
For the cast of Battlestar Galactica, the final run of episodes is a chance to say goodbye to their characters. For Tricia Helfer, it may be several goodbyes. She's played Number Six, as well as Gina, Natalie and Shelly. Too bad we didn't get four interviews with her. We'll have to settle for the one.
Crave Online: What were your feelings doing those couple of episodes of the show?
Tricia Helfer: I think it was [Edward] James [Olmos] describing, he said it was sort of like we had all these different units trying to get it all done on time. Last episodes always come in long, in terms of written long because you're trying to fit everything in there. So we had a main unit and a second unit and a couple of other units going on and it was like guerilla filmmaking, just trying to get it all finished. You didn't have to sit there and dwell on it, thinking, "Oh, this is the last episode. We're making the last episode.' It really wasn't until we had shot the last scene at five o'clock in the morning and the champagne corks went off. Then it was like, "Oh, wow. Okay." I think it's reflecting back on it. Like Mary McDonnell was talking earlier and she actually called while we were filming our last day. She was back in Los Angeles, and she goes, "It just hit me now." I think she was done about a week earlier. She was like, "I'm home and I'm realizing I'm not going back." So I think it'll hit everyone at different stages, but it wasn't really so much on set.
Crave Online: What can you say about the end of the series?
Tricia Helfer: Really, the back half is predominantly wrapping up Caprica Six's story and Caprica Six definitely goes through the some emotional upheaval in the back half. I'm very happy with the way that it ends for her. Number Six kind of went away a little bit in the beginning or throughout the four seasons. She's coming back and is playing an integral role. So for me, for the character, those were really my main character there in the back half of the season and I think rightly so because I think they were kind of the most important overall aside from Gina and Natalie, I guess, but Natalie is dead. So, yeah, I'm happy with how those two character wrap up.
Crave Online: What did you steal from the set?
Tricia Helfer: [Laughs] What did I steal? I stole a black dress that's actually one scene and hasn't been worn yet. I didn't steal it though. I was allowed to take it and I also took the jacket that Caprica was wearing on the last episode where they get to earth, the bombed out earth. I am apparently getting the red dress, I think. It's not in my little hands yet, but they're apparently giving it to me.
Crave Online: What did you think about them getting to earth at that point? Were you surprised to read that in the script?
Tricia Helfer: I wasn't necessarily. I mean, we didn't really know what to expect because the whole last season, every episode there are revelations and things are happening where you're going, "Oh, that's why that happened and that's why that happened." It was shocking in a way, but more so because it was right before the writer's strike and literally that last scene where everyone is just sort of wandering on the beach and everybody has kind of got this bewildered, crestfallen face. That's what we shot the last day before going on strike and what Ron Moore said too was that no one knew if we were coming back. I mean, the goal was to come back. That was the aim, but who knew if the strike was going to last too long or whatever and the network pulled the plug because it was at a place where we could've ended the series there. That's not how they wanted to end the series, but you could. So it was really odd. It was more odd filming that day than the last day that we just shot because you didn't know if you were coming back or not. At least with what we just shot you knew we weren't coming back and you could do the proper goodbyes and you could do everything like that. But if you don't know if you're coming back or not you don't want to go, "Oh, I'm not going to see you again" and then be back in a week. So I think that was the most odd filming that we had and everyone was kind of on their phones, talking to their lawyers about what this meant and so on. It was really odd.
Crave Online: Of all the characters, she's the one easiest to put in different stories at different times.
Tricia Helfer: Yeah, she has a bit of a relationship with different areas of it, but I don't know anything at this time. I'd like to, but I don't. [Laughs]
Crave Online: Can you imagine a Galactica in the future?
Tricia Helfer: I don't know. You mean filming something else?
Crave Online: Yeah, maybe a DVD or TV movie?
Tricia Helfer: Well, there are some rumblings of DVD movies. I guess it all depends on when it's done and who they write in it. If it's done like Razor, I think it's more examining areas of the show that you didn't really get to know enough about or that sort of thing. I honestly don't think that I'd be too heavy in that, but I'd certainly be open to coming back and reprising Six.