Sure, we all know that Ben Browder stepped in to lead SG-1 during the show’s last few years — but he was apparently supposed to anchor another Stargate show first.

Fresh off his acclaimed run on Farscape, Browder was a bankable star for the SCIFI Channel back in the early 2000s. So when the producers behind Stargate Atlantis started putting the cast together for the spinoff series in 2003-2004, Browder was on the short list.

But there was just one problem — Farscape fans are a lively bunch, and had successfully lobbied for a followup miniseries to bring the narrative to an end after the show was canceled on a WTF-inducing cliffhanger. The shooting schedule for Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars coincided with work on the pilot for Stargate Atlantis, so Browder ultimately had to pass on the gig to wrap up his old show.

Enter Joe Flanigan, who would ultimately take on the role of Atlantis’ Maj. John Sheppard instead of Browder — and do a bang-up job with the character in the process. The actors are pretty similar, and it's not much of a stretch to see how the writers originally envisioned Browder in the role.

Of course, that wasn’t the end of the story for Browder when it came to Stargate. Though the Atlantis job didn’t work out, the producers did bring him in for the role of Cameron Mitchell on Stargate SG-1’s last few seasons, after Richard Dean Anderson opted to reduce his workload as part of a semi-retirement.

So it might not have been in the Pegasus Galaxy — but Browder still got to have his fair share of adventures through the ‘gate.

(Via IMDB)

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