Following a tragic personal loss, Rush dedicated his life to unlocking the ninth chevron on the Stargate. After two years of working, he finally acknowledged that he had hit a wall with his power requirement equations and began to seek outside help.

Rush installed a rudimentary version of the Ancient language into the online computer game Prometheus. Young Eli Wallace interpreted the information in the game and spent a month working on Rush's mathematical equation before cracking the code. In his debt, Rush personally invited him to join the Icarus Project.

When the first test of the new power settings proved fruitless on-site, Rush blamed the failure on Wallace's equations, but it was Wallace who suggested the problem be solved by setting the Stargate's point of origin to Earth.

When Icarus Base fell under attack from space Rush disobeyed Colonel Everett Young's explicit orders to dial home to test Eli's theory. The Stargate connected to the ninth chevron address and the furious Young had no choice but to send the Icarus team to the Destiny.

Rush's ultimate goals are unclear. He found himself smiling as the 80-plus refugees spilled out of the Destiny Stargate into a scene of utter panic. He is fully capable of disregarding the orders of Col. Young when they do not serve him, and appears to hold advances in science -- and his own desire for power -- above the safety of others.

Rush is no stranger to hard work. He earned a scholarship to Oxford while working two jobs. His father worked in the Glasgow shipyards. A past relationship may hold the key to his current instability.

DETAILS

PLAYED BY: Robert Carlyle
FIRST APPEARED: Air, Part 1

KEY EPISODES

Air, Part 1 - Dr. Nicholas Rush enlists the aid of Eli Wallace to help unlock the mysteries of the Stargate's ninth chevron.
Air, Part 2 - With carbon dioxide levels rising aboard the Destiny, Rush looks to the team manifest to determine who's life is the least valuable -- and most worthy of sacrifice.
Air, Part 3 Believing the Destiny has linked to a specific planet for good reason, Rush joins an expedition to a desert planet in search of a substance to correct the ship's life support failure.
Darkness - Strained by a lack of caffeine, nicotine, and no sleep, Rush has a nervous breakdown after the ship's power goes out and collapses.
Light - Rush asks Colonel Young to remove his name from the shuttle lottery, indicating that he is content to remain with the ship. After it is revealed that Destiny was merely recharging itself in the star, Young finds himself wondering if Rush knew what was going to happen.