1019 wraiths

I was watching a DVD from the first season of “Stargate: Atlantis” and listening to a commentary while watching an episode. The commentary was voiced by the episode director and one of the series’ regulars.

The director was talking about the Wraiths, the “villains” of the series. The Wraith hierarchy consists of a queen at the top, drones at the bottom, and workers in the middle. Much like ants or bees (the colony ships are called “hives”), the workers and drones are male. The drones are large and muscular (imagine guys as big as NFL linebackers, but without shoulder pads) but have no facial features to differentiate them.

The “workers” however, are about six feet two, muscular and trim, with faces that express emotions and intent. The director mentioned that the creators wanted them to be similar, so that they would appear the same throughout the race. The director mentioned that it was thought to be a casting nightmare, since the part would require supporting actors that matched a specific set of criteria.

Then someone realized that the “worker” in each episode was “killed off”, so it was possible to re-cast the same actor but make small changes in the facial make-up. And so it was done that way.

The series’ regular commented that he thought it was a different person each time, because he didn’t get a chance to see him until after the make-up was finished, so each week, when they started taping a new episode, he made it a point to introduce himself. It was at a party halfway through the season that he met the actor who played all of the parts and was told by the supporting actor that the situation was quite amusing.

On a side note, the “workers” didn’t have names, so for ease, the cast and crew gave them “names” such as “Bob”, “Lenny” or “Steve”. It was easier than saying, “Hey you, stand at this mark and face the camera!”