Why Richard Dean Anderson Was Stabbed On The Stargate SG-1 Set

When Roland Emmerich's 1994 movie "Stargate" made almost $200 million on a $55 million budget it seemed primed to become a franchise. But rather than pump out a sequel, it was decided that the saga would fare better on TV. Unfortunately, Emmerich turned down "Stargate SG-1," citing a belief that his desired budgets just wouldn't have been feasible within the confines of the small screen.

Emmerich wasn't the only one who didn't come back for the debut of the inaugural "Stargate" series. Kurt Russell chose not to return as lead character Colonel Jack O'Neill, prompting a search for a new actor that had at least some of Russell's gravitas. This resulted in "MacGuyver" star Richard Dean Anderson being drafted in to play the leader of the "SG-1" crew, tasked with exploring the universe via the titular portal. 

Mostly due to "MacGuyver," Anderson was an established star by the time he signed on to headline "SG-1," and throughout the show's run proved to be every bit the leading man the spin-off series required. But when Anderson joined the show, it seems unlikely that he anticipated ever being stabbed while he was on the clock.

With Richard Dean Anderson starring, "Stargate SG-1" became a hit, running for 10 seasons. Anderson himself left "SG-1" eventually, starting with a reduced role in season 8 before leaving completely before the series wrapped up. But there's no doubt the show wouldn't have made it as far as it did without him. Heck, the man even took a good stabbing in the course of making the series thanks to actor Michael Adamthwaite, who played Her'ak on the show.

Appearing across five episodes in seasons 6 and 7 of "SG-1," Her'ak was a Jaffa warrior and the First Prime of Anubis. The character first appeared in season 6, episode 8, "The Other Guys," in which Jack O'Neill and Her'ak come face to face after the SG-1 crew are captured by Jaffa warriors. During one interaction, Her'ak tortures O'Neill with a Rod of Anguish — a weapon that releases a painful energy into the victim — in an attempt to force him to reveal the location of the Tok'ra, a race of symbiotes. Unfortunately, Anderson's pain was a tad more real than Adamthwaite intended. In a conversation with Dial the Gate (via Gateworld), the actor revealed that he accidentally stabbed Anderson during the scene in question, saying:

"I stabbed Richard ... which was really not awesome. I've held a lot of props before, and I was told to hold it a certain way. And [in the scene] he was recoiling from electrical shock, and the cattle prod was sharp ... and he recoiled! I actually got him."

In fairness, accidents happen on set all the time. An accident nearly ended Dylan O'Brien's career and Henry Cavill suffered a nearly career-ending injury while filming "The Witcher." What's more, Adamthwaite was just following instructions, with the actor going on to explain how this particular on-set mishap transpired.

In his Dial the Gate interview, Michael Adamthwaite recalled how he was told by the prop department to hold his Rod of Anguish prop a certain way. He was told to hold the pointed end of the stick towards Richard Dean Anderson and make it touch his co-star so the VFX team could add in some digital energy pulse effects and make it look as though Her'ak was really stabbing Jack O'Neill in a close-up shot. Unfortunately, the combination of this direction from the prop staff and Anderson's reaction meant that Adamthwaite accidentally nicked his colleague. The actor recalled:

"Of course, I'm thinking, 'Hold it to him, and he won't move. Why would he recoil forward, of course if not to subtly if not really obviously simulate being electrocuted!' We came together, he got poked, he let out a really solid yelp, and then he called out the director's name. He was like, 'Martin, he got me! Oh, god!'"

Understandably, Adamthwaite felt terrible in the moment, to the extent that he had to actually exit the set in a panic. The actor recalled this being "very near to the worst day [he'd] had on set" and was convinced that his career was over. "I walked outside and I took some air," he said. "I told myself, 'You're going to get fired. You have to prepare yourself for that.' Out loud, talking to myself — 'Michael, this is how it ends. Word's going to get around. You stabbed Richard Dean Anderson.'"

Fortunately, while there are several examples of on-set accidents that almost destroyed acting careers, this wasn't one of them, as Anderson made sure Adamthwaite's panic didn't last long. According to the Her'ak actor, the "SG-1" star actually came outside to talk to him after the incident, which allayed his concerns. Still, for a moment, Adamthwaite thought it was all over, with the actor adding, "Until he came and talked to me, it was like my career was over. I was already planning, 'Maybe I'll go back to school, maybe I'll get some certification, maybe I'll drive a forklift or something.'"