Stargate / Sanctuary - Den of Geek: Amanda Tapping Interview

From Den of Geek (UK):

http://www.denofgeek.com/television/45845/amanda_tapping_interview_stargate_sg1_atlantis_and_sanctuary.html

(Please follow the link for the complete interview.)

TV

Amanda Tapping interview: Stargate SG-1, Atlantis and Sanctuary



As The Ark Of Truth hits DVD, Stargate superstar Amanda Tapping - aka Samantha Carter - spares some time for a chat...

By Simon Brew


Amanda Tapping has played Samantha Carter in the Stargate SG-1 and now Stargate: Atlantis for well over a decade. As the closing chapter in the SG-1 saga, The Ark Of Truth, hits DVD, she spared us some time for a chat in the middle of London.

**snippage**

Q: Do you find with science fiction that it does by its nature have this habit of throwing up really strong female characters that other genres are weaker in?

AT: "Yeah, it does. It started way back. Gene Roddenberry introduced female characters, like Uhura. She was unprecedented on television. And I actually got called to task because I made mention of her and said that even though she still had to wear a short skirt, the fact of the matter was she was this incredibly strong, incredibly intelligent character who paved the way. Sci-fi has always done that, they’ve always put strong woman out there."

**snippage**

Q: When it came to the point where you moved away from Atlantis full time, to move onto Sanctuary, was it just because there was another project, or was this the time?

AT: "I had been asked about Sanctuary two years ago basically. And I read the script, loved it, loved the idea of it, we shot a test scene in July of 2006 just to see if it would work. It was going to be a show that was going to live entirely on the web. We shot the pilot in January of 2007. Put out eight webisodes. But it’s hard to monetise this kind of show, on the Internet. Especially a show of that calibre. The budget was huge and it was an entirely virtual show.

When my contract for Atlantis was about to be renewed, I knew that Sanctuary had a chance of being picked up for television. We hadn’t yet, so it was a massive leap of faith on my part. If I walk away from Sanctuary, it dies. All these people who put their money and time in, it goes away. If I stick with Sanctuary, then there’s a better chance of us getting a broadcast deal. It was a really difficult decision, long talks with Joe Mallozzi, long talks with the Sanctuary producers. And eventually I just had to make the leap of faith. It wasn’t that I was sick of Stargate, it was that I had to give Sanctuary a chance."

Q: Was it by choice then that you’ve kept your feet in the Stargate camp as well?

AT: "Yeah, absolutely. I’m hugely grateful that they’ve kept the door open, and they’ve been very gracious about it. Maybe Sam could come back toward the end of the season. So yeah, they’ve been amazing."

**snippage**


Q: And what’s next from you?

AT: "Sanctuary coming to ITV in the fall. Continuum being released in the summer. And that’s sort of my next year. Sanctuary, thirteen episodes. And of course Ark Of Truth out now, go buy it, thank you very much!"

Thank you very much…!