Carson Beckett
Encyclopedia
Dr. Carson Beckett is a fictional
Scottish character
in the Canadian-American science fiction
television series Stargate Atlantis
, a spin-off
series of Stargate SG-1
. He is portrayed by Scottish-born Canadian actor Paul McGillion
, who previously played Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the first season
of SG-1. Created by Robert C. Cooper
and Brad Wright
, the character's Scottish nationality was only decided after McGillion's audition.
Dr. Beckett's character arc begins in the pilot episode "Rising
". He is the discoverer and a carrier of the fictional Ancient Technology Activation gene, which allows humans to interact with specialized Ancient
technology such as the Atlantis
base. His medical expertise and his history with the Ancient gene earns him a spot on the Atlantis expedition, where he becomes the expedition's chief medical officer. Beckett is killed in an explosion in the third season episode "Sunday", but he returns as a clone
in season four and five.
The character's appearances were marked by positive reception. Despite being billed as a recurring character
at first, he appeared in nearly every episode of the first season before the producers promoted him to a main character for the second and third seasons. The fan reaction to the character's death in season three was so strong that the Stargate Atlantis producers re-introduced the character in a recurring role in seasons four and five. In 2005, Paul McGillion was nominated for a Leo Award for "Best Supporting Performance by a Male" for his role as Beckett.
in a family of seven. His mother, who is mentioned throughout the series, is only briefly shown in "Rising
". Beckett was born with the Ancient Technology Activation (ATA) gene, which gives the carrier the ability to access Ancient technology. At the beginning of Stargate Atlantis, Beckett is a doctor with an extended knowledge of medicine and just discovered the Ancient gene. Elizabeth Weir
selected him for the Atlantis Expedition and stationed him at the Ancient outpost in Antarctica, where the SG-1 team had defeated the arch nemesis Anubis in the Stargate SG-1
season seven finale, "Lost City
".
While in the Antarctic outpost in the pilot episode "Rising", Dr. Rodney McKay
forces Beckett to sit in an Ancient control chair. Beckett's Ancient gene causes him to accidentally activate a drone weapon zeroing on General O'Neill and Major Sheppard's
helicopter, but he manages to stop it. After finding and arriving in the city of Atlantis, Beckett examines a severed Wraith
arm that Major Sheppard brought back from the planet Athos. Beckett can provide the first information about Wraith physiology and becomes the chief medical officer in Atlantis. In "Hide and Seek", he creates a gene therapy
that emulates the ATA gene in normal humans with a 48 percent success rate. In "Poisoning the Well", Beckett helps the Hoffans develop a drug that kills the Wraith who feed on humans, but the drug has the side effect of killing 50 percent of the human recipients as well. One of the casualties is Perna, a Hoffan woman he has grown attached to. Carson leaves in disgust when the Hoffans decide to disseminate the drug among their people at all costs. In "The Gift", he discovers that Teyla
has Wraith DNA in her genetic makeup, which allows her to tap into the Wraith psychic network in this and future episodes. In the second season, Beckett takes up more offworld activities, including one mission where he removes a Wraith tracker from Ronon Dex's
spine in "Runner".
In "Instinct", Beckett develops a retrovirus to turn Wraith into humans by stripping the Iratus DNA from them. After the first subject, a Wraith girl named Ellia, experiences the opposite of the desired effect, he tests a perfected retrovirus on a captured Wraith named Michael. Although the experiment works, Michael discovers his identity and reverts into a Wraith after his escape. In the season two finale, "Allies", Michael contacts Atlantis with a proposal to use the retrovirus against rival Wraith hives, but Beckett realizes Michael's betrayal too late. After Michael's Wraith ships are stopped from getting to Earth in "Misbegotten", the humanized Wraith are transported to an isolated planet (M8G-352), where Beckett teaches them how to administer the retrovirus. However, a group led by Michael realize their true histories and capture him. Beckett is later rescued by his teammates, not knowing that Michael has taken a sample of Beckett's DNA. A group of Ancients
evict the expedition from Atlantis in the mid season three two-parter "The Return". Beckett is given a surgery post at Stargate Command
(SGC) on Earth, but he and some former expedition teammates return to the city to save it from Asuran siege and imminent destruction by the SGC. In "Sunday", Beckett is killed while attempting to safely dispose an explosive tumor that he had removed from a patient. His body and personal effects are sent back to his family on Earth. McKay, who had developed a close friendship with Beckett, tells Beckett's mother himself. McKay later has a vision of Carson, brought on by his subconscious mind, which gives him the opportunity to say goodbye.
. Michael forces the clone to work for him in perfecting the Hoffan drug until Sheppard and Lorne
rescue the clone in season 4's "The Kindred", a year after the death of the real Beckett. Although the clone suffers from a degenerative condition that will lead to his death, he insists on helping the team find the pregnant Teyla from Michael's capture. Eventually, Dr. Keller
places the clone into stasis until a cure can be found. In season 5's "The Seed", the clone is injected with a cure from Michael's database on M2S-445 and is called upon to help discover a cure for an advancing disease on Keller. Upon completion, he is sent back to Earth. Cloned Beckett briefly returns to Atlantis in "Whispers" to stop a herd of Michael's failed experiments. In "Outsiders", cloned Beckett hopes to make up for the horrible deeds Michael performed using Beckett's research, and he begins to help humans in the Pegasus Galaxy who were infected with the Hoffan plague. In the Atlantis series finale
, Beckett flies the city from M35-117 back to Earth to defeat a super Wraith Hive Ship.
described Carson Beckett as the "older brother" in the Atlantis crew, a "superswell" and "loveable guy" who has a lot of "heart and warmth". McGillion described his character as trepidatious, but Beckett gains more courage throughout the series as he becomes more familiar with his surroundings in Atlantis and offworld. Beckett can fly a Puddle Jumper, albeit reluctantly, and his piloting skills are shown to be flawed at best. He also despises Stargate
travel, and is once compared with the Star Trek
character Dr. McCoy
. In "Duet", Beckett admits to be somewhat infatuated with Lt. Laura Cadman, who at the time is trapped in McKay's consciousness. When Cadman learns of this, she shares a passionate kiss with Beckett through McKay's body. Beckett and Cadman have an off-screen relationship until season 3; Beckett blames the difficulties of the relationship on their first kiss through McKay. Although McKay often condescends Beckett as he usually does to all his colleagues, McKay considers him a close friend. Martin Gero stated that Beckett and McKay often compliment each other in a "wonderful" way. Although they have completely different personalities, they are the "everyday hero guys", and often share their thoughts after saving Atlantis or the galaxy from dire situations. Paul McGillion and David Hewlett
(McKay) are also good friends in real life.
Paul McGillion
's first role in the Stargate franchise was playing the young Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the early Stargate SG-1
episode "The Torment of Tantalus" in 1997. The Scottish-born
Canadian actor did not return to Stargate until Brad Wright
and Robert C. Cooper
held auditions for the spin-off series Stargate Atlantis
in 2003–2004. Carson Beckett was originally meant to be an international character, but McGillion decided during his audition to play Beckett as a Scottish character. McGillion was in Portugal
when his agent informed him that he got the part of Carson Beckett.
According to writer-producer Martin Gero
, Beckett was set to appear in only a handful of episodes after the Stargate Atlantis pilot episode, "Rising
", but the character had such a big connection to the fans that Gero labeled McGillion the "breakout star" in Stargate Atlantis. The producers decided to give Beckett a larger role and made him a recurring character with a total of fifteen episode appearances in the first season, followed by a regular in season two. Although McGillion was born in Scotland, he only put on a Scottish accent during filming. McGillion said in an interview with The Sci-Fi World, "We improv[ise] a lot after the scene's over, and sometimes they'll keep some of the material and sometimes they won't. I'll often throw in little things like 'Ya cheeky little bugger'."
When the episode "Duet" was conceived, the writers wanted to maximise the chemistry and friendship between Beckett and McKay. Martin Gero came up with the scene featuring a kiss between Beckett and McKay. Reportedly, Gero tricked McGillion into agreeing to play the kiss by lying that David Hewlett
was asked first and had already agreed. McGillion was originally planned to play Scotty
in a parody of Star Trek
in the Stargate SG-1 episode "200
", but producer-writer Brad Wright filled in for the part in the end. (McGillion would later also audition for the part of Scotty in the upcoming eleventh Star Trek movie, but the role was given to Simon Pegg
and McGillion was cast for a small part in the movie.)
After the second season of Stargate Atlantis, cast and crew members hinted that McGillion might depart from the series. Reports in November 2006 confirmed that Beckett would "disappear" somewhere in the second half of the third season, and would only appear in several episodes in the fourth season. Jewel Staite
was announced to play Dr. Keller
, the new doctor of the Atlantis expedition. McGillion learned of the writers' exact plans for Beckett's departure in "Sunday" two months before the episode was filmed. He said that he cried when reading the episode's script. Producer Joseph Mallozzi
regretted killing off Dr. Beckett after seeing the fans' reactions, and claimed there was a 'clue' in a late-season 3 episode that hinted at Beckett's re-introduction. After Beckett's reappearance in the fourth-season episode "The Kindred", Mallozzi confirmed that Beckett had not ascended upon his death, that McKay had only imagined Beckett at the end of "Sunday", and that the character in "The Kindred" was Beckett in the flesh instead of a version from an alternate universe or from the past. A press release for season 5 mentioned that Beckett would return for at least five episodes in the new season.
was nominated for a Leo Award for "Best Supporting Performance by a Male" in 2005 for his role as Beckett in "Poisoning the Well", but he and fellow Atlantis actor David Nykl
lost to Matthew Currie Holmes
of Godiva's
. A group of fans set up a campaign at "savecarsonbeckett.com" before news of McGillion's departure was confirmed. Although the episode "Sunday" was highly admired, his death caused dismay and outrage among fans and critics. Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune
labelled the killing Beckett a "bonehead decision". The producers did not anticipate the protest after the airing of the episode. Between 60 to 100 fans from all over the world gathered for a peaceful protest outside The Bridge Studios
in Vancouver
on March 22, 2007, hiring a local pipe band. Another protest followed at San Diego Comic-Con International on July 27, 2007.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
Scottish character
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in the Canadian-American science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate franchise. The show was created by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper as a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1, which was created by Wright and Jonathan Glassner and was itself...
, a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
series of Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 feature film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich...
. He is portrayed by Scottish-born Canadian actor Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion is a Vancouver-based actor who has worked in television, film and theatre since 1990. He is best known for his role on the television series Stargate Atlantis as Dr. Carson Beckett.-Early life:...
, who previously played Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the first season
Stargate SG-1 (season 1)
The first season of the military science fiction television series Stargate SG-1 commenced airing on the Showtime channel in the United States on July 27, 1997, concluded on the same channel on March 6, 1998, and contained 22 episodes. The show itself is a spin off from the 1994 hit movie, Stargate...
of SG-1. Created by Robert C. Cooper
Robert C. Cooper
Robert C. Cooper is a Canadian writer and producer best known for his work in the Stargate franchise. He was formerly an executive producer of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis until both series conclusion and currently holds the same title on the third Stargate series Stargate Universe...
and Brad Wright
Brad Wright
Brad Wright is a Canadian television producer, screenwriter and actor. He is best known as the creator or co-creator of the television series Stargate SG-1 , Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe...
, the character's Scottish nationality was only decided after McGillion's audition.
Dr. Beckett's character arc begins in the pilot episode "Rising
Rising (Stargate Atlantis)
"Rising" is the pilot episode for season one of the military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a Canadian-American spin off series of Stargate SG-1. The episodes were written by executive producers Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, the episodes were directed by Martin Wood...
". He is the discoverer and a carrier of the fictional Ancient Technology Activation gene, which allows humans to interact with specialized Ancient
Ancient (Stargate)
The Ancients are a humanoid race in the fictional Stargate universe. They are called "Ancients" in the Milky Way, but are also known as Lanteans or Ancestors in the Pegasus galaxy and as the Alterans in their home galaxy, and they sometimes call themselves Anquietas in their language...
technology such as the Atlantis
Atlantis (Stargate)
In the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, the spin-off of Stargate SG-1, Atlantis is a city-sized starship originally located in the Pegasus galaxy. Atlantis serves as the base of operations for the main characters, from which they explore other planets through the Stargate...
base. His medical expertise and his history with the Ancient gene earns him a spot on the Atlantis expedition, where he becomes the expedition's chief medical officer. Beckett is killed in an explosion in the third season episode "Sunday", but he returns as a clone
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
in season four and five.
The character's appearances were marked by positive reception. Despite being billed as a recurring character
Recurring character
A recurring character is a fictional character, usually in a prime time TV series, who appears from time to time during the series' run. Recurring characters often play major roles in an episode, sometimes being the main focus...
at first, he appeared in nearly every episode of the first season before the producers promoted him to a main character for the second and third seasons. The fan reaction to the character's death in season three was so strong that the Stargate Atlantis producers re-introduced the character in a recurring role in seasons four and five. In 2005, Paul McGillion was nominated for a Leo Award for "Best Supporting Performance by a Male" for his role as Beckett.
Character arc
Carson Beckett is stated to be have been born in ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in a family of seven. His mother, who is mentioned throughout the series, is only briefly shown in "Rising
Rising (Stargate Atlantis)
"Rising" is the pilot episode for season one of the military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a Canadian-American spin off series of Stargate SG-1. The episodes were written by executive producers Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, the episodes were directed by Martin Wood...
". Beckett was born with the Ancient Technology Activation (ATA) gene, which gives the carrier the ability to access Ancient technology. At the beginning of Stargate Atlantis, Beckett is a doctor with an extended knowledge of medicine and just discovered the Ancient gene. Elizabeth Weir
Elizabeth Weir (Stargate)
Dr. Elizabeth Weir is a fictional character in the Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate Atlantis, a military science fiction show about a military team exploring the galaxy via a network of alien transportation devices. Elizabeth Weir is introduced as a recurring character in...
selected him for the Atlantis Expedition and stationed him at the Ancient outpost in Antarctica, where the SG-1 team had defeated the arch nemesis Anubis in the Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 feature film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich...
season seven finale, "Lost City
Lost City (Stargate SG-1)
"Lost City" is the two-part finale to the seventh season of the science fiction television show Stargate SG-1. It was originally intended to be a second Stargate film, and was then to be the show's absolute finale, and finally ended up being the seventh season finale after the series was renewed...
".
While in the Antarctic outpost in the pilot episode "Rising", Dr. Rodney McKay
Rodney McKay
Doctor Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, two military science fiction television shows about a military team exploring two galaxies via a network of alien transportation devices...
forces Beckett to sit in an Ancient control chair. Beckett's Ancient gene causes him to accidentally activate a drone weapon zeroing on General O'Neill and Major Sheppard's
John Sheppard (Stargate)
John Sheppard is a fictional character in the Canadian-American military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a science fiction show about a military team exploring the galaxy via a network of alien transportation devices...
helicopter, but he manages to stop it. After finding and arriving in the city of Atlantis, Beckett examines a severed Wraith
Wraith (Stargate)
In the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, the Wraith are the original enemy alien species, first introduced in the pilot episode . In the series, they are a vampire-like telepathic race who feed on the "life-force" of humans, and are the dominant power in the Pegasus galaxy...
arm that Major Sheppard brought back from the planet Athos. Beckett can provide the first information about Wraith physiology and becomes the chief medical officer in Atlantis. In "Hide and Seek", he creates a gene therapy
Gene therapy
Gene therapy is the insertion, alteration, or removal of genes within an individual's cells and biological tissues to treat disease. It is a technique for correcting defective genes that are responsible for disease development...
that emulates the ATA gene in normal humans with a 48 percent success rate. In "Poisoning the Well", Beckett helps the Hoffans develop a drug that kills the Wraith who feed on humans, but the drug has the side effect of killing 50 percent of the human recipients as well. One of the casualties is Perna, a Hoffan woman he has grown attached to. Carson leaves in disgust when the Hoffans decide to disseminate the drug among their people at all costs. In "The Gift", he discovers that Teyla
Teyla Emmagan
Teyla Emmagan was a primary fictional character played by Rachel Luttrell in the science fiction series, Stargate Atlantis. In the show, she is the daughter of Tagan, and was a leader of a village on the planet Athos...
has Wraith DNA in her genetic makeup, which allows her to tap into the Wraith psychic network in this and future episodes. In the second season, Beckett takes up more offworld activities, including one mission where he removes a Wraith tracker from Ronon Dex's
Ronon Dex
Ronon Dex is a fictional character in the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis. Played by Jason Momoa, he is a Satedan, a civilization from the Pegasus Galaxy who had a technological level comparable to Earth in the mid-20th century but met the fate of all advanced civilizations in...
spine in "Runner".
In "Instinct", Beckett develops a retrovirus to turn Wraith into humans by stripping the Iratus DNA from them. After the first subject, a Wraith girl named Ellia, experiences the opposite of the desired effect, he tests a perfected retrovirus on a captured Wraith named Michael. Although the experiment works, Michael discovers his identity and reverts into a Wraith after his escape. In the season two finale, "Allies", Michael contacts Atlantis with a proposal to use the retrovirus against rival Wraith hives, but Beckett realizes Michael's betrayal too late. After Michael's Wraith ships are stopped from getting to Earth in "Misbegotten", the humanized Wraith are transported to an isolated planet (M8G-352), where Beckett teaches them how to administer the retrovirus. However, a group led by Michael realize their true histories and capture him. Beckett is later rescued by his teammates, not knowing that Michael has taken a sample of Beckett's DNA. A group of Ancients
Ancient (Stargate)
The Ancients are a humanoid race in the fictional Stargate universe. They are called "Ancients" in the Milky Way, but are also known as Lanteans or Ancestors in the Pegasus galaxy and as the Alterans in their home galaxy, and they sometimes call themselves Anquietas in their language...
evict the expedition from Atlantis in the mid season three two-parter "The Return". Beckett is given a surgery post at Stargate Command
Stargate Command
The Stargate Program is a fictional top-secret program that plays a key role in the Stargate franchise: it surrounds the operations of the Stargate on Earth. The core of the Stargate Program is Stargate Command , based at the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station near Colorado Springs, Colorado...
(SGC) on Earth, but he and some former expedition teammates return to the city to save it from Asuran siege and imminent destruction by the SGC. In "Sunday", Beckett is killed while attempting to safely dispose an explosive tumor that he had removed from a patient. His body and personal effects are sent back to his family on Earth. McKay, who had developed a close friendship with Beckett, tells Beckett's mother himself. McKay later has a vision of Carson, brought on by his subconscious mind, which gives him the opportunity to say goodbye.
Cloned Beckett
During Beckett's capture on the planet M8G-352 in season 3's "Misbegotten", Michael took some of Beckett's DNA to make a cloneCloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
. Michael forces the clone to work for him in perfecting the Hoffan drug until Sheppard and Lorne
Evan Lorne
Evan Lorne is a fictional character in the Canadian–American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, two military science fiction shows about military teams exploring the galaxy via a network of alien transportation devices...
rescue the clone in season 4's "The Kindred", a year after the death of the real Beckett. Although the clone suffers from a degenerative condition that will lead to his death, he insists on helping the team find the pregnant Teyla from Michael's capture. Eventually, Dr. Keller
Jennifer Keller
Dr. Jennifer Keller is a fictional character from the Canadian-American military science fiction series Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off series to Stargate SG-1. She is played by Canadian actress Jewel Staite, who previously played the Wraith Ellia in season two episode "Instinct"...
places the clone into stasis until a cure can be found. In season 5's "The Seed", the clone is injected with a cure from Michael's database on M2S-445 and is called upon to help discover a cure for an advancing disease on Keller. Upon completion, he is sent back to Earth. Cloned Beckett briefly returns to Atlantis in "Whispers" to stop a herd of Michael's failed experiments. In "Outsiders", cloned Beckett hopes to make up for the horrible deeds Michael performed using Beckett's research, and he begins to help humans in the Pegasus Galaxy who were infected with the Hoffan plague. In the Atlantis series finale
Enemy at the Gate (Stargate Atlantis)
"Enemy at the Gate" is the 100th and final episode of the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis. The episode aired on January 9, 2009 on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States, and on January 13, 2009 on Sky1 in the United Kingdom...
, Beckett flies the city from M35-117 back to Earth to defeat a super Wraith Hive Ship.
Characteristics and relationships
Producer Martin GeroMartin Gero
Martin Gero is a Canadian screenwriter and co-executive producer for Stargate Atlantis.Born in Switzerland, Gero spent much of his childhood in Ottawa, Ontario. He attended Canterbury High School for the Arts and Ryerson University in Toronto...
described Carson Beckett as the "older brother" in the Atlantis crew, a "superswell" and "loveable guy" who has a lot of "heart and warmth". McGillion described his character as trepidatious, but Beckett gains more courage throughout the series as he becomes more familiar with his surroundings in Atlantis and offworld. Beckett can fly a Puddle Jumper, albeit reluctantly, and his piloting skills are shown to be flawed at best. He also despises Stargate
Stargate (device)
A Stargate is a portal device within the Stargate fictional universe that allows practical, rapid travel between two distant locations. The devices first appear in the 1994 Roland Emmerich film Stargate, and thereafter in the television series Stargate SG-1 and its spin-offs...
travel, and is once compared with the Star Trek
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
character Dr. McCoy
Leonard McCoy
Leonard "Bones" McCoy is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by DeForest Kelley in the original Star Trek series, McCoy also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and in numerous books,...
. In "Duet", Beckett admits to be somewhat infatuated with Lt. Laura Cadman, who at the time is trapped in McKay's consciousness. When Cadman learns of this, she shares a passionate kiss with Beckett through McKay's body. Beckett and Cadman have an off-screen relationship until season 3; Beckett blames the difficulties of the relationship on their first kiss through McKay. Although McKay often condescends Beckett as he usually does to all his colleagues, McKay considers him a close friend. Martin Gero stated that Beckett and McKay often compliment each other in a "wonderful" way. Although they have completely different personalities, they are the "everyday hero guys", and often share their thoughts after saving Atlantis or the galaxy from dire situations. Paul McGillion and David Hewlett
David Hewlett
David Ian Hewlett is an English-born Canadian actor best known for his role as Dr. Meredith Rodney McKay on the science fiction television shows Stargate SG1 and Stargate Atlantis.-Early life:...
(McKay) are also good friends in real life.
Conceptual history
Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion is a Vancouver-based actor who has worked in television, film and theatre since 1990. He is best known for his role on the television series Stargate Atlantis as Dr. Carson Beckett.-Early life:...
's first role in the Stargate franchise was playing the young Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the early Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 feature film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich...
episode "The Torment of Tantalus" in 1997. The Scottish-born
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
Canadian actor did not return to Stargate until Brad Wright
Brad Wright
Brad Wright is a Canadian television producer, screenwriter and actor. He is best known as the creator or co-creator of the television series Stargate SG-1 , Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe...
and Robert C. Cooper
Robert C. Cooper
Robert C. Cooper is a Canadian writer and producer best known for his work in the Stargate franchise. He was formerly an executive producer of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis until both series conclusion and currently holds the same title on the third Stargate series Stargate Universe...
held auditions for the spin-off series Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate franchise. The show was created by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper as a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1, which was created by Wright and Jonathan Glassner and was itself...
in 2003–2004. Carson Beckett was originally meant to be an international character, but McGillion decided during his audition to play Beckett as a Scottish character. McGillion was in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
when his agent informed him that he got the part of Carson Beckett.
According to writer-producer Martin Gero
Martin Gero
Martin Gero is a Canadian screenwriter and co-executive producer for Stargate Atlantis.Born in Switzerland, Gero spent much of his childhood in Ottawa, Ontario. He attended Canterbury High School for the Arts and Ryerson University in Toronto...
, Beckett was set to appear in only a handful of episodes after the Stargate Atlantis pilot episode, "Rising
Rising (Stargate Atlantis)
"Rising" is the pilot episode for season one of the military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a Canadian-American spin off series of Stargate SG-1. The episodes were written by executive producers Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, the episodes were directed by Martin Wood...
", but the character had such a big connection to the fans that Gero labeled McGillion the "breakout star" in Stargate Atlantis. The producers decided to give Beckett a larger role and made him a recurring character with a total of fifteen episode appearances in the first season, followed by a regular in season two. Although McGillion was born in Scotland, he only put on a Scottish accent during filming. McGillion said in an interview with The Sci-Fi World, "We improv[ise] a lot after the scene's over, and sometimes they'll keep some of the material and sometimes they won't. I'll often throw in little things like 'Ya cheeky little bugger'."
When the episode "Duet" was conceived, the writers wanted to maximise the chemistry and friendship between Beckett and McKay. Martin Gero came up with the scene featuring a kiss between Beckett and McKay. Reportedly, Gero tricked McGillion into agreeing to play the kiss by lying that David Hewlett
David Hewlett
David Ian Hewlett is an English-born Canadian actor best known for his role as Dr. Meredith Rodney McKay on the science fiction television shows Stargate SG1 and Stargate Atlantis.-Early life:...
was asked first and had already agreed. McGillion was originally planned to play Scotty
Montgomery Scott
Montgomery "Scotty" Scott is a Scottish engineer in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by James Doohan in the original Star Trek series, Scotty also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Relics", and in numerous...
in a parody of Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
in the Stargate SG-1 episode "200
200 (Stargate SG-1)
"200" is the sixth episode of the science fiction television series Stargate SG-1s tenth season, and the 200th episode of the series overall...
", but producer-writer Brad Wright filled in for the part in the end. (McGillion would later also audition for the part of Scotty in the upcoming eleventh Star Trek movie, but the role was given to Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg is an English actor, comedian, writer, film producer, and director. He is best known for having co-written and stared in various Edgar Wright features, mainly Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and the comedy series Spaced.He also portrayed Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in the 2009 Star Trek film...
and McGillion was cast for a small part in the movie.)
After the second season of Stargate Atlantis, cast and crew members hinted that McGillion might depart from the series. Reports in November 2006 confirmed that Beckett would "disappear" somewhere in the second half of the third season, and would only appear in several episodes in the fourth season. Jewel Staite
Jewel Staite
Jewel Belair Staite is a Canadian actress, who portrayed Catalina in Space Cases, Kaylee Frye in Firefly and Serenity, and Dr. Jennifer Keller on Stargate Atlantis.-Personal life:...
was announced to play Dr. Keller
Jennifer Keller
Dr. Jennifer Keller is a fictional character from the Canadian-American military science fiction series Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off series to Stargate SG-1. She is played by Canadian actress Jewel Staite, who previously played the Wraith Ellia in season two episode "Instinct"...
, the new doctor of the Atlantis expedition. McGillion learned of the writers' exact plans for Beckett's departure in "Sunday" two months before the episode was filmed. He said that he cried when reading the episode's script. Producer Joseph Mallozzi
Joseph Mallozzi
Joseph Mallozzi is a Canadian writer and producer.He is most noted for his contributions to the Stargate SG-1, Stargate: Atlantis, and Stargate Universe television series. He joined the Stargate production team at the start of Stargate SG-1s fourth season in 2000...
regretted killing off Dr. Beckett after seeing the fans' reactions, and claimed there was a 'clue' in a late-season 3 episode that hinted at Beckett's re-introduction. After Beckett's reappearance in the fourth-season episode "The Kindred", Mallozzi confirmed that Beckett had not ascended upon his death, that McKay had only imagined Beckett at the end of "Sunday", and that the character in "The Kindred" was Beckett in the flesh instead of a version from an alternate universe or from the past. A press release for season 5 mentioned that Beckett would return for at least five episodes in the new season.
Reception
Carson Beckett is often described by fans as the "Heart of Atlantis". Paul McGillionPaul McGillion
Paul McGillion is a Vancouver-based actor who has worked in television, film and theatre since 1990. He is best known for his role on the television series Stargate Atlantis as Dr. Carson Beckett.-Early life:...
was nominated for a Leo Award for "Best Supporting Performance by a Male" in 2005 for his role as Beckett in "Poisoning the Well", but he and fellow Atlantis actor David Nykl
David Nykl
David Nykl is a Czech Canadian actor of film, television, commercials and theater.After the Soviet invasion in 1968, he and his family left then-Communist Czechoslovakia for Canada...
lost to Matthew Currie Holmes
Matthew Currie Holmes
Matthew Currie Holmes is a Canadian actor who has appeared in dozens of projects. He was a lead on the Canadian series Godiva's , as well as on the series Edgemont. His feature film credits include The Fog, Firewall and Wrong Turn 2: Dead End. He currently resides in Los Angeles,...
of Godiva's
Godiva's
Godiva's is an hour long Canadian television comedy-drama series, which debuted on Bravo! and Citytv in 2005. It completed a successful two-season run in 2006, but though the show received rave reviews, it was cancelled by CHUM broadcasting...
. A group of fans set up a campaign at "savecarsonbeckett.com" before news of McGillion's departure was confirmed. Although the episode "Sunday" was highly admired, his death caused dismay and outrage among fans and critics. Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
labelled the killing Beckett a "bonehead decision". The producers did not anticipate the protest after the airing of the episode. Between 60 to 100 fans from all over the world gathered for a peaceful protest outside The Bridge Studios
The Bridge Studios
The Bridge Studios is a Canadian film studio in Burnaby, British Columbia. It operates the largest effects stage in North America. Its eight studios, ranging in size from to , are located on a lot at 2400 Boundary Road, in Burnaby....
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
on March 22, 2007, hiring a local pipe band. Another protest followed at San Diego Comic-Con International on July 27, 2007.
External links
- Carson Beckett at Stargate wikia
- Carson Beckett at scifiSci Fi Channel (United States)Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
.com