"Children of the Gods" is the first episode of the military science fiction television series Stargate SG-1. It was written by producers Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright and was directed by Mario Azzopardi. The episode first aired on July 27, 1997, on Showtime. Originally presented as a television movie, the episode would later be split into two parts for repeats and syndicated viewings. A new updated cut entitled "Children of the Gods – The Final Cut" was released on DVD on July 21, 2009 by MGM Home Entertainment.
The story follows retired United States Air Force Colonel Jack O'Neill (portrayed by Richard Dean Anderson) who is recalled by General George Hammond (portrayed by Don S. Davis) to Stargate Command after it is attacked by an alien force. After being reunited with Dr. Daniel Jackson (portrayed by Michael Shanks) who has been living in secret on the alien world of Abydos, O'Neill and Captain Samantha Carter (portrayed by Amanda Tapping) learn that the Stargate network traverses the entire galaxy. After O'Neill, Carter, and Jackson discover where the attackers came from, the team travels to a new world where they encounter a race of beings posing as Gods called the Goa'uld and find an unlikely ally named Teal'c (portrayed by Christopher Judge).
Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright developed the series to follow on from the events of 1994 film by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich, incorporating a number of elements such as settings and characters. The pilot was filmed in and around Vancouver, British Columbia and had a budget of $7.5 million. While the episode originally received mixed reviews, it gained a sizable following that would lead to the show lasting for 10 seasons with 214 episodes as well as various spinoff shows.
Background
One year previously, as depicted in the movie Stargate, Colonel Jack O'Neill (originally spelled O'Neil, portrayed by Kurt Russell) led a team through the Stargate to the planet Abydos, tasked with destroying any potential threat to Earth. After killing the Goa'uld System Lord Ra with a nuclear bomb, O'Neill returned to Earth with two survivors of his team, Charles Kawalsky (originally portrayed by John Diehl) and Louis Ferretti (originally portrayed by French Stewart). They leave behind Dr. Daniel Jackson (originally portrayed by James Spader) with his new love Sha're (originally spelled Sha'uri, portrayed by Mili Avital) and her brother Skaara (portrayed by Alexis Cruz), falsely reporting that Dr. Jackson was killed on the mission along with the inhabitants of Abydos.
Plot
At Stargate Command in the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, five United States Air Force airmen play poker in front of a dormant covered Stargate, justifying their laid-back conduct as Stargate Command being a dead-end assignment with dwindling personnel. Airman Carol Weterings (Rachel Hayward), the only member of the group to raise concerns, notices the room shaking and investigates the Stargate, which suddenly activates. Warriors in metal armour with serpent helmets (Jaffa) appear through the gate and grab Weterings. Teal'c (Christopher Judge) presents her to their leader (the Goa'uld Apophis) to examine, before ordering his men to open fire, killing the other airmen. A quick reaction force led by Major General George Hammond (Don S. Davis) arrives to witness the Jaffa leaving with Weterings through the Stargate. Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) is brought to Cheyenne Mountain where he is questioned along with his former teammates Charles Kawalsky (Jay Acovone) and Louis Ferretti (Brent Stait) about his first mission through the Stargate to Abydos.
With O'Neill unwilling to give any more information than what was already on their mission reports, Hammond believes the only response is to send a nuclear bomb through the Stargate to Abydos, to eliminate the threat. O'Neill reveals he lied about using the bomb to destroy Abydos and that although the alien Ra was killed, the people of Abydos are still alive and Dr. Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) is living among them. O'Neill convinces Hammond to let him communicate with Jackson by sending a box of tissues through to Abydos, which is promptly returned with a request to "send more" by Jackson, proving he is still alive. Hammond reinstates O'Neill to active duty and orders him to return to Abydos to investigate where the alien invaders came from. A team is assembled with O'Neill commanding, along with Kawalsky, Ferretti, and Captain/Dr. Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping). When they step through the Stargate, they find a group of Abydonians waiting for them, armed with military weapons from Earth.
After being reunited with Jackson, Skaara (Alexis Cruz), and Jackson's spouse Sha're (Vaitiare Bandera), O'Neill, Kawalsky, and Carter are led by Jackson to a large cavernous room, filled with what he believes to be coordinates of a vast network of Stargates across the entire galaxy. While O'Neill and the others are away, the same Jaffa team arrives through Abydos Stargate, kidnapping Skaara and Sha're, severely injuring Ferretti, and killing several civilians. After returning to Earth, and learning that the Stargate can go to other worlds, nine teams are put together, including SG-1, led by O'Neill with Carter his second-in-command and Jackson, who is determined to find Sha're, accompanying him. Kawalsky is given command of SG-2. Ferretti is able to recall the coordinates entered by the enemy troops on the Stargate, and the two teams head through the Stargate once more.
Meanwhile, Jackson's wife Sha're is selected as host to a Goa'uld, Amonet, the Queen of Apophis. After coming through the Stargate, SG-1 encounters a group of monks who escort them to a town of Chulak where they encounter Apophis and the now possessed Sha're, before being captured. In prison, O'Neill, Carter, and Jackson find Skaara and are confronted by the enemy soldier Teal'c, who has noticed their technology. Skaara is selected to become a host and Teal'c is ordered to execute the remaining prisoners, but O'Neill, noticing Teal'c's hesitancy, convinces him to help them escape.
O'Neill, Carter, Jackson, and Teal'c lead the prisoners toward the Stargate but are pinned down by two Goa'uld death gliders from above. O'Neill and Teal'c manage to damage one before being rescued by SG-2, who destroy the other. As team and liberated prisoners reach the Stargate, they are once again met by a possessed Skaara, who departs through the Stargate. Daniel rushes to open the Stargate back to Earth as the team defends against a battalion of attacking Jaffa. As they retreat through the Stargate to Earth, Kawalsky is invaded by an infant Goa'uld.
Safely home on Earth, Jackson and O'Neill reaffirm their determination to find Sha're and Skaara and rescue them. O'Neill asks General Hammond to make Teal'c a member of their team, but the General says it is not his decision. As everyone leaves the gate room, Kawalsky's eyes glow like a Goa'uld.
Production
Development
After learning MGM were looking to develop a show based upon the 1994 film, Stargate, Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright - who worked on science fiction series The Outer Limits together - both individually pursued the project. At the time, Glassner who was living and working out of Vancouver, Canada, was keen to move back home to Los Angeles in the United States. Keen to keep Glassner with MGM in Vancouver, Glassner told them that he would only stay if they gave him Stargate. Some weeks later, Glassner and Wright were paired to develop the series together. Pitching to MGM and Showtime, they imagined the Stargate being run in a similar way to the NASA program, with teams going out and exploring. Keen to avoid comparisons to Star Trek, Stargate was set in the present day, not the future, with the teams going through the gate being outgunned and outmatched by the other races they encounter.
Glassner and Wright completed their first draft of the pilot on October 18, 1996. Whilst many elements remain the same or similar in the completed script, the earlier draft had a number of key differences. Dr. Samantha Clayman, who was later re-imagined as Captain Samantha Carter, was penned by the duo as a theoretical astrophysicist, with a disdain for the military despite being a Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. The more abrasively imagined character also didn't warm to the other characters, including Dr. Jackson.
Continuing the feature film's use of Ancient Egyptian deities, Apep, the serpent "Lord of Chaos" was imagined as the pilot's antagonist before settling on his alternative name of Apophis. The early draft had Apep cradling the Goa'uld symbiote from a fallen soldier, whilst his world of Chulak was conceived as being covered in snow. The Stargate Facility on Earth also had some differences, with Glassner and Wright imagining giant concrete doors shutting in front of the gate to stop unwanted visitors. Towards the pilot's climax, a Goa'uld symbiote attaches itself to a member of SG2, Corporal Warren, making its way back to Earth before being discovered and destroyed by O'Neill. This was later reshaped into SG2 leader Major Kawalsky's being taken as a host by a Goa'uld symbiote at the end of the pilot.
Cast
John Symes, the president of MGM, had a relationship with Richard Dean Anderson and his producing partner Michael Greenburg and suggested that Anderson take over the role of Colonel Jack O'Neill. Believing he would be unable to portray the strict, humourless military officer that Kurt Russell had depicted in the feature film, Anderson initially declined the offer until he was told that the show had already been given a 44 episode commitment and that he would be given ample leeway to shift the character away from Russell's version.
For recasting Daniel Jackson, the team viewed auditions for around 500 actors, before narrowing it down to just 3 who were all very different. Michael Shanks, who was finishing his second year at Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Toronto, submitted a video audition before being flown to Los Angeles, with Shanks recalling that he "must have tested for everybody at MGM and Showtime". Shanks got on well with Richard Dean Anderson during the process, and Glassner had a hunch that whilst Shanks appeared nervous, he would be able to bring wit and a sense of humour to the role.
As well as bringing back O'Neill and Jackson from the film, Wright was adamant they introduce new characters, including a strong female character that would end up being Samantha Carter. In the casting process, the studio executives were predominantly interested in casting an actress based upon her physical attributes, with Glassner recalling that the studio "wanted this other woman who was sort of the cliché hot woman who didn't come across as very bright", whilst Wright and Glassner wanted Tapping for the role.
The part of Teal'c was conceptualised as a way of introducing the Goa'uld and Jaffa elements of the show's story. Christopher Judge first learnt of the part from a friend's roommate, who was also reading for the part and told his agent he would leave their agency unless they got him an audition for the role.
The role of General Hammond was originally imagined by Wright and Glassner as a black American man, resembling politician, diplomat, and United States Army four-star general Colin Powell. Shooting the pilot, director Mario Azzopardi wanted Davis to portray the character as a stereotypical military general, with Davis calling Hammond "by-the-book" and a "foil for O'Neill", believing the character to be two-dimensional and a poor representation of what the United States military was really like. Davis, having served in the United States Army during the Vietnam War criticized Azzopardi's "limited imagination", and as the show progressed successfully encouraged Wright and Glassner to write his character to be a more well-rounded, better representation of a military general. Williams cut his dreadlocked hair off for the role, with Azzopardi suggesting that Williams look at people with delusions of grandeur for research, with Williams using Benito Mussolini as a template. Sha're (originally spelled Sha'uri) was another character taken from the feature film. Vaitiare Bandera, who had been unsuccessful auditioning for the role as the character in the feature film was cast in the pilot. Bandera agreed to a topless scene, but this was changed during post to use full-frontal nude shoots. A reluctant Bandera was talked into agreeing after the scenes were slightly shortened. The producers had approached John Diehl, who originally portrayed Lieutenant Kawalsky in the feature film, to reprise his role, under the direction that Diehl would only return for 2 episodes. Diehl then decided he no longer wanted the part and it was recast to Jay Acovone. Although Acovone was open to playing the part for longer, the scripts for the first part of the season had already been completed. The producers also approached Alexis Cruz, who originally portrayed Ska'ra in the feature film and asked if he would take on a recurring role in the series. Cruz was interested but did not wish to be tied to a series, so the producers brought the character back in a smaller capacity.
Major Samuels, portrayed by Robert Wisden, would reoccur a number of times over the course of the show, as would actor Gary Jones, portraying a character simply credited as "Technician". This character would eventually be named Walter, appearing in over 100 episodes. The episode was shot on 16 mm film.
The North Shore Mountains in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada served as backdrop for the alien world of Chulak, with production taking place at Mid-Valley Viewpoint. The first days of shooting on location were particularly tough for the production due to heavy wind and rain. Conditions were so tough, many of the cast and crew wondered if this was indicative of what working on the show was going to be like, with writer and producer Jonathan Glassner initially wondering if the series was jinxed. Amongst the problems caused by the adverse weather was the entire first day's film being scratched, to the point it was mostly unusable. The noise generated by the wind and rain meant that dialog was at times entirely inaudible, with many cast members struggling to deliver their lines due to coldness—notably Christopher Judge who at times was unable to maintain the deep imposing voice of his character, Teal'c. Many of the costumes worn by extras were soaking wet and covered in mud as the day went on.
Post production and effects
Over 240 special effects were featured in the original cut of the pilot, with the post-production team working from when filming wrapped in March all the way through until July before the premiere. A mixture of practical and computer effects were used in the pilot. Matte paintings were used as backdrops and to extend locations, such as the Abydos Pyramid, which was based upon the feature film and re-created by Kent Matheson.
A miniature model death glider, based around a similar craft from the feature film, was used for the film's climax. The model was created from Styrofoam and shot using a motion control rig by John Gajdecki's visual effects team, mostly out his own studio in Toronto.
The Stargate effect itself was shot as production for the pilot and would be reused throughout the series to save money. What was known as the kawoosh effect was shot in a similar fashion to the feature film, although due to budget constraints when the gate opens it would not recede into an introverted cone behind the Stargate as it did in the feature. The effect was created by firing an air canon into a 5'×5'×5' tank of water, with some Sapphire Sparks to add glows.
Michelle Comens, who originally worked on the pilot as a coordinator, oversaw the updates for the visual effects as part of the 2009 Final Cut. This included supplementing Death Glider sequence from the end of the pilot with new computer-generated imagery, including a second Death Glider and adding a Cargo Ship, retconning the Death Glider from being used as a transport (which had only been done in the pilot). New scenic shots for the alien planets of Abydos & Chulak were also created.
Musical score
Joel Goldsmith, who had previously worked with Brad Wright and Johnathan Glassner on their series The Outer Limits, was hired to score the series, with Rick Chadock editing. Early in production, Goldsmith opened a dialog with David Arnold, composer of the 1994 film Stargate, as he looked to incorporate the main theme from the film, as well as draw and expand upon some of the other cues.
Whilst all subsequent episodes of Stargate SG-1 would be scored with an electronic orchestra, Goldsmith utilized an orchestra to bring his score to life. Goldsmith worked on the score at his own private studio, Goldmore Studio in Sun Valley, Los Angeles, with Rick Chadock producing.
Despite resistance from Brad Wright and Joel Goldsmith, during post-production, executives at MGM and Showtime made the decision to use David Arnold's score from the 1994 film more extensively, both in-place and in some cases directly on top of Goldsmith's score. Alex Wilkinson's music editing on the pilot was nominated for a Golden Reel Award.