....both for a limited time only. Coincidence?!

To answer a lot of the questions I’m getting:

YES - McKay & Eli were arguing about something specific.

YES - It was decided ahead of time what it was.

YES - We chose sides. (though I was allowed to change mine)

NO - I won’t tell you... yet.

Tell you what, if anyone remembers to ask me at any of my upcoming appearances (as of now, just DragonCon. Though there are a couple others in the works) then I promise to answer. Mwahahaha.

   I had a lot of fun working with David, of course. We had already spoken on many occasions, but having been a fan of his work for a while it was nice to actually get screen time with him. I even fanboy-ed over lunch and told him how he was both part of the reason I took the job and also part of the reason I almost didn’t. Long story. Again, ask me in person. ;)

   I took a lot of photos on set throughout the “SGU” experience, including this day. But I keep a lot of them for myself or those of us involved. Who knows, as time presses on, keep checking back on this site to see if more and more appear.

   I’m glad a lot of you are enjoying the recent episodes of the show. I thought I could use this blog to address a lot of your concerns:

Did we know we weren’t being renewed while filming?

   No. We filmed the show far ahead of the airing. The ratings were slipping as we were filming, but we had no idea what decision Syfy would make as to renewing the show. We all held on to hope, as we VERY much enjoyed working together and working on the show. But we were’t told until December, after we had already wrapped and most of us had left Vancouver for the hiatus.

Does the show wrap things up?

   That’s a tough one. The end of the season wasn’t meant to be the end of the show, no. But as one of our producers said, it is actually kind of poetic. If it ends up being the last you see of “SGU”, it’s a fun ending, really. I’m very curious to hear what you guys think of it.

Why should I watch now if it’s already cancelled?

   There are still those of us holding on to that hope that there’s more to the story. Whatever form that may be. And the best way to show that you want that, that there’s an audience for that, is to keep watching the last few episodes. Show your support. LIVE. Talk about it. Spread the word.

Who’s to blame?

   That’s a hard one. I only mention this one to alleviate some pressure off the producers (or as some of you say “The Powers That Be”.) They had nothing to do with us not getting renewed. If they had their way, we’d be slotted for 5 seasons at least. Ultimately, the decision rests with the network. And as hard as it is for anyone to admit, you at least have to consider their stance. The ratings were low. (***I agree with all of you 100% that the current ratings system is broken. It sucks that nobody can account for all of the illegal downloads, late watches, international audience, etc. However, this IS THE SYSTEM AS IT STANDS. Until it changes, this is how it is done.*** [see below]) In the end, the decision to renew a show rests in the hands of the network.

You didn’t want to do it anymore, anyway, right?

   Don’t be ridiculous. We were all making a living doing something we loved and were proud of with people that we loved to be around. Why the hell wouldn’t we want to do more of that?!

Why aren’t you fighting to keep the show going?

   How? I don’t have a bajillion dollars to fund the show. Do you? Plus, a network has to be interested in airing it. (see below) Also, as I’ve addressed before, there are FAR too many, separate “save our show” campaigns. It’s fractured. None of us can support one, without ignoring the others. There is strength in unity, and at the moment it’s fractured. And on top of that, there are some people out there using these things for personal gain. Not cool, dude.

Would you do more “SGU” if something happened?

   In a HEARTBEAT. I love the show, the people and my character. It’s depressing to think that I won’t be playing Eli anymore. I think we ALL would welcome the opportunity to work together again.

What is next for you?

   At the moment, I’m not sure. I’m back in Los Angeles, back at the stereotypical grind. For now, the future is uncertain, but I’m hopeful that I’ll be announcing something wonderful to you all soon.

    I’d like to express my undying gratitude to ALL of you for your support. Some of you have been with me since my first commercial, some since “Ugly Betty” and some only recently. But that fact that any of you care enough about little old me, let alone enough to support me from endeavor to endeavor, is beyond humbling. You’re amazing people and I couldn’t have done any of this without you. Thank you for joining me on this crazy journey. I’m blessed to do what I love.

   I only ask that you stay positive. Treat each other well, please. Remember that we exist in an incredibly age. We have access to each other through technology now that we didn’t before. It used to take ages for a letter to be mailed. Then it took ages for a dial-up message board to update. Then it took ages for an email to be read. Now, with texts, tweets and lightning-fast internets, we all have this wonderful ability.... to be a dick to each other. In the words of Wil Wheaton: “Don’t be a dick.”

;)

D

___________________________________________________________

(The below isn’t meant to be patronizing or pandering. It exists only in an effort to explain the current model for those out there who don’t understand it. It’s a tool and is only meant as an attempt to help.)

*** I don’t get it. Why is it done this way? That’s STUPID.

   Television shows were first created for one reason -- to fill space and keep people watching between commercials. This model still exists today. Shows with good ratings stay on the air because advertisers buy space between that show to sell their product. The more successful a show is, the more expensive the time during that show. And thereby, studios/networks recoup what they spent on a show (or make a profit). This is why “hit” shows are so important. It means more people are watching the advertisements DURING that show. Therein lies the current dilemma. With the advent of DVRs, people can record a show and skip the commercials entirely. I don’t know about you guys, but when I DVR’d a show, I am fast-forwarding through those commercials so fast it might as well be considered it a sport. Seriously. It’s like a mini-game. Seeing how close to the show I can stop it. (XBox, get on that.) If somebody is doing that, the advertiser no longer feels as strong a desire to buy space during that show... because it means those people are not watching their “product”. (Do you see their point of view, at least?)

   Now let’s address the ever-mentioned international audience. First off, I LOVE YOU! :) I really do. Thanks so much for watching. But let’s speak plainly. A “hit” TV show in the United States pulls in 10-15 million viewers. A “hit” TV show in Canada pulls in 900,000 viewers. Does this mean that Canadians aren’t as cool as Americans? (Having just spent two years in Canada, I can honestly say F-THAT! I loves me my Canadians.)  Just from numbers alone, you can see that advertisers would be less willing to continue supporting a show, because fewer people are seeing it. Not less important, just fewer. Same goes for other areas. It’s a numbers game, because money is involved. They want the money they’re spending to get out to as large an audience as possible.

   Illegal downloads. Ah, Illegal downloads. You white-hot topic, you. Let’s first address semantics. Illegal downloads. Illegal. Downloads. ILLEGAL. Downloads. It’s called piracy, plain and simple, my techno-keen friends. I’ve heard all the stories. I get it. (I’m looking at you Australia. You guys got screwed in the television lottery, and it sucks!) However, if you download a show illegally, you can’t be surprised that it gets cancelled. The world, as it stands, exists for profit. And you’re stealing a product. Even more than that, you’re now definitely not being counted as someone who WANTS that product. So nobody has a way to know you want it. Television shows cost millions of dollars to make. Not just because the money is put in a barrel and set aflame so the rich people can keep warm. It pays the salaries of hundreds of hard-working crew (not even just the hard-working on-set crew. Don’t forget editors, sound mixers, special effects, transportation, publicists, writing assistants, PAs, etc.) It buys or rents very expensive equipment. It pays the rent for the studio that the show shoots in. It pays the rent for the location the show shoots in. It pays to feed the cast and crew (who sometimes work 24 hours). Wouldn’t it be great if we could count all of the people who illegally download a show towards the ratings? Hells yes, it would. However, not only is there not currently a way to do that, but why would advertisers care? Torrents usually have the commercials removed. So why would they spend money when you just took out the only reason they spent it in the first place? Hence why the only legitimate argument for online viewing is for sites that CAN be counted (i.e. advertised on) -- such as Hulu, iTunes and network sites.

   As somebody who wants to spend his lifetime in this industry, I hope that we figure out a way to rectify all of this. I want everyone, in every country, to be able to see a show -- ALL AT THE EXACT SAME TIME -- and be counted. If I could figure out how to do that, I’d be rich. Until then, this is the system. I agree, it sucks big fat donkey balls. So, instead of bitching about how MUCH it sucks, let’s either fix it or accept it.