5 Stargate Atlantis Actors You Should See In These Christmas TV Movies
4. Michael Shanks aka Dr. Daniel Jackson The Christmas Lodge
Michael Shanks starred in the original Stargate SG-1 series as Dr Daniel Jackson, an expert in languages who didn't always see eye-to-eye with the military, and due to Atlantis and SG-1 both being on-air together for a time, ended up appearing in Atlantis' pilot and as a guest in a couple of crossover episodes. In the Christmas Lodge, Michael Shanks plays Jack Rand, the owner of the lodge and the love-interest of Mary Tobin. She rediscovers the lodge, where she and her family used to spend their Christmas'es, when she comes across Jack's daughter on a hike in the area. Taking her home she reconnects with Jack, who explains that the lodge is need of a lot of repair. Full of nostalgia, and wishing to bring her ill grandfather back to the lodge for Christmas, she offers to help him renovate the place. Michael Shanks puts in a really good, subtle performance as the practical single dad in this film, but doesn't really have much else to do, as most of the emotional acting is given to the protagonist Mary. The film also has a religious tone to it that might make it somewhat tedious to the secular viewer, but uplifting to those who want to see a Christmas film that focuses more on having a little faith, than just romance or Santa Claus. Best line from the film: Jack: (about him and his daughter) Does your family always take in strays so effortlessly? Mary: (laughs) Well, they do if they like them....
