Daniel Jackson, Ph.D., is a fictional character in the military science fiction franchise Stargate, and one of the main characters of the series Stargate SG-1. He is portrayed by James Spader in the 1994 film Stargate, and by Michael Shanks in all subsequent Stargate media. Jackson is the only Stargate character to appear in all of the films and series in the franchise (not including Stargate Infinity); the main character Jack O'Neill did not appear in the 2008 film .