Fans May Take A While To Adjust To Picardo On 'Atlantis'

Especially as fans first grew to love Torri Higginson, and later Amanda Tapping.

"I was at the premiere for ['Stargate: Continuum' Thursday] night, which was pretty spectacular," Picardo told thousands of people who crowded into a ballroom at Comic-Con International in San Diego. "I've never been at a premiere on top of an aircraft carrier before. And when I laid eyes on Amanda, she was so beautiful. Even I would rather watch her than me."

Picardo described Tapping as a "terrific actress, but "I don't look like I am trying to replace her in any way. In fact, I'm trying to provide a middle-aged, bald alternative."

That alternative, joked co-executive producer Martin Gero, has been "sorely underrepresented" in the Stargate universe.

Woolsey, however, will be a bit different than his numerous appearances on both "Stargate: SG-1" and "Atlantis," especially as writers have now been able to define the character quite a bit more.

"We find out that Woolsey is divorced, and his wife got the dog in the divorce," Picardo said. "This is a guy for me who is really a briefing room guy, a theorist, who is thrown into the action and has to make the decisions. He's used to evaluating others, so this is really new to him. He knows all the rules, but is now trying to make himself into a leader. He first has to learn how to interact with other people, because he is kind of a prick."

"Atlantis" this season will have some strong guest roles. Michael Shanks will return as Daniel Jackson in the fifth season's two-parter, a role Gero said normally would be heavily focused on the "Atlantis" mythology. Instead, the story will focus more around Jackson, and be kind of a standalone.

Also making their way back for at least one episode is Tapping herself, who had to leave "Atlantis" after one season when SciFi Channel picked up "Sanctuary," which will premiere in the fall.

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