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By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
Stargate has its share of fan favorite characters across the different movies and series, oh SG-1’s Samantha Carter and Jack O’Neil, Rodney McKay in Atlantis, Ronald Greer in Universeand honestly, countless others, but none like the bureaucratic Richard Woolsey, who went from a one-episode appearance to being annoying, to becoming a hero as a team leader. Played by Star Trek: Voyager’s Robert Picardo, fans actually have a different series to thank for bringing him to the franchise: The Outer Limits. If it weren’t for the sci-fi anthology series shooting so close to Stargate SG-1’s home studio in Vancouver, Picardo would never have been part of another successful sci-fi franchise.
One Time Appearance For Series Leader
The Outer Limitsscience fiction version of The Twilight Zonewhich first aired in 1963, but was brought back in 1995 for a longer run, ending in 2002. Stargate SG-1’s allowing a shooting schedule Robert Picardo to make the quick trip to the studio while filming the episode “Sarcophagus,” where he plays a man looking at the financial value of a rare alien find to justify betrayal. It is also different from his role as Woolsey, which has more in common with his performance as The Doctor on Voyager.
Although The Doctor winds up a very different character after multiple seasons of personal growth and plenty of episodes debating the ethics and rights of his existence as a hologram, if you went past Richard Woolsey for the first time, you’d never thought that years later, Robert Picardo would be back as the leader of the Stargate: Atlantis expedition Woolsey was brought back a few times during SG-1’s run to be, on purpose, an annoying blow to the team and a constant annoyance to the viewers. As Picardo said in an interview with Gateworld back in 2008, “he basically came in as a conflicted character.”
The Evolution of Woolsey
Richard Woolsey’s second appearance, in “Inauguration,” brought an important change to the character by adding a new dimension, as Robert Picardo himself described the Stargate SG-1 episode, “they began their recovery of Woolsey’s character by showing that he meant well and was passionate about the importance of having civilian oversight of secret military operations.” It was an important moment for the character and planted seeds for how the character would grow, although surprisingly, during the rest of his appearances, he stayed true to himself. Only the world changed around him.
By the time Stargate: Atlantis going through a cast upheaval following Amanda Tapping’s decision to leave, there was a very short list of potential stars to bring in to replace her, with Robert Picardo at the top, in what turned out to be a moment of brilliance. From a bureaucrat questioning the need for the SG-1 program to a leader who understands that it is right to throw the book out for the good of the men and women under his command. The Woolsey who breaks multiple security protocols in “The Seed” is a far, far cry from his debut in “Heroes, Part 2,” and legions of Stargate fans wouldn’t have it any other way, and it’ all because The Outer Limits a Stargate SG-1 both filmed in Vancouver.
