Stargate Atlantis: “Irresponsible”
Actor Robert Davi breathed life into one of Stargate Atlantis‘s most memorable bad guys: the ruthless Genii Commander Kolya, who would stop at nothing to undermine Sheppard’s team and win a victory for his people. From his first appearance in “The Storm” Kolya became a foil for Major Sheppard (Joe Flanigan), returning throughout the show’s 5-year run as a recurring thorn in his side.
While he enjoyed the character and his time on the show, Davi reveals that he had hopes for his character to go in a surprising direction.
“It was very collaborative, and I remember having a good time with the cast,” Davi remembers. He talked about his big debut in Season One’s “The Storm” and “The Eye,” and serving as a foil to Joe Flanigan’s John Sheppard, in a conversation with “Dial the Gate.”
“We were drenched,” he said, “and it was interesting to have those climate change aspects to the series, and to be acting under those conditions is fun.” Check out this clip from the conversation:
While the Atlantis writers chose to kill off the character in Season Three (“Irresponsible”), that didn’t prevent him from returning again in the show’s final year (“Remnants”). Had he had the chance to come back for more, Davi says he would have liked to see his character become a surprise ally with the Atlantis team against their common enemy.
“It was fun creating [Acastus] Kolya, [and] I thought he was a little short-lived,” Davi said. “I think they could have done more to the character. I always saw him as joining force with [Atlantis] for a time. It makes sense. Why — why not? You have a strong presence of this character. … But the producers don’t see it. They’re locked into something else. They could have easily made Kolya a character that helped Sheppard and the rest of them fight — and then they could have had their [conflict].”
Kolya has Sheppard prisoner. From “Common Ground”
“I think the revenge aspect was a little too petty for him,” Davi said. “It wasn’t so much revenge as control. And again, that’s in my subtextual analysis … it’s not necessarily on the page. But it would lead to a few things.”
Seeing Sheppard forge a tense alliance with Kolya in the fight against the Wraith would definitely have been a fascinating turn for that antagonist, and his relationship with Sheppard. But the writers relished the chance to have Sheppard and Kolya always at odds — and ultimately have the Colonel take him out.
Head over to “Dial the Gate” on YouTube to find the full interview with Robert Davi. While you’re there, subscribe to GateWorld’s YouTube channel for more Stargate content!