TV Forum
SG-1 movie would have revealed the Stargate
Sunday - May 15, 2011
by Romeo53
The third Stargate SG-1 movie would have finally revealed the top-secret Stargate program to the world, Stargate executive producer Joseph Mallozzi revealed on his blog this week.
“This subject (the revelation and its many implications) would have formed the plot for the planned SG-1 movie, Stargate: Revolution,” Mallozzi said.
Written with the working title Stargate: Revolution, the movie was to heavily feature Richard Dean Anderson’s character Jack O’Neill.
The script was written by Brad Wright and Carl Binder, and of the possible Stargate projects bandied about over the past three years it came the closest to seeing the light of day. Wright was very confident in an April 2009 interview with GateWorld that they would be filming in the fall, and also said as much during his stage appearance at the official Stargate convention in Vancouver that month.
“I had a story idea that really worked with O’Neill,” Wright said. “And it’s not just his character, by any means. It’s a Stargate story that brings O’Neill back in a big way.”
Anderson confirmed on his Web site sooner thereafter that MGM had indicated its plans to go ahead with the movie. But when the DVD market continued to soften and the studio fell further into debt, plans were again put on hold.
Wright had previously told GateWorld that revealing the Stargate to the general public would be a major event in the fictional world and for the franchise — certainly a “revolution” — and was big enough that he wanted to reserve it for a movie. It was an idea that the writers enjoyed toying with in the television series, including the alternate-timeline episode “2010.” In that episode, Earth’s Stargate was kept in a public “space terminal” and available to the public for travel to other, allied worlds.
Mallozzi said that, even after those shows’ sets were taken down and key pieces auctioned off, he still held out hope that Revolution and the Atlantis movie (titled Stargate: Extinction) might still be made. (Wright announced last month that both were effectively shelved for good.)
“I still held out hope for both movies because, in the case of Stargate: Revolution, the lionshare of the action would have been off-world and ship-based while, in the case of Stargate: Extinction, although there was some action on Atlantis itself (eminently achievable through the magic of VFX), much of the story takes place on Earth and off-world,” he explained.
Mallozzi will give his blog readers new insights into the story of Extinction (which he co-wrote with Paul Mullie) next week.
MGM owns the completed scripts for both movies. At this point, there is no indication from the studio as to whether fans might eventually see these stories in the form of a novel, comic book, or in another medium.
Thanks for the info, Popeye!
Atlantis Extinction revealed
Well a little
From Joseph Mallozzi’s Blog
Finally – by now, I had hoped to hear back on the ultimate faith of Stargate: Extinction (Novel? Comic book? Radio play? Performance art piece?) but, alas, it’s been very quiet. I will say that when Paul and I set out to write the script for the proposed Stargate: Atlantis movie, we did so in the hopes that, ultimately, it wouldn’t be produced as a movie at all but as the first two episodes of SGA’s sixth season. Codenamed “Project Twilight”, it would have focused on the city of Atlantis, its personnel, and the journey back to home to the Pegasus Galaxy. Ideally, that would set the stage for the thrilling 18 episodes to follow – or, at the very least, the jumping off point for future SGA movies.
The movie would have picked up not long after the events of the season 5 finale, Enemy at the Gates. In the opening scene, two astronauts (who turn out to be a couple of familiar faces – Amelia Banks and Major Lorne) take a walk on the surface of the moon, their lunar stroll ending with a reveal of the city of Atlantis. A shuttle carrying Sam Carter and a group of dignitaries sweeps overhead and lands.
Within the city’s atmospherically shielded confines, Carter and her guests meet up with the science team headed by – who else? – Rodney McKay. Frustrated by the interruption to his ongoing research, McKay demonstrates a certain impatience with the whole dog-and-pony show, running through standards explanations, overviews, questions, and answers until – an alarm suddenly sounds. The bewildered dignitaries are ushered out, leaving McKay, Carter, and Zelenka to investigate.
An examination of the city’s systems reveal the worst. A self-destruct has been initiated – a safeguard, Rodney surmises, put in place by the Ancients in the event Atlantis was ever removed from the Pegasus Galaxy. And, once triggered, it cannot be disabled. Nothing short of a return to the Pegasus Galaxy will save the city from certain destruction.
Of course, getting it there is easier said than done…
Anyway, that was the basic premise: A seeming new beginning. A threat to the city. And a desperate bid to outrace a deadly countdown.
But who would join the journey? How would they get back to Pegasus? And what challenges would they face along the way?
More on that in the coming days.
Ahh, what could have been. Sounds like Atlantis at its best.
Mallozzi teases Extinction‘s opening scenes
by Romeo53
Fans of Stargate Atlantis may never see Stargate: Extinction on the small screen, but at least we have a screenwriter who is prepared to spill (some of the) beans about the story that wasn’t to be. Atlantis executive producer Joseph Mallozzi recently posted about the film’s scripted opening in a post at his blog.
Mallozzi wrote the script for the film with writing partner Paul Mullie, and together they would have executive produced the movie. It was originally announced to air on Syfy Channel after the television series was cancelled after five years on the air.
Though the movie isn’t destined to be produced, beware of what some might still consider spoilers below. After all, Mallozzi has suggested that MGM may be considering releasing the full story in another format, such as a novel or comic book.
When last we left our heroes, they had brought the ancient city-ship of Atlantis to Earth to defend their home from a Wraith attack. With the Wraith still threatening the Pegasus Galaxy — not to mention Ronan, Teyla, and Todd still on board — would the city be staying?
“The movie would have picked up not long after the events of the Season Five finale, ‘Enemy At the Gate,’” Mallozzi said. “In the opening scene, two astronauts (who turn out to be a couple of familiar faces – Amelia Banks and Major Lorne) take a walk on the surface of the moon, their lunar stroll ending with a reveal of the city of Atlantis. A shuttle carrying Sam Carter and a group of dignitaries sweeps overhead and lands.
“Within the city’s atmospherically shielded confines, Carter and her guests meet up with the science team headed by – who else? – Rodney McKay. Frustrated by the interruption to his ongoing research, McKay demonstrates a certain impatience with the whole dog-and-pony show, running through standards explanations, overviews, questions, and answers until – an alarm suddenly sounds. The bewildered dignitaries are ushered out, leaving McKay, Carter, and Zelenka to investigate.
“An examination of the city’s systems reveal the worst. A self-destruct has been initiated – a safeguard, Rodney surmises, put in place by the Ancients in the event Atlantis was ever removed from the Pegasus Galaxy. And, once triggered, it cannot be disabled. Nothing short of a return to the Pegasus Galaxy will save the city from certain destruction. Of course, getting it there is easier said than done …
“Anyway, that was the basic premise: A seeming new beginning. A threat to the city. And a desperate bid to outrace a deadly countdown.”
The writer-producer said that, when the script was first written, they hoped that it would serve as a two-part premiere to set the stage for Season Six.
Mallozzi promised more hints at Extinction in the days to come. Stay tuned!
Devlin still talking Stargate movie sequels
Monday - July 4, 2011
by Romeo53
Dean Devlin, the writer and producer of the original Stargate movie, hasn’t given up on the idea of sequels to his 1994 feature film. He talked about the idea again in a new interview with Collider.
“We actually wrote it as a trilogy of movies, but we were never able to do parts two and three,” Devlin said. “So our hope is, now that the series is starting to wind down, that maybe it will be time to actually get to do parts two and three. We’re still hopeful that we’ll get to come back and tell the rest of that story.”
Stargate was directed by Roland Emmerich, and starred Kurt Russell as Colonel Jack O’Neil and James Spader as Dr. Daniel Jackson. Devlin said he would absolutely want to use the same actors. The movie was shot with a modest budget of $55 million, and released in October of 1994.
The film’s storyline was continued in five novels written by Bill McCay, but Devlin’s movies would take the story in a different direction. He’s also commented in years’ past that the films would ignore the TV series continuity, and that he thinks the two versions of Stargate could live side-by-side in the minds of audiences.
“I think it’ll change a little bit from our original idea since so many years have passed,” he said. “We wanted to explore the idea of how the Stargates were built originally, and where else in the universe they exist, and why they exist — and where else they exist on Earth. We had really planned out, as a trilogy of films, to allow this mythology to grow bigger and bigger.”
Atlantis producer reveals more Stargate: Extinction movie details
by Romeo53
Just how would that Stargate Atlantis movie have played out? Writer and executive producer Joseph Mallozzi described the script’s opening scenes to readers on his blog a few months ago (story). Now he’s offered up a few more details on the storyline that would have taken the city of the Ancients back to the Pegasus Galaxy.
Mallozzi previously revealed that Stargate: Extinction would have opened with Atlantis relocated from its landing site in the San Francisco Bay (“Enemy At the Gate”) to the far side of the Moon, away from prying eyes. But the Ancients programmed an automated self-destruct should the city ever be taken out of Pegasus — which activates, prompting the team to fire up the stardrive and make a mad dash home.
“It’s time to get the band back together,” Mallozzi continued, “and we check in with our various team members as they are called up and beamed away for the return journey: Teyla and her family, Keller, Beckett, Lorne, Zelenka and, of course, Sheppard and Ronon who are plucked away while receiving treatment at a local hospital following a barroom brawl (we went back and incorporated the scar actor Jason Momoa received following an incident near his L.A. home). Once everyone has assembled, McKay gives them the 411.
“Given the time constraints they face, they have to get back to Pegasus as quickly as possible — meaning they’ll have to use the wormhole drive again. Zelenka calculates that two jumps should do it.
“And they’re off. Sort of. The first jump ends up burning out the drive, rendering it useless and leaving them stranded with the countdown click ticking down. However, a scan of the surrounding plants turns up a habitable world within range. They go there seeking help and, instead, end up involved in a wild time-travel themed adventure in which Todd, the Wraith, turns out to be, simultaneously, their hugest threat and biggest ally.”
Stargate: Extinction was announced by MGM and Syfy Channel in 2008, and scripted by Mallozzi and Paul Mullie. Financial issues forced the studio to put the film on the back burner. After MGM passed through bankruptcy and took on new CEOs at the end of 2010, hopes for Extinction were ended.
There are still hopes that the studio might allow a publisher to turn the script into a novel or comic book, but so far MGM hasn’t made any plans known — not even to Mallozzi.
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