasses - that he doesn't wear - and inhaler, thank you). Then I can get a Carson figure too and pose them in suggestable positions on my computer desk.
Poor David, seeing anti-McKay stuff on the 'net. I need to send the man a fan letter. And one to Paul, so he'll know we all adore him and want to see more of him on the show.
Hey, it's offically Friday. Carson ep tonight, woohoo!!!
ETA: Oh, and if you go to the MovieNetwork Atlantis page and click on "behind the scenes", you can watch some interviews with the cast. Everyone's cute, you can hear Torri Higginson's real accent, and David is adorable.
