30 Surprising Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Michael Shanks

9 January 2018, 4:04 pm EST By Ruby Karnick

Michael Garrett Shanks, world renowned for his portrayal of Dr. Daniel Jackson in the long-running TV series "Stargate SG-1," as well as Dr. Charles Harris in the medical drama "Saving Hope." Here are some really interesting facts to know about the Canadian actor:

He has a fear of spiders - Arachnophobia. During the filming of shooting the episodes with the replicator spiders, in the "Stargate SG-1" series, he insisted on wearing a blindfold when the props were on-set, if not, he was likely to get uncontrollable shakes, resulting in a delayed schedule.
He was born on December 15, 1970, in Vancouver. He grew up in British Columbia, where he attended the University of British Columbia.
In 2001, Shanks guest starred in the episode "Star-Crossed" in the Sci-Fi series "Andromeda," where he met his future wife, Lexa Doig. The duo coincidentally played the role of two androids who fell in love with each other.
He made a cameo appearance in the pilot of the third Stargate series "Stargate Universe," along with the episodes "Human" and "Subversion."
It was after watching Richard Dean Anderson film an episode of “MacGyver,” that Shanks was inspired to choose an acting career. He later worked with Anderson as his co-star in “Stargate SG-1.”
He was featured in a lead role in the SciFi Channel's adventure film, "The Lost Treasure of the Grand Canyon" playing the role of Jacob Thain. The movie premiered on the cable network on December 20, 2008.
He was involved in a relationship with model and actress Vaitiare Bandera, who portrayed the role of Sha're, wife of his character Dr. Daniel Jackson, on the "Stargate SG-1"series.
During the eighth season of "Stargate SG-1," his character Dr. Daniel Jackson (and various versions of him), was killed in four different episodes - "Avatar," "Reckoning Part 2" and "Moebius Part 2."
He guest starred as archaeologist Carter Hall, DC Comics' superhero Hawkman, in the "Smallville" episode "Absolute Justice," later reprising his role in the final episode of the ninth season, as well as a few epsiodes during the tenth season.
He is a very good ice hockey player, and even considered playing it professionally. He was also in the "Stargate SG-1" hockey team.

Before his breakthrough role of archaeologist Dr. Daniel Jackson on the "Stargate SG-1 series," he has made many guest appearances on TV series like "Highlander" and "University Hospital."
He played three different characters in a single episode of "Stargate SG-1" - Dr. Daniel Jackson, Thor and Penegal in the second half of the Season Eight premiere "New Order Part II."
He has a daughter - Tatiana Shanks, born in the year 1998, from his relationship with his co-star Vaitiare Bandera. Tatiana is the eldest of his three children.
He is one of the only seven cast members to appear in all the ten seasons of "Stargate SG-1." The other members are Richard Dean Anderson, Amanda Tapping, Christopher Judge, Don S. Davis, Gary Jones and Dan Shea.
He is said to bear a resemblance to James Spader, his "Stargate" feature film counterpart, whose character of Dr. Daniel Jackson, he portrays on "Stargate SG-1" series.
In the year 2004, he made a crossover appearance as Dr. Daniel Jackson in the "Stargate Atlantis" pilot, "Rising," as well as the tenth and eleventh episodes of fifth and final season of the series.
He dated actress Lexa Doig, whom he met at the sets of "Andromeda," and married her on August 2, 2003. The couple have two children - a daughter Mia Tabitha Shanks, born in September 2004, and a son Samuel David in March 2007.
It is reported that there is another Michael Shanks, a real life archaeologist. Coincidentally, Shanks portrays an archaeologist on the TV series "Stargate SG-1."
He appeared in several stage productions, serving a two-year apprenticeship with the prestigious Stratford Festival in Ontario.
He is a huge "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" fan. Shanks was also a fan of the cult television series, "Xena: Warrior Princess," during his childhood days.

After the first five seasons of the "Stargate SG-1"series, he left the show citing creative differences related to the under-use of his character, and returned for the seventh and subsequent seasons.
In the year 2012, Shanks returned to primetime as Dr. Charles "Charlie" Harris on "Saving Hope," reuniting with his “Stargate SG-1” co-star Erica Durance.
It was reported that he signed on only for 16 of the 20 episodes of the tenth and final season of the "Stargate SG-1" series, as he wanted to take some time off in March 2007, for the birth of his second son with his wife Lexa Doig.
Shanks had an emergency appendectomy when his appendix ruptured the day before filming was to begin on "Stargate SG-1" Season 3 episode "Nemesis". The script had to be rewritten to explain his character's reduced role. The writers decided to have the character recovering from an appendectomy as well.
Shanks also appeared in the TV movie "A Family Divided" and even had a small role in the 1997 movie "The Call of the Wild: Dog of the Yukon," by Graham Ludlow, based on Jack London's classic novel "The Call of the Wild."
Throughout the sixth season of the "Stargate SG-1"series, he has made several guest appearances, and also voiced the Asgard character Thor.
He had a recurring role in the Spy series "Burn Notice" Season 2, in which he played the role of Victor Stecker-Epps, a fellow burned spy and maniacal counterpoint to series lead Jeffrey Donovan's character.
In the year 2007, Shanks joined the Fox Network series "24," guest-starring as lobbyist Mark Bishop in a three-episode arc for season 6.
He is one of the only four cast members of the "Stargate SG-1" series, to appear in the first episode - "Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods," and the last episode - "Stargate SG-1: Unending." The other actors are Amanda Tapping, Gary Jones and Christopher Judge.
He enjoys playing ice hockey and displayed his talent in the 2006 television film "Under the Mistletoe," where he played the role of school hockey coach. Later, in 2013, his love for the sport was even more highlighted with the title character in the television film "Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story."