Stargate SG-1's End Could Have Led To A Spin-Off With Claudia Black's Vala

This post contains spoilers for "Stargate SG-1." 

Vala Mal Doran (Claudia Black) was never supposed to be a series regular in "Stargate SG-1." Introduced in season 8 of the show, Vala displayed antagonistic motivations in "Prometheus Unbound," where she kept Dr. Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) as a prisoner. This was supposed to be a one-and-done appearance, but the enigmatic character returned as a recurring presence from season 9 onward, where she proves her worth as an SG-1 crew member time and again. While the showrunners intended to greatly expand upon Vala, the show was regrettably canceled after 10 fantastic seasons, putting a stop to these plans. 

That said, ideas for a Vala-focused spin-off were floating even when writer/producer Rob Cooper was unsure whether "SG-1" would be renewed for a tenth season. Black spoke to GateWorld to shed light on this potential spin-off (which ultimately didn't work out, but helped bolster Vala's recurring presence in the show's final season): 

"Rob was very honest with me from the very beginning [...] He said, 'You know, I would love ultimately to have you back. I don't know in what exact capacity, but this character has brought something very interesting to the show, and we'd like to workshop some possibilities.' They didn't know if SG-1 would continue as an entity, and so they said, 'If we did some sort of spin-off, would you be interested in working with some of the existing cast if they were interested in coming back?' So I knew he wasn't just blowing smoke [...] and wanted me to understand that he really did want to employ me again." 

Vala's arc in season 10 invests her character with great depth, showcasing the multitudes contained within her human-Goa'uld sensibilities. But what would her arc look like in a potential season 11?

While Cooper and co. had every intention to bring Black on board in a permanent capacity as early as Season 9, the actor wasn't able to commit to this due to personal reasons:

"They wanted to bring me back again, potentially permanently, in Season Nine, but I had my own personal reasons for not being able to join the show permanently. And now we've relocated to do this for the [tenth] season. It was nice to give it a trial run, to experience Vancouver and the show on a more permanent basis, and see if I could still find my smile with the insane hours I'd been doing last year. And I rang the producers the other day and thanked them for everything they're doing to help us acclimatize."

Black's "trial run" as a permanent aspect of "SG-1" was pleasant enough, and a potential eleventh season could've seen her grow as a character by having her navigate inner turmoil. While Vala puts up a playful, snarky front, this hides her deep-seated trauma that she is in denial of. "She tends to sublimate things. It's a coping mechanism," Black states in the same interview while explaining how the character's unlikable traits add to her complexity. We are privy to some of her vulnerabilities in the last two seasons, but there are still many layers to unravel, as Vala keeps her emotions suppressed.

"[A] part of what makes her interesting and continuously vulnerable is the fact that she's never belonged anywhere," Black concludes. The proposed Vala spin-off (or even another season of "SG-1") could've been the perfect vehicle to explore these nuances, but unfortunately, her innermost desires remain a mystery to this day.