On "Farscape," Claudia Black and Ben Browder played the hottest couple in outer space, but these days, Black's devious new "Stargate SG-1" character, Vala, has eyes only for Dr. Daniel Jackson, who's played by Michael Shanks. Black dishes on Browder, Jackson, Shanks and "SG-1's" new bad guys below.
Vala is instrumental in kickstarting the story for the season. I was very spoilt in that regard, it was wonderful to be in the eye of the storm as far as the story was concerned and also to be given so much comedic work to do, it was such a joy for me to do those scenes with Michael Shanks, who is a fantastic comic sparring partner.
Vala turns up with a mission for the Stargate SG-1 team, and the show establishes a new set of bad guys. They're pretty evil. They seem quite benign at first, at the beginning they're not taken very seriously, but throughout these six episodes my character gets to know their capabilities. They've got some amazing new cast members, Beau Bridges and Louis Gossett Jr. And obviously I'm working with Ben in a different capacity, as different characters. His character appreciates Vala from a safe distance, he's obviously a smart fellow.
Ben's come into a show that's very established, whereas we were part of the creation of "Farscape." Rockne O'Bannon created the show and David Kemper and his staff wrote it, but so much of how the show was shot and with whom and why - so many questions posed on the show had to come from the team on the floor, me, Ben and everyone. I've been really lucky, this is an open-ended opportunity for me. It's wonderful to come back and be sort of a flash in the pan - Ben's character is a bit of a slow burn, as far as things for Ben to sink his teeth into. For me it was non-stop. Ben loves to work and drive the story. I was busy chewing the scenery.
It's very interesting the way that TV is, if you're not driving the story, if it doesn't require you're presence, you can be on the sidelines a bit. I felt guilty, they were giving me such fun stuff to play with. I would have felt guiltier had I not been in that spot on "Farscape" at first. It was always intended to be an ensemble show, but the heart of the show ended up being Crichton and Aeryn. On "Farscape," each character got to explore his or her own texture and history. So many shows produced now, the character stuff gets lost. To get to play such a different character on "Stargate", with so much comedy, and for the producers to trust me so much was great.
On "Farscape" at first Ben was the leading guy on the set, he had so much juicy fun stuff to say, and we would wait around for something to be chucked our way. As the show developed, of course we got our opportunities, but Aeryn for the first seven episodes I was still finding my feet. Ben's going through a similar experience, he's watching me and Michael carry the story.
There has to be some leeway for us as actors, we're the middlemen between writers and directors and audience and we have to deliver the goods. That's why "Stargate" was such a fortunate segue for me, director Andy Mikita and Michael Shanks and I earned each other's trust immediately. I was saying to one of the producers, "I'm like a cactus, I don't need much water, I can get prickly, but under the right conditions I might bloom." That's a slightly cheesy analogy, but I really do thrive when I get the slightest bit of support. "Stargate" is such a positive set and there was support all around me. I had executive producer Rob Cooper's trust, I'd kind of proven myself on my previous appearance, they were pleased with what I did, so my road to being trusted was a lot faster and smoother. That trust is vital for a performer, it can be a circus performer working without a net. Other players are your lifeline. I don't think you can really take risks or make risky choices without that trust and support.
In the miniseries "Farscape: Peacekeeper Wars," we had spent so much time in the trenches for four seasons. Brian Henson had directed one episode in the first season, he came back and he had missed out on the entire evolution of what had happened on the floor. We had a whole method of working, and by then it was so different from what we'd done at first. For the first two or three weeks of "Peacekeeper Wars", we had to play that trust game all over again, the clock had restarted from zero. Initially we couldn't operate at that same speed, that same shorthand, we had become renegades because we had to get it done.
Someone just asked me about chemistry, that chemistry is just "a lot of hard work." I disagree. Chemistry is about likeminded people being enthusiastic and responding to their craft and not taking themselves too seriously. In life, unless you have the capability to step outside yourself and be able to laugh… for me to have had that chemistry with Ben then have it again with Michael Shanks and Andy Mikita and a whole bunch of people on the crew... . It's nine years on for them and none of them are complaining.
The set is a tough environment and if they didn't like it, they wouldn't be there. They're kind to one another, they're respectful. But they also understand it's just a job, they have to go home to their families. It was wonderful to hear one director say, "I'm not going to do overtime tonight, it's bath time for the children and I don't want to miss it."
The window isn't closed on Vala. That's for sure. It really depends on if I'm available, and they can get what they want storywise. It's a nice position to be in, to be in love with a character you've played, who may live on again, who you want to go back to. I'll leave you with the image of the Australian coat of arm, which has the kangaroo and emu on either side, two animals that are incapable of walking backwards. I as an actor am incapable of going backwards. It's been an interesting challenge first on "PK Wars" to go back to Aeryn, it's nice to know Vala could come back as well.