Jennifer Keller
Encyclopedia
Dr. Jennifer Keller is a fictional character
from the Canadian-American military science fiction
series Stargate Atlantis
, a spin-off
series to Stargate SG-1
. She is played by Canadian actress Jewel Staite
, who previously played the Wraith
Ellia in season two
episode "Instinct". She was created by the producers, who wanted someone to fill in for Carson Beckett
after Paul McGillion
's departure from regular status in the series. Keller had a recurring role in the fourth season
, and was later promoted to a regular in Season 5
.
Dr. Keller was introduced in the third season finale, "First Strike
". She is a brilliant young doctor and becomes a member of the Atlantis Expedition, and has taken charge as Atlantis' Chief Medical Officer, after the death of Dr. Carson Beckett
. At first, she appears as a non-assertive character, but has proven to be courageous over time. Towards the end of the fifth season, she starts a relationship with fellow expedition member Rodney McKay
. In 2008, Staite was nominated for a Gemini Award
in "Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role" for her role as Keller, and in 2009, she was also nominated for a Leo Award in "Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Dramatic Series."
. A few years before joining the Atlantis Expedition her mother dies and she becomes all her father has left. She has vertigo
. During her schooling years, she is three years ahead of her class, having graduated high school
at the age of 15 and earns a Bachelor's degree before she becomes 18. She is then trained to be a doctor, where she soon becomes Atlantis'
Chief Medical Officer, with some reluctance, after the death of former Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carson Beckett
. She also says that she is no Carson, but Dr. Weir
assures her she will do just fine. One of her first duties is to try and save Dr Weir's life, after she is critically injured due to the Asuran beam grazing the tower before the city can escape from the Asurans. She talks with McKay and tells him that he could save her life with Replicator nanites that once infected her.
She is one of many people affected by nightmares in Atlantis after Colonel John Sheppard
touches a crystal life form that invades people's nightmares. In hers, she dreams that Teyla Emmagan
suffers severe abdominal pain and dies when an alien insect bursts out of her stomach. She and Teyla both went to New Athos on a medical check up. After discovering the Athosians were missing, she helps Teyla through the night, and even overcomes some of her fears and drawbacks from her early years, after injuring Nabel, who is later revealed to have worked for Michael. When she gets back to Atlantis, she is the one who discovers that Teyla is pregnant. After finding the clone of Beckett, she realises that Michael made an injection to keep his cells from deteriorating. When she is unable to find a band-aid measure, she places him in stasis to give her and a team enough time to solve the problem. Two months later, she was able to wake up Beckett's clone from the stasis pod, after she found the solution from Michael's database from M2S-445. Unfortunately, she is exposed to a compound that would turn her into a Hive Ship, and threatened the base. Cloned Beckett is able to find a cure and stops the process before the IOA considers killing her. Later on, she finds a gene therapy
from Michael's database that would eliminate the Wraith's dependence on feeding on human
s.
, who saves her life when trapped in an abandoned Genii
mine with him and Carter
. In an alternate timeline, she develops a romantic interest in McKay after they both leave the Atlantis Project, although later in this time line she dies from complications which are caused by repeated exposure to the Hoffan Drug which causes Rodney to set out to correct the error and send Sheppard back to his timeline which essentially destroys the alternate timeline. In the proper timeline, McKay admits to her that he loves her, and has for some time. Ronon also reveals a romantic interest in Keller. However, when Dr. Keller realizes his intentions, she tells Ronon that she is interested in someone else. Later on a trip back to Earth, McKay and Dr. Keller are among the people locked down in a facility while they are on a date together. After McKay revives her from a hypothermic shock, McKay and Dr. Keller share a passionate kiss. Then Dr. Keller openly professes her love for McKay and says that she has "loved him for some time now".
Jewel Staite
, who plays Dr. Keller, previously played Ellia in the Stargate Atlantis
episode "Instinct". Staite was well-known among sci-fi fans for playing Kaylee Frye in the cult series Firefly, and is the third regular Firefly actor to go on to appear in the Stargate franchise
. The others were Adam Baldwin
(Jayne Cobb in Firefly) who played Colonel Dave Dixon, and Morena Baccarin
(Inara Serra in Firefly) who played Adria.
Executive producer Martin Gero
created the character of Jennifer Keller while writing "First Strike
". The producers decided to cast Jewel Staite
for the role as Keller after they enjoyed working with her previously as Ellia in "Instinct". After Paul McGillion
departed from the series as Carson Beckett
, Gero wanted Keller not to replace Beckett, but rather fill in for him. Gero also wanted to make Keller's situation endearing if she was uncomfortable in her new position, and didn't want it in the first place. She was also originally created to be a Canadian
character, and while fiming the episode, she held a Canadian flag patch
. However, because Paul Mullie
thought there were already enough Canadian characters in the series (which include Rodney McKay
and Chuck), she was turned into an American instead, after filming was completed, so the visual effects team wiped away the Canadian flag and replaced it with a CGI flag of the US.
She was given a recurring status for the fourth season
, though the number of episodes she would appear in varied. In October 2006, it was revealed that she would appear in 13 to 15 episodes. However, by February 2007, it was revealed she would appear in eight episodes. By the time the season aired, she appeared in eleven episodes in total. She was promoted to a regular for the fifth season. Reportedly, Staite was eager for her new role as a regular. One of her first roles for the fifth season was "The Seed", where Staite had to be up at 4:00am for an extensive three to four hours with prosthetics.
from her role in Durham County
. Staite's acting for the season five episode "Tracker" was also nominated for the "Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Dramatic Series" for the 2009 Leo Awards.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the Canadian-American military science fiction
Military science fiction
Military science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction in which the principal characters are members of a military service and an armed conflict is taking place, normally in space, or on a planet other than Earth...
series Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate franchise. The show was created by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper as a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1, which was created by Wright and Jonathan Glassner and was itself...
, a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
series to Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 feature film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich...
. She is played by Canadian actress Jewel Staite
Jewel Staite
Jewel Belair Staite is a Canadian actress, who portrayed Catalina in Space Cases, Kaylee Frye in Firefly and Serenity, and Dr. Jennifer Keller on Stargate Atlantis.-Personal life:...
, who previously played the Wraith
Wraith (Stargate)
In the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, the Wraith are the original enemy alien species, first introduced in the pilot episode . In the series, they are a vampire-like telepathic race who feed on the "life-force" of humans, and are the dominant power in the Pegasus galaxy...
Ellia in season two
Stargate Atlantis (season 2)
The second season of the television series Stargate Atlantis commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 15, 2005, concluded on The Movie Network in Canada on January 30, 2006, and contained 20 episodes. The show itself is a spin off of its sister show, Stargate SG-1. The...
episode "Instinct". She was created by the producers, who wanted someone to fill in for Carson Beckett
Carson Beckett
Dr. Carson Beckett is a fictional Scottish character in the Canadian-American science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1. He is portrayed by Scottish-born Canadian actor Paul McGillion, who previously played Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the first season of...
after Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion is a Vancouver-based actor who has worked in television, film and theatre since 1990. He is best known for his role on the television series Stargate Atlantis as Dr. Carson Beckett.-Early life:...
's departure from regular status in the series. Keller had a recurring role in the fourth season
Stargate Atlantis (season 4)
Season four of Stargate Atlantis, an American-Canadian television series, began airing on September 28, 2007 on the US-American Sci Fi Channel. The fourth season concluded after 20 episodes on March 7, 2008 on Sci Fi. The series was developed by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, who also served as...
, and was later promoted to a regular in Season 5
Stargate Atlantis (season 5)
The fifth season of the military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 11, 2008, concluded on the same channel on January 9, 2009, and contained 20 episodes. The show itself is a spin off of its sister show, Stargate...
.
Dr. Keller was introduced in the third season finale, "First Strike
First Strike (Stargate Atlantis)
"First Strike" is the 60th episode and the third season finale of the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis. The episode originally aired in Canada on February 5, 2007 on The Movie Network, and subsequently aired March 14 on Sky One in the United Kingdom, and June 22 on the United...
". She is a brilliant young doctor and becomes a member of the Atlantis Expedition, and has taken charge as Atlantis' Chief Medical Officer, after the death of Dr. Carson Beckett
Carson Beckett
Dr. Carson Beckett is a fictional Scottish character in the Canadian-American science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1. He is portrayed by Scottish-born Canadian actor Paul McGillion, who previously played Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the first season of...
. At first, she appears as a non-assertive character, but has proven to be courageous over time. Towards the end of the fifth season, she starts a relationship with fellow expedition member Rodney McKay
Rodney McKay
Doctor Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, two military science fiction television shows about a military team exploring two galaxies via a network of alien transportation devices...
. In 2008, Staite was nominated for a Gemini Award
Gemini Award
The Gemini Awards are annual television broadcasting industry awards in Canada.First awarded in 1986, the Geminis celebrate the achievements of TV members of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. Essentially, it presents awards for the best television productions in Canada. Awards are...
in "Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role" for her role as Keller, and in 2009, she was also nominated for a Leo Award in "Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Dramatic Series."
Character arc
Dr. Keller was born and raised in Chippewa Falls, WisconsinChippewa Falls, Wisconsin
Chippewa Falls is a city located on the Chippewa River in Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 13,661 at the 2010 census. Incorporated as a city in 1869, it is the county seat of Chippewa County....
. A few years before joining the Atlantis Expedition her mother dies and she becomes all her father has left. She has vertigo
Vertigo (medical)
Vertigo is a type of dizziness, where there is a feeling of motion when one is stationary. The symptoms are due to a dysfunction of the vestibular system in the inner ear...
. During her schooling years, she is three years ahead of her class, having graduated high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
at the age of 15 and earns a Bachelor's degree before she becomes 18. She is then trained to be a doctor, where she soon becomes Atlantis'
Atlantis (Stargate)
In the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, the spin-off of Stargate SG-1, Atlantis is a city-sized starship originally located in the Pegasus galaxy. Atlantis serves as the base of operations for the main characters, from which they explore other planets through the Stargate...
Chief Medical Officer, with some reluctance, after the death of former Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carson Beckett
Carson Beckett
Dr. Carson Beckett is a fictional Scottish character in the Canadian-American science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1. He is portrayed by Scottish-born Canadian actor Paul McGillion, who previously played Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the first season of...
. She also says that she is no Carson, but Dr. Weir
Elizabeth Weir (Stargate)
Dr. Elizabeth Weir is a fictional character in the Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate Atlantis, a military science fiction show about a military team exploring the galaxy via a network of alien transportation devices. Elizabeth Weir is introduced as a recurring character in...
assures her she will do just fine. One of her first duties is to try and save Dr Weir's life, after she is critically injured due to the Asuran beam grazing the tower before the city can escape from the Asurans. She talks with McKay and tells him that he could save her life with Replicator nanites that once infected her.
She is one of many people affected by nightmares in Atlantis after Colonel John Sheppard
John Sheppard (Stargate)
John Sheppard is a fictional character in the Canadian-American military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a science fiction show about a military team exploring the galaxy via a network of alien transportation devices...
touches a crystal life form that invades people's nightmares. In hers, she dreams that Teyla Emmagan
Teyla Emmagan
Teyla Emmagan was a primary fictional character played by Rachel Luttrell in the science fiction series, Stargate Atlantis. In the show, she is the daughter of Tagan, and was a leader of a village on the planet Athos...
suffers severe abdominal pain and dies when an alien insect bursts out of her stomach. She and Teyla both went to New Athos on a medical check up. After discovering the Athosians were missing, she helps Teyla through the night, and even overcomes some of her fears and drawbacks from her early years, after injuring Nabel, who is later revealed to have worked for Michael. When she gets back to Atlantis, she is the one who discovers that Teyla is pregnant. After finding the clone of Beckett, she realises that Michael made an injection to keep his cells from deteriorating. When she is unable to find a band-aid measure, she places him in stasis to give her and a team enough time to solve the problem. Two months later, she was able to wake up Beckett's clone from the stasis pod, after she found the solution from Michael's database from M2S-445. Unfortunately, she is exposed to a compound that would turn her into a Hive Ship, and threatened the base. Cloned Beckett is able to find a cure and stops the process before the IOA considers killing her. Later on, she finds a gene therapy
Gene therapy
Gene therapy is the insertion, alteration, or removal of genes within an individual's cells and biological tissues to treat disease. It is a technique for correcting defective genes that are responsible for disease development...
from Michael's database that would eliminate the Wraith's dependence on feeding on human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
s.
Love triangle
She develops a romantic interest in Ronon - an interest that appears to be mutual - while the two are locked in the Infirmary during a malfunction of Atlantis' automated lockdown procedures. They almost kissed until the lockdown ended. She later appears to have some romantic interest or maybe only fondness regarding McKayRodney McKay
Doctor Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, two military science fiction television shows about a military team exploring two galaxies via a network of alien transportation devices...
, who saves her life when trapped in an abandoned Genii
Genii (Stargate)
In the fictional universe of the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, the Genii are a human culture living in the Pegasus galaxy . Although they appear to be simple Amish-like farmers, the Genii are an advanced, militaristic society...
mine with him and Carter
Samantha Carter
Samantha "Sam" Carter is a fictional character in the Canadian-American military science fiction Stargate franchise, appearing in television series Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, and Stargate Universe. SG-1 and Atlantis are both about a military team exploring the galaxy via a network of alien...
. In an alternate timeline, she develops a romantic interest in McKay after they both leave the Atlantis Project, although later in this time line she dies from complications which are caused by repeated exposure to the Hoffan Drug which causes Rodney to set out to correct the error and send Sheppard back to his timeline which essentially destroys the alternate timeline. In the proper timeline, McKay admits to her that he loves her, and has for some time. Ronon also reveals a romantic interest in Keller. However, when Dr. Keller realizes his intentions, she tells Ronon that she is interested in someone else. Later on a trip back to Earth, McKay and Dr. Keller are among the people locked down in a facility while they are on a date together. After McKay revives her from a hypothermic shock, McKay and Dr. Keller share a passionate kiss. Then Dr. Keller openly professes her love for McKay and says that she has "loved him for some time now".
Conceptual history
Jewel Staite
Jewel Belair Staite is a Canadian actress, who portrayed Catalina in Space Cases, Kaylee Frye in Firefly and Serenity, and Dr. Jennifer Keller on Stargate Atlantis.-Personal life:...
, who plays Dr. Keller, previously played Ellia in the Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis
Stargate Atlantis is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate franchise. The show was created by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper as a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1, which was created by Wright and Jonathan Glassner and was itself...
episode "Instinct". Staite was well-known among sci-fi fans for playing Kaylee Frye in the cult series Firefly, and is the third regular Firefly actor to go on to appear in the Stargate franchise
Stargate
Stargate is a adventure military science fiction franchise, initially conceived by Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The first film in the franchise was simply titled Stargate. It was originally released on October 28, 1994, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Carolco, and became a hit, grossing nearly...
. The others were Adam Baldwin
Adam Baldwin
Adam Baldwin is an American actor, known for his roles as Animal Mother in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, Ricky Linderman in My Bodyguard, Knowle Rohrer in The X-Files, and Marcus Hamilton in Joss Whedon's Angel...
(Jayne Cobb in Firefly) who played Colonel Dave Dixon, and Morena Baccarin
Morena Baccarin
Morena Baccarin is a Brazilian-born American actress most widely known for roles in several American science fiction television shows: as Inara Serra in the series Firefly; as Adria in the series Stargate SG-1; and as Anna in the 2009 version of the series V...
(Inara Serra in Firefly) who played Adria.
Executive producer Martin Gero
Martin Gero
Martin Gero is a Canadian screenwriter and co-executive producer for Stargate Atlantis.Born in Switzerland, Gero spent much of his childhood in Ottawa, Ontario. He attended Canterbury High School for the Arts and Ryerson University in Toronto...
created the character of Jennifer Keller while writing "First Strike
First Strike (Stargate Atlantis)
"First Strike" is the 60th episode and the third season finale of the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis. The episode originally aired in Canada on February 5, 2007 on The Movie Network, and subsequently aired March 14 on Sky One in the United Kingdom, and June 22 on the United...
". The producers decided to cast Jewel Staite
Jewel Staite
Jewel Belair Staite is a Canadian actress, who portrayed Catalina in Space Cases, Kaylee Frye in Firefly and Serenity, and Dr. Jennifer Keller on Stargate Atlantis.-Personal life:...
for the role as Keller after they enjoyed working with her previously as Ellia in "Instinct". After Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion
Paul McGillion is a Vancouver-based actor who has worked in television, film and theatre since 1990. He is best known for his role on the television series Stargate Atlantis as Dr. Carson Beckett.-Early life:...
departed from the series as Carson Beckett
Carson Beckett
Dr. Carson Beckett is a fictional Scottish character in the Canadian-American science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off series of Stargate SG-1. He is portrayed by Scottish-born Canadian actor Paul McGillion, who previously played Dr. Ernest Littlefield in the first season of...
, Gero wanted Keller not to replace Beckett, but rather fill in for him. Gero also wanted to make Keller's situation endearing if she was uncomfortable in her new position, and didn't want it in the first place. She was also originally created to be a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
character, and while fiming the episode, she held a Canadian flag patch
Flag of Canada
The national flag of Canada, also known as the Maple Leaf, and , is a red flag with a white square in its centre, featuring a stylized 11-pointed red maple leaf. Its adoption in 1965 marked the first time a national flag had been officially adopted in Canada to replace the Union Flag...
. However, because Paul Mullie
Paul Mullie
Paul Mullie is a screenwriter and producer. He is credited for writing episodes of Stargate Atlantis, Largo Winch, and Stargate SG-1...
thought there were already enough Canadian characters in the series (which include Rodney McKay
Rodney McKay
Doctor Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, two military science fiction television shows about a military team exploring two galaxies via a network of alien transportation devices...
and Chuck), she was turned into an American instead, after filming was completed, so the visual effects team wiped away the Canadian flag and replaced it with a CGI flag of the US.
She was given a recurring status for the fourth season
Stargate Atlantis (season 4)
Season four of Stargate Atlantis, an American-Canadian television series, began airing on September 28, 2007 on the US-American Sci Fi Channel. The fourth season concluded after 20 episodes on March 7, 2008 on Sci Fi. The series was developed by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, who also served as...
, though the number of episodes she would appear in varied. In October 2006, it was revealed that she would appear in 13 to 15 episodes. However, by February 2007, it was revealed she would appear in eight episodes. By the time the season aired, she appeared in eleven episodes in total. She was promoted to a regular for the fifth season. Reportedly, Staite was eager for her new role as a regular. One of her first roles for the fifth season was "The Seed", where Staite had to be up at 4:00am for an extensive three to four hours with prosthetics.
Reception
For her role as Dr. Keller in the episode "Missing", Staite was nominated for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role" for the 23rd annual Gemini Awards, 2008. However, she lost to Helene JoyHélène Joy
Hélène Joy is an Australian–Canadian television actress. Her credits include roles in the television series MVP, Durham County, The Secret World of Og, An American in Canada, ReGenesis, Pearlie, and Murdoch Mysteries....
from her role in Durham County
Durham County (TV series)
Durham County is a one-hour Canadian dramatic television series produced by Back Alley Film Productions Ltd. and Muse Entertainment Enterprises...
. Staite's acting for the season five episode "Tracker" was also nominated for the "Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Dramatic Series" for the 2009 Leo Awards.
External links
- Jennifer Keller at Stargate wikia
- Jennifer Keller at scifiSci Fi Channel (United States)Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
.com