APPEARING ON SUNDAY JUNE 1, 2008 AT WIZARD WORLD PHILADELPHIA FROM THE HOURS OF 12-4PM
Fan-favorite and award-winning actress Katee Sackhoff will be attending the upcoming Wizard World Philadelphia! Sackhoff’s rough and ready portrayal of hotshot pilot Kara "Starbuck" Thrace has been stealing scenes on the critically acclaimed Battlestar Galactica for four seasons now. Since its debut in 2003, Sackhoff has been nominated for a Saturn award three times, including a win in 2006. Starbuck, the cigar-chomping and card-playing heart of the series, was originally played by Dirk Benedict in the '70s show of the same name. Fans that were initially put off by the gender switch have undoubtedly come around, as Sackhoff's Starbuck is one of the most compelling, complex, and not to mention sexy characters on television!
Q&A: KATEE SACKHOFF
The "Battlestar Galactica" star and Wizard World Philadelphia guest talks about the show’s final season, the difficulty of love scenes with her co-stars and what’s next for her
With "Battlestar Galactica" Season 4 now under way on the Sci-Fi Channel (Friday nights, 10 EST; check your local listings), we caught up with Starbuck actor Katee Sackhoff—just announced as a Special Guest at Wizard World Philadelphia May 30-June 1—to get her take on the show's final season.
Starbuck gets all kinds of action on the show. Which is tougher for you: a fight scene or a love scene? And is there anybody left among the cast that you really want to have one or the other with?
SACKHOFF: You’ve got to start out with a good one, too. I’m sitting across the table from my boyfriend right now. I would say that the sex scenes are a lot harder than I think anything that I’ve ever had to do on the show. Because it’s not natural, it's just odd, it's very odd. It makes you kind of feel cheap. Like you’re being paid to or being allowed to in a sense cheat on your significant other. It’s very weird. But the fight scenes are really easy and they come pretty naturally for me to be honest. Who would I want to fight on the show? Still thinking about not wanting to do the other thing with. I don’t know. I think I’ve fought everybody. I haven’t fought Sharon, so I’ll go ahead and say that. I think that a fight between Eddie and I would be pretty interesting.
How cool and gratifying has it been that you won over those fans who were first skeptical and negative, and on a larger scale how cool and gratifying has it been that this show, this version, gained so many fans?
It is completely gratifying in a sense. I think for the full, you know, the full reason that it’s nice to have people identify with the character that you’re playing and appreciate the work you’re doing. I don’t think I went into this trying to win over the old fans because I think that you can’t ever please everyone, and I didn’t want to focus on people that were already in a sense spewing negative energy at me. I just did what I did and it’s nice to know that they’ve been converted. For all the people who said that it wouldn’t work with a woman, it’s nice to know that it did work for sure.
What was it about the character do you think helped turn people around to accept Starbuck as a woman?
Honestly, what made people accept Starbuck as a woman was that she was just such an interesting character. You know I think once people put their guard down as far as the preconceived notions of what the show was supposed to be and just allowed it to be really good science fiction, I think that’s also probably the same time when people accepted Starbuck for being a woman was when they stopped thinking of the old show. Which is, it’d be hard to figure out when that probably happened but, probably after the first season. That cliffhanger at the very end that probably got all the fans hooked.
What should we make of the positioning in that terrific “Last Supper” picture of the BSG cast? For instance, you’re with Anders and Lee is alone, Six is in the Messiah’s position. Are there any hints there you can tell us about?
No. You know it’s interesting that everyone thinks that there’s something hidden in that “Last Supper” photo like if you look hard enough you can find there’s hidden messages in it. To be honest, I think we would have had to have been in on it to create a hidden message, and we were all just there having a photo shoot. It is interesting the way people are standing for sure; the plastic sheath with Anders is interesting, and the fact that they made Tricia the messiah is pretty interesting, too. But, you know, I wish I knew what they were thinking.
In terms of the spoilers I guess more than anything else.
It seemed like when Starbuck was killed [in Season 3], people were already expecting her to return; it doesn’t seem like there was an element of surprise. Do you think in a way it could have been handled better?
I don’t know. You can only keep a secret a secret for so long. I know that as soon as I showed back up at work, it was going to be on the Internet. But I do think they should have left me out until the very end. I think bringing Starbuck back in episode 16 kind of like, what the hell was that, you know? Why not, you know, wait until episode 20? I guess, in Ron [Moore’s] mind, he had a bigger cliffhanger, and to have a bigger cliffhanger than Starbuck coming back from the dead is, you know, only “Battlestar Galactica” could pull that off. I would definitely have told the main cast from the very beginning; having to deal with all of that with the crew and the cast was really not something that I’d like to do again, that’s for sure.
How are you and the rest of the cast feeling now that the show is ending?
I can’t speak for the rest of the cast, [but] as far as how I’m feeling, it’s interesting. There’s a selfish side to me that actually wants to go on and play different roles, so there’s an excitement brewing for everyone in a sense. That’s why you became an actorto not play the same character for 10 years.
I think that it is sad just because the work environment on “Battlestar Galactica” is absolutely amazing, and I don’t think it’s something that comes along a lot. I’ve done so many canceled television shows I can tell you that it’s not normal to enjoy going to work and to enjoy the people you work with. Chances are I’m never going to find that again, so that’s sad as well.
What kind of impact has the show had for the sci-fi genre?
What “Battlestar Galactica” did for sci-fi was, you know, they treated it like a reality. What was so interesting about our show is that we never relied on the science fiction of the show to drive the show. We relied on the drama and the human condition and those really important questions. That’s what we depended on because the show could move it along and most science fiction shows rely way too much on the bells and whistles. I think that it opened doors in science fiction.
Did you have some idea that Starbuck would become such a popular and iconic character when you signed up to do this?
I didn’t even know the show would become as iconic as it is. It’s taken on a life of its own and become something completely different than what I ever thought it would. I thought it was just going to be a paycheck. So many things had to come together to make that a reality. You know, I think that the writing was perfect and the way they wrote Starbuck was perfect. So all the planets had to align to get this to be perfect.
At the end of last season, a couple of the actors playing the final five Cylons weren’t too happy, at least initially, to find out that they were Cylons. If Starbuck turns out to be a Cylon, will you be pleased, displeased or indifferent?
Well I think the reason the four actors were upset about being Cylons is that I think, you know, you play for years making choices as a character and then to realize all those choices you made would have been different had you known. It’s interesting, it’s kind of like you get the wool pulled over your eyes for four years and then lo and behold, you know, your character’s something completely different. But I would be completely indifferent.
Could you talk a little bit about how this season we’re going to handle the marriage between Starbuck and Anders?
If I knew, I would tell you. I have no idea. You know, we are at episode 14 right now in shooting, and I am no closer to being able to have any questions answered from last season than I am now. Without giving too much away here, I think that there are more important issues being dealt with right now on the show for these characters than what Starbuck is and how her marriage is. There’s a lot of really heavy things happening right now and I think that her marriage to Anders is the least of her concerns. But at the same time it would be interesting to ask those questions, you know, because we don’t identify this thing as a person. Is her marriage even legal? I don’t know. You’re asked all those questions that everyone would probably want answered and probably would never get an answer unless I did one of the webcasts.
After playing Starbuck for four seasons, have you picked up any of her hardcore habits?
No, I still have never played a game of poker. I still don’t smoke cigars. If I was to say that I picked up something, it would be her strength and her conviction. I would like to be able to emulate that. And then just her belief in what she has to say is really impressive.
Could speak a little bit about Starbuck’s mental state going into Season Four and what finding Earth really means to her?
She’s very fragile, you know, she’s extremely lost. We’ve never seen Starbuck so alone and so lost. And she’s a little distressed, not only because of the way that people are treating her but because of the questions that her coming back has raised in her own mind. [Finding Earth is] her revolution. I think it's her end. I think that she’s putting so much weight on this one thing, this one task that she believes that is her destiny, that I think she wouldn’t let anything stand in her way. When that’s the case, you’ve got a very scary person on your hands when completely unwilling to sacrifice everything to accomplish something. That’s scary. So I think that we’re going to see a lot from her this season.
When you saw the script for “Razor” at the end where the Silent Hybrid makes the prophecy that Starbuck is a harbinger of doom, what was your initial reaction and as the season has progressed, how has that reaction changed?
I think that when I read that very end I went, “Of course she is. Like what else could happen to Starbuck?” Lay it all on me. The worst possible thing and there you have it, fantastic, she’s going to kill everybody, great. I think that that is something that has been carried through the entire season so far. As far as whether or not anyone knows, you’re going to have to wait and find out on what it really means, you know. It could mean so many different things.
What is the best memory or experience that you’re going to take with you from your time on “Battlestar,” and what one prop or piece of the set would you take with you if you could?
That’s easy. I’m getting in my flight suit with my helmet and my gun belt and driving home. I’m going to bronze that f-ing thing, I swear to God. I’m going to bronze it and put it in my bathtub so every time someone comes over and showers, they have to stand next to that flight suit. It was hell for so many years that it’s only appropriate that I get to take it with me. Granted I have to drive over a border, so maybe I’ll put the guns in the trunk and write prop on them.
I have made so many friends on the show. The friendships that you form that are through the show but you are able to maintain outside of the show. That’s really important because when you do a show, you have these grand plans of staying in touch with these people and nine times out of ten it never happens.
Ron Moore has said that he’s not interested in doing a “Battlestar” feature film. Do you think you could change his mind, and if so would you be interested in doing that film?
No, I wouldn’t want to change his mind. I think he’s right. He said it best: What would end up happening is that you would have to focus on, you know, one or two characters and what’s so brilliant is that it's been a four-year movie and the time to tell these stories about each person individually and really have you become invested in those characters. And to do a two-hour movie I think takes away from what we’ve been able to do. Plus, at the same time, as a performer when I am done with the show, I’m done with the show. As much as I love the job or don’t love the job, the last thing I want to do is come back and do it again when I’ve already done it. Talk to me in five years if I haven’t worked. We’ll see. As of right now, I have no desire to do a movie.
If you were in total control of how your character ended up toward the end of this last season, how would you have your character go out?
Die. Maybe something will blow up again on the ship. I don’t know that there is any way to end it with her being happy. What I do wish for her is peace in whatever form that comes in I’ll be happy with it. I want for her to finally have a sense of calm in her life.
With “Battlestar” ending and no “Bionic Woman,” what’s next for you? Are you looking for another action role?
Oh God I don’t know what’s next. That’s the joy of it. I’m looking for things that are complete opposite from [Starbuck and Sarah Corvus]. Whether or not people give me the opportunity to do that, I don’t know. But what’s interesting is five years ago I couldn’t get anyone to think I was tough and now I can’t get anyone to think of me as the way they did five years ago. Could just give us some more teasers as to what we’re going to see in this final season?
Well I think if “Battlestar’s” any indication at all, everyone’s going to be very shocked for sure. I think that it’s probably going to ruffle a few feathers, and I don’t think that there’s any way to make everyone happy. I said to Ron Moore from the very beginning, please don’t wrap everyone up in a pretty little box [and] put a bow on it. He would never do that because that’s not real, and “Battlestar” has always been based on reality. So I think that he will give it an ending that is fitting of “Battlestar.”
Is that the end of it? I can actually go strap on my snowboard now?
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