Dr.
Doctor is an academic title that originates from the Latin word of the same spelling and meaning. The word is originally an agentive noun of the Latin verb 'to teach'. It has been used as an academic title in Europe since the 13th century, w ...
Radek Zelenka is a
fictional character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...
of a scientist in the 2004 television series ''
Stargate Atlantis
''Stargate Atlantis'' (usually stylized in all caps and often abbreviated ''SGA'') is an adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's ''Stargate'' franchise. The show was created by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper ...
,'' portrayed by
David Nykl
David Nykl (born 7 February 1967) is a Czech-Canadian actor of film, television, commercials and theater. He is best known for portraying Dr. Radek Zelenka in the SyFy television series ''Stargate Atlantis'' and Anatoly Knyazev in the DC Comi ...
. He is a member of the original expedition from Earth to the
Ancient
Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian language, Sumerian c ...
city of
Atlantis
Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas (mythology), Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works ''Timaeus (dialogue), Timaeus'' and ''Critias (dialogue), Critias'' ...
in the Pegasus galaxy, which he joined after turning down a job at
Masaryk University
Masaryk University (MU) ( cs, Masarykova univerzita; la, Universitas Masarykiana Brunensis) is the second largest university in the Czech Republic, a member of the Compostela Group and the Utrecht Network. Founded in 1919 in Brno as the seco ...
in his home country
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
.
His expertise on Ancient technology is only surpassed by Dr.
Rodney McKay
Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the 2004 Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series ''Stargate SG-1'' and ''Stargate Atlantis'', two military science fiction television shows about military teams exploring two gal ...
, with whom he shares a friendly rivalry. Zelenka's planned one-time appearance in the season 1 episode "
Thirty-Eight Minutes
The first season of the television series ''Stargate Atlantis'' commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 16, 2004, concluded on The Movie Network in Canada on January 31, 2005, and contained 20 episodes. The show was a ...
" was followed by a recurring role for
expository scenes with McKay and the leader of the expedition. Zelenka has since appeared in approximately half of each season's episodes and also appeared in the crossover episode "
The Pegasus Project
The tenth and final season of ''Stargate SG-1'', an American-Canadian television series, began airing on July 14, 2006 on Sci Fi Channel (United States). It concluded after 20 episodes on March 13, 2007 on Sky 1, which overtook the Sci-Fi Channel ...
" of ''
Stargate SG-1
''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction Adventure fiction, adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wrigh ...
''. The series finale of ''Atlantis'', "
Enemy at the Gate", marks his last appearance. For his portrayal of Radek Zelenka, David Nykl was nominated for a 2005
Leo Award
The Leo Awards are the awards program for the British Columbia film and television industry. Held each May or June in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the Leo Awards were founded by the Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Foundation of British C ...
in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Supporting Performance by a Male".
Role in ''Stargate''
Dr. Radek Zelenka is a careful and precise scientist of the original Atlantis Expedition who often supplements the scientific decisions of the "equally brainy" Dr.
Rodney McKay
Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the 2004 Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series ''Stargate SG-1'' and ''Stargate Atlantis'', two military science fiction television shows about military teams exploring two gal ...
, with whom he has a friendly rivalry.
He frequently appears in the control room with McKay and the leader of the Atlantis expedition for expository scenes to lay out an episode's premise to the audience,
and is "a key player in helping the Atlantis team stay one step ahead of the bad guys as well as solving some of its most perplexing scientific conundrums".
GateWorld
''Stargate'' fandom is a community of people actively interested in the military science fiction film ''Stargate'' and its television shows including ''Stargate SG-1'' (SG1), ''Stargate Infinity'' (SGI), ''Stargate Atlantis'' (SGA), ''Stargate Uni ...
's David Read felt that while Zelenka may "play second fiddle to Rodney",
he is also "the only one who even has the potential to put McKay down."
Actor David Nykl explained that Zelenka has "reasonably well honed social skills" and "can put up with a lot of stress
..and a lot of pressure, particularly from McKay and the situations that he can get into", but he may be too focused and determined to get one thing done.
Zelenka recurs in all five seasons of ''Stargate Atlantis'' and is also among the ''Atlantis'' characters to appear in the ''Stargate SG-1'' crossover episode "
The Pegasus Project
The tenth and final season of ''Stargate SG-1'', an American-Canadian television series, began airing on July 14, 2006 on Sci Fi Channel (United States). It concluded after 20 episodes on March 13, 2007 on Sky 1, which overtook the Sci-Fi Channel ...
". In his first appearance in the early ''Atlantis'' season 1 episode "
Thirty-Eight Minutes
The first season of the television series ''Stargate Atlantis'' commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 16, 2004, concluded on The Movie Network in Canada on January 31, 2005, and contained 20 episodes. The show was a ...
", Zelenka helps devise a plan to free
Major Sheppard's team including Dr. McKay from a potentially lethal technical problem.
After a first short collaboration in "
Suspicion
Suspicion is a feeling of mistrust.
Suspicion(s), The Suspicion, or Suspicious may also refer to:
Film and television Film
* ''Suspicion'' (1918 film), an American silent film directed by John M. Stahl
* ''Suspicion'' (1941 film), an American ...
", Zelenka and McKay are the driving forces in finding a solution to protect the city of
Atlantis
Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas (mythology), Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works ''Timaeus (dialogue), Timaeus'' and ''Critias (dialogue), Critias'' ...
from a massive hurricane in "
The Storm".
"
Hot Zone" reveals that Zelenka has been given the ATA gene therapy to enable him to operate Ancient technology, but the therapy had no effect on him. Season 2's "
Duet
A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...
" shows Zelenka off-world for the first time, where he needs to save McKay and a soldier from being captured in a Wraith dart. Following a major dispute about an experimental Ancient power generator in "
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
", McKay apologizes to Zelenka when the experiment causes the death of a scientist. McKay saves Zelenka from certain death in "
Tao of Rodney
The third season of ''Stargate Atlantis'', an American-Canadian television series, began airing on July 21, 2006 on the US-American Sci Fi Channel. The third season concluded after 20 episodes on February 5, 2007 on the Canadian The Movie Network ...
" and later apologizes for so often putting him down, admitting that Zelenka is "a brilliant scientist and a decent human being".
[
* Zelenka: "For me, it was my brother - only we hadn't lights. He used to leave candles burning everywhere."
* McKay: "You're a brilliant scientist, and a decent human being, and you should not have had to endure the kind of abuse that you've taken from me in the past few years. I hope you can find a way to forgive me for all the things I've said and done to you. You deserve much better than that."] Zelenka last appears in the series finale of ''Atlantis'', "
Enemy at the Gate", where he implements a wormhole drive that sends the city of Atlantis from the Pegasus Galaxy to Earth within seconds.
Conceptual history
![David Nykl - 2012 Sci-Fi Convention Toulouse 124](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/David_Nykl_-_2012_Sci-Fi_Convention_Toulouse_124.jpg)
From the beginning of ''Stargate Atlantis'', the producers were looking for actors to play non-Americans to present the cooperation between different nations and other groups of people in an alien environment. In fact, although in the series it is possible to see soldiers and technicians wearing in their uniforms flags that identify them as Russians, Japanese, South Africans, Belgians, Germans, Britons, Spaniards, etc, all main and secondary characters of earthly origin, except Zelenka, are from the
Anglosphere
The Anglosphere is a group of English-speaking world, English-speaking nations that share historical and cultural ties with England, and which today maintain close political, diplomatic and military co-operation. While the nations included in d ...
: Americans, a Canadian and a Scotsman.
When actor
David Nykl
David Nykl (born 7 February 1967) is a Czech-Canadian actor of film, television, commercials and theater. He is best known for portraying Dr. Radek Zelenka in the SyFy television series ''Stargate Atlantis'' and Anatoly Knyazev in the DC Comi ...
mentioned his
Czech Canadian
Czech Canadians are Canadian citizens of Czech ancestry or Czech-born people who reside in Canada. They were frequently called Bohemian Canadians until the late 19th century. According to the 2006 Canadian census, there were 98,090 Canadians of f ...
background during his audition for a Russian character for the season 1 episode "
Thirty-Eight Minutes
The first season of the television series ''Stargate Atlantis'' commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 16, 2004, concluded on The Movie Network in Canada on January 31, 2005, and contained 20 episodes. The show was a ...
", the producers changed the character's nationality to Czech and cast him. Nykl made such an impression that producer
Brad Wright
Brad Wright (born May 2, 1961) is a Canadian television producer and screenwriter. He is best known as the co-creator of the television series ''Stargate SG-1'' (with Jonathan Glassner), ''Stargate Atlantis'' (with Robert C. Cooper) and ''Stargat ...
wrote Zelenka into the
Rodney McKay
Meredith Rodney McKay, Ph.D, is a fictional character in the 2004 Canadian-American Sci-Fi Channel television series ''Stargate SG-1'' and ''Stargate Atlantis'', two military science fiction television shows about military teams exploring two gal ...
(
David Hewlett
David Ian Hewlett (born 18 April 1968) is a British-born Canadian actor, writer, and director known for his role as Dr. Rodney McKay in the '' Stargate'' science-fiction franchise. He first gained fame for his roles as Grant Jansky in the Cana ...
) scenes of the next episode, "
Suspicion
Suspicion is a feeling of mistrust.
Suspicion(s), The Suspicion, or Suspicious may also refer to:
Film and television Film
* ''Suspicion'' (1918 film), an American silent film directed by John M. Stahl
* ''Suspicion'' (1941 film), an American ...
".
Zelenka was re-introduced in the mid-season-1 finale "
The Storm",
Martin Gero
Martin Gero (born July 6, 1977 in Geneva, Switzerland) is a Canadian screenwriter and co-executive producer for ''Stargate Atlantis'' and the creator of '' Blindspot''.
Born in Switzerland, Gero spent much of his childhood in Ottawa, Ontario ...
's second ''Atlantis'' episode. Gero had had difficulty with laying out the dangers of the storm and its solution in a quick and entertaining manner with just the McKay character, and Brad Wright was not opposed to introducing another expository character.
Zelenka has since frequently appeared for expository scenes in the control room with McKay and the leader of the Atlantis expedition.
Zelenka's given name is first mentioned by McKay in the season 1 finale "
The Siege
''The Siege'' is a 1998 American action thriller film directed by Edward Zwick. The film is about a fictional situation in which terrorist cells have made several attacks in New York City. The film stars Denzel Washington, Annette Bening, Tony ...
"; McKay had previously been unable to remember Zelenka's name.
[
* McKay: "And the Czech, the Czech, um, the Czech whose name I can never remember."][
* Weir: "Okay, so we should still evacuate." / McKay: "Yes, but not just because of Zelemka's pessimism." / Zelenka: "Zelenka."] The producers chose "Radek", a fairly common Czech given name, without input from Nykl.
When Colonel
Samantha Carter
Samantha "Sam" Carter, United States Air Force, USAF is a Character (arts), fictional character in the Canadian–American military science fiction ''Stargate'' franchise. Played by Amanda Tapping, she appears in all three shows in the franchise ...
(
Amanda Tapping
Amanda Tapping (born 28 August 1965) is a British-Canadian actress and director. She is best known for portraying Samantha Carter in the Canadian–American military science fiction television series ''Stargate SG-1,'' ''Stargate Atlantis,'' and ...
) replaced Dr.
Elizabeth Weir
Elizabeth Jane Weir (born February 20, 1948) is a Canadian lawyer and politician in New Brunswick. She was elected leader of the New Democratic Party of New Brunswick in June 1988 and became an opposition voice to the Liberal government, which ...
(
Torri Higginson
Sarah Victoria "Torri" Higginson (born December 6, 1969) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles in the ''TekWar'' movies and series, and for portraying Dr. Elizabeth Weir in ''Stargate SG-1'' and ''Stargate Atlantis'' (2004–20 ...
) as the leader of the Atlantis expedition in season 4, the producers shifted the emphasis of Zelenka's collaboration with McKay to his interaction with Carter.
By the end of the show's run, the interactions between Zelenka and McKay become more subtle to the point where they finish each other's sentences and need fewer words and expressions to get by.
Portraying a recurring character, David Nykl was not under contract
and neither knew his number of episodes nor his character's story arc in advance.
Nevertheless, he appeared in approximately half of each season's episodes.
No scenes with Zelenka were cut in the first two seasons of ''Atlantis'', and extra scenes involving Zelenka were shot in the first episodes of the season 3 to fill time.
However, all of David Nykl's scenes were cut from the season 5 episode "
The Shrine" due to time constraints, although Nykl's credits appear in the finished episode.
Since Zelenka's first appearance, David Nykl's fluent
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
*Czech, ...
was worked into ''Stargate Atlantis'' as part of Zelenka. Approximately half of Zelenka's Czech lines were scripted (in English), which Nykl then translated verbatim. The other half was ad-libbed and usually included swearing.
His usual Czech exclamations include
Ty vole and
Do prdele. Nykl normally speaks with a Canadian accent, but Zelenka had a thick Czech accent; Nykl found it increasingly hard to remember to put on the accent as the show went on.
The late season 1 episode "
Letters from Pegasus
The first season of the television series ''Stargate Atlantis'' commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 16, 2004, concluded on The Movie Network in Canada on January 31, 2005, and contained 20 episodes. The show was a ...
" features a minute-long non-subtitled monologue in which Zelenka describes the city of Atlantis in his mothertongue. Nykl translated the scripted monologue at home and performed it in Czech the next day. A version in English was initially planned to be filmed but was dropped after Nykl's successful first take. The end of Zelenka's video message ("drž se miláčku" - "take care, darling") was ad-libbed, but Nykl left it to the writers to create Zelenka's backstory.
But during the show's run, Zelenka only ever mentions having a brother,
a sister, and a nephew,
[
* Zelenka: "My sister has a child. He breaks things."] and is never shown to be or have been in a romantic relationship.
Reception
Often informing his superiors of critical situations, Zelenka earned the nickname "Mr. Bad News" among fans.
In an interview with David Nykl, TheScifiWorld's Gilles Nuytens referred to Zelenka as a "popular" and "interesting" character, and compared Zelenka's appearances in ''Atlantis'' to those of the ''
Stargate SG-1
''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction Adventure fiction, adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wrigh ...
'' character
Walter Harriman, "a bit like the icing on the cake". Another interviewer mentioned that, following a "warm reception", the "fans have really taken
elenkato heart".
When ''GateWorld'' hypothesized that viewers were looking forward to an episode where the "underdog" Zelenka saves the day instead of McKay, Nykl replied that the set-up dynamic earns the character more sympathy from the audience.
For his portrayal of Radek Zelenka, David Nykl was nominated for a 2005
Leo Award
The Leo Awards are the awards program for the British Columbia film and television industry. Held each May or June in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the Leo Awards were founded by the Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Foundation of British C ...
in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Supporting Performance by a Male".
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zelenka, Radek
Fictional Czech people
Fictional theoretical physicists
Stargate characters
Television characters introduced in 2004
Crossover characters in television
pl:Atlantis (Gwiezdne wrota)#Postacie z Atlantis