Cast of Firefly: Where Are They Now 10 Years Later?

Joss Whedon may have helmed the biggest movie of the year, but it was only ten years ago when Whedon premiered his little-seen and now much-beloved cult favorite TV series Firefly on FOX. I admit that I didn't take to the series at first though FOX's jumbled scheduling didn't help matters. I eventually watched and became obsessed with the entire series just before the big-screen sequel Serenity premiered in theaters.

I blame my initial hesitancy in the space western genre of which I'm not a huge fan. Plus I had been trained to love Whedon at that time when he was only dealing with vampires and witches. Little did I know that space cowboys and superheroes were his forte as well. Like most of Whedon's work, it's the ensemble working as a non-traditional and dysfunctional but loving family that's at the heart of Firefly. It's this cast and what they are doing now what I want to talk about now...

Nathan Fillion - Played the charming and handsome Captain Malcolm Reynolds. Fillion's show Castle will have its 5th season premiere at the end of this month on ABC. He is also in Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing hopefully to come out this year and will also be playing Hermes in Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters next year.

Gina Torres - Played the beautiful and strong second-in-command Zoe Washburne. Last year Torres appropriately voiced Wonder Woman for a video game. She's currently starring in USA Network's Suits which is in the middle of its second season and will most likely be picked up for a third.

Alan Tudyk - Played the hilarious Hoban "Wash" Washburne who piloted the ship. Tudyk had memorable guest starring roles in Dollhouse and V in recent years and will re-team with A Knight's Tale director for the Jackie Robinson film 42. He is currently on ABC's Suburgatory which will have its second season premiere next month.

Morena Baccarin - Played the dignified and gorgeous Inara Serra, Companion. Though V was cancelled, where Baccarin starred as the scene-stealing Anna, she quickly found another show in Showtime's Homeland which was recently nominated for a nine Emmy Awards. Homeland's second season will premiere later this month.

Adam Baldwin - Played the brutish and tough hired-gun Jayne Cobb. Baldwin's show Chuck ended its 5-season run earlier this year. He has recently has done bit parts in shows like Leverage and Law & Order: SVU and has pissed off some people with his twitter account.

Jewel Staite - Played the free-spirited and talented engineer Kaywinnet Lee "Kaylee" Frye. Last year, Staite blew many fandoms' minds by guest starring in Supernatural as Amy Pond. She is currently starring in the CW's The L.A. Complex, which is in its second season.

Sean Maher - Played the protective and smart Dr. Simon Tam. Maher will also appear in Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing and was recently in ABC Family's Make It or Break It. He was in NBC's now-canceled Playboy Club last year playing a closeted gay man which prompted Maher to publicly come out himself to the delight and support of his fans.

Summer Glau - Played the highly intuitive and graceful River Tam. Glau has made many appearances in other TV shows like Big Bang Theory, Grey's Anatomy, Dollhouse, and Alphas. She also briefly starred in the now-cancelled The Cape and The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Up next for her is the film Knights of Badassdom.

Ron Glass - Played the enigmatic and grounded Derrial Book, Sheperd. Glass isn't doing much, but he does have a movie coming out called Strange Frame: Love & Sax which also boasts a few other geek friendly names such as Claudia Black, Alan Tudyk, Tim Curry, Juliet Landau, and George Takei.

Of course no discussion of Firefly and its cast would be complete without mentioning two of the more popular recurring characters, Badger played by Mark Sheppard and Saffron played by Christina Hendricks. Name a sci-fi/fantasy/genre show from the past few years and Sheppard has probably been on it... seriously. Meanwhile, Hendricks wrapped up her fifth season on Mad Men earlier this year and has also starred with Ryan Gosling in Drive and with Neil Patrick Harris in Company last year.

Birthday Boy and Killer: Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon turns 48 today and do we even need to mention what an insane year or so it's been for him? Let's just spew out some key numbers here: $1.4 billion worldwide, $591.2 million domestic, $200+ million opening weekend, 93% Rotten Tomatoes ratings. Yeah, suffice it to say whedon is on top of the Hollywood world right now and as happy as I am for him obviously I'm not ready for him to become "Joss Whedon, the director of The Avengers" as opposed to "Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. That may have sounded a little hipterish of me, but not really since I don't at all begrudge him his mainstream success (just the opposite) and I don't regard myself a truer fan of Whedon since I was a fan long before The Avengers. Whedon is for all and may he have many, many more opportunities to show us his mad genius.

Speaking of his mad genius, I think it's common knowledge how much Whedon enjoys putting his characters (and fans) through a ringer including killing off beloved characters and breaking off relationships. You see that in The Avengers where 70% of the plot includes Loki trying to break the superheroes up and of course that one death which I won't spoil for the 3 people in the world who hasn't seen the movie yet. And so with that said, as I promised last year, here's my list of Top 10 Whedon Deaths. Spoiler Alert... obviously.

First, just want to list some honorable mentions. Penny's demise in Dr. Horrible makes you wonder how they'll do a sequel. Jesse's death in episode 2 of Buffy should've clued us in on the depths of Whedon's sadism. Book, Wesley, and Topher's deaths in Serenity, Angel, and Dollhouse respectively made my heart hurt considering I actually thought they'd make it out alive somehow. And of course that one Avengers death that made me shake my head. See the entire list after the jump...

A leaf on the wind...

This post is part of Nathaniel's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" series in which the participants must post a single image from a movie he or she deems as the "best shot" for any particular reason.

Before I begin, I would like to come right out in the open and declare myself a Whedon fanboy. I think Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the greatest show of all time and curse FOX daily for the cancellation of Firefly. The big screen sequel to Firefly, Serenity, not shockingly ended up being my favorite film of that year and I have since seen it countless of times. With all of that said, you might guess how pleased I was that Serenity was the film chosen this week. I also went into panic mode after I re-watched last night knowing it would be way too difficult to actually pick a favorite shot. Even before I re-watched, however, there were already four shots that came immediately to mind...


Apart from being so obviously aesthetically pleasing, I love the emotions and feelings evoked by the images--the unsettling threat of the Operative's visit, the dangerous mystery of the planet Miranda, the anticipation of the epic battle sequence, and the somber mood of the funeral ceremony. Plus the colors... Inara's red dress against the green-blue mountains, Zoe's silhouette against the stark white background, the contrast of the planet with Alliance ships and the dark of space with the Reavers, and finally the gorgeous rocky sunset... just divine. So all of those shots would have made worthy candidates, but then my mind started to wander more to Serenity, or more specifically, the ship that bears that name...

"She's torn up plenty, but she'll fly true."

I still remember my reaction when the title of the film appeared in the beginning and the ship slowly came into view. It was absolute joy. That feeling would replicate itself half a dozen times whenever the ship would appear on screen either landing on a planet with its side turbines or blasting into space with its glowing rear. Of course I also remember feeling sick to my stomach when they had to desecrate the ship so it could pass through Reaver space and almost crying when it got smashed and destroyed towards the end. It's a testament to Whedon and company that crafted this ship that it literally becomes another character that you root for. This Firefly-class rickety junkyard of a ship may not be much (the film ends with a piece falling off yet again), but it is their home.


Finally, I decided to pick a singular image that was just too great to not highlight (in fact it's my wallpaper right now). It's River's dress billowing in the wind as the crew makes their first foray into Miranda. I love this shot for many reasons like all of the shades of blue present, but also because it features one of Whedon's love... feet. Plus that blue dress becomes just a work of art in the wind conjuring to mind one of the film's most quoted lines "I'm a leaf on the wind. Watch how I soar." Indeed.

Addendum: I forgot to mention the amazing post-title sequence which technically was one shot (well two shots seamlessly stitched together). It's one of my favorite title sequence ever and definitely should be someone's best shot.

Head on over to Nathaniel's website for his take as well as a list of links from others who watched Serenity and picked their best shots.

Firefly's Sean Maher Comes Out

One of my favorite actors, Sean Maher, has publicly come out as a gay man by giving a touching interview with Entertainment Weekly detailing what it was like for him as a young Hollywood actor deciding to stay closeted for the business. By the way, if you're asking yourself who is he and where is from then we're not friends since it means you haven't seen him play Dr. Simon Tam in Joss Whedon's canceled-way-too-soon show Firefly and made-too-little-money cult-hit Serenity. Simon was my favorite character and I'm sure at least some of that is due to Maher.

Since Serenity, he's done a few bit guest roles on TV more notably in Drop Dead Diva, The Mentalist, and Warehouse 13, which I all saw. Most recently, he stars in NBC's new show Playboy Club which I didn't really like, but his storyline as a closeted gay actor was one of the highlights of the pilot. He also starred in the TV movie Wedding Wars with John Stamos where they played a gay couple.

A few choice quotes from his talk with Entertainment Weekly:

“I’m thinking, What is the potential that if they caught wind that they had cast a gay lead actor that they would fire me? I was young, I was 22. I didn’t know anything. So that sort of started the idea of, okay, well, I’m working a lot, I guess I’ll just keep that gay part of my life on the back burner for now. I went so far as to sleep with women a couple times. It was a very confusing time for me.”

“I didn’t really have any life other than work and this façade I was putting on. So I kept my friends from college [where he was out] separate from my work friends, and that was very confusing. I just kept going on and on painting this picture of somebody I wasn’t. I didn’t have time for a personal relationship anyway. And you just don’t realize that it’s eating away at your soul.”

“Looking back, on Firefly for instance, I do wish on day one I had told them because these are some of the most amazing people who are still like family to me. I am so grateful for that show because they saved me. I was so unhappy and lonely and to come to work everyday with that group was wonderful. It really was all I had at that point in my life.”

Click through for the entire article which is highly recommended. I'm suddenly feeling protective over Playboy Club just to see where his character's story goes, but if/when the show is canceled I hope Maher will be given more opportunities to appear on screen.

Birthday Boy: Joss Whedon

Mad genius Joss Whedon, aka creator of my favorite show of all time, celebrates his 47th birthday today and while he was unable to pursue his dream of making a Wonder Woman film, he is quite busy writing and directing the much-anticipated film The Avengers. His long-completed horror film The Cabin in the Woods is also finally set to release this Halloween. He also received the Vanguard Award from the Producers Guild of America last year.

In honor of Joss, I decided last night to come up with a list of my top ten favorite characters from his various shows (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse) aka the Whedonverse*. Apart from my top pick, I found it nearly impossible to choose amongst the wonderful characters he has created throughout the years. I was debating listing 47 characters for his age, but a) that's just silly and b) that probably wouldn't have it that much easier.

*Yes, I know he's done more. There's Dr. Horrible, his other films, and his comic-book stuff, but as this is already a difficult task, I've decided to limit myself accordingly.

So presented with very little commentary, my Top Ten Whedonverse Characters:


1. Willow Rosenberg - As I've said before, she's my favorite and will always be my favorite.
2. Faith Lehane - Part of it is Eliza Dushku inherent hotness, but how can you not love someone whose motto is "Want. Take. Have."?
3. Dr. Simon Tam - While River is the heart of the show, Simon is her keeper his relationship with her is just touching.
4. Cordelia Chase - Apart from Willow, her character growth/arc is one of the best.
5. Daniel "Oz" Osborne - A werewolf in love, do I REALLY need to say more? Because he didn't.
6. Buffy Summers - Too low? Perhaps, but I'm usually not drawn to the MAIN CHARACTER. Still, she's an automatic part of this list.
7. Winifred "Fred" Burkle/Illyria - Cheating since this is two characters? Probably, but tough since I love them both.
8. Anya Jenkins/Anyanka - Sigh. I was devastated by her death and her arc really.
9. Victor/Anthony - Enver Gjokaj was like a chameleon making this character oh so fun to watch.
10. Kaylee Frye - She has great taste in ships and men. Need I say more?

Ugh. That was really hard. Remind me to never ever do that again. Though as soon as I started writing this list, another list came to my head: Top 10 Dead Whedonverse Characters. That should be loads of fun. Maybe next year.

How I'm Feeling At the Moment...

For the most part, last week's TV offerings ranged from good to great with only 1-2 exceptions and this past weekend I celebrated my half-birthday with some good friends, a phenomenal Broadway show, and the Doctor Who S6 premiere. But right now I'm feeling under the weather like Mal did in the Firefly episode "Out of Gas" so my posts on those will be delayed.

And okay, probably not exactly like Mal. He was impaled and trying to survive with very little oxygen. I am simply bedridden with a terrible cold. Tomato, to-mah-to.

10 Random Movie/TV Thoughts

1. After seeing Never Let Me Go and The Social Network, I want to declare my love for Andrew Garfield. Add to that my earlier declaration of love for Emma Stone after seeing Easy A and suddenly I want to see the new Spider-Man film starring those two.

2. My most anticipated film of the year, Blue Valentine, was slapped with an apparently undeserved NC-17 rating by the MPAA. Those who have seen it says the rating is pretty darn ridiculous and while I won't have a problem seeing the film (being of age and living in a major metropolitan area), this whole thing is just so fucking awful.

3. Kind of sad to see Lone Star get canceled, but at least they took it away before I got too attached. Another new show I ended up really liking, The Whole Truth, will probably follow suit. In other news, this new season (for new shows) has sucked. A lot.

4. Fringe is really really awesome right now. I'm just loving the whole alt-universe storyline and how much we're actually spending our time in that world. Plus the actors pulling double duty, more especially Anna Torv as Olive/Fauxlivia, deserve tons of kudos.

5. Would it be too odd to say that the new trailer for Danny Boyle's 127 Hours starring James Franco made me teary a bit? Trying not to have too much high expectations, but then again Slumdog Millionaire was my favorite film of 2008.

6. I already knew how polarizing Glee as a show is from its first season, but it's been really something seeing people react so wildly differently to episodes this season. From declaring it pure brilliance to calling it a hot mess. Both are true though, sometimes in the same scene.

7. Summer Glau is appearing on Chuck opposite her Firefly co-star Adam Baldwin. The epic geekitude of it all is just too much for this Browncoat.

8. Slowly, but surely catching up on the Scott Pilgrim vs. the World graphic novels. I've read the first three, so I'm halfway done. I'm still saddened about its box office performance. People suck.

9. Totally can't believe there's only two episodes of Mad Men left. Love the crumbling of Don's walls while Peggy is building herself up little by little. Wonder what the cliffhanger will be.

10. So Julia Roberts will play Meryl Streep's daughter in a film version of August: Osage County. Apparently this means automatic Oscar nominations (and more likely wins) for both of them. Never saw the play so I don't know how appropriate this casting decision was, but I'm still very excited for it.

Movie Meme: Day 18

"31 Day Movie Meme"


Day 18 | Favorite title sequence

There were many opening title sequences I could've picked. I watched a ton of them in preparation for this entry and I'll list a few of them after my entry, but my ultimate pick is actually the first film I thought of and in the end it really was a no-brainer for me.

This meme would've felt a bit hollow if I didn't talk about Joss Whedon's Serenity and today is as good as any since the film has a fantastic opening sequence. Granted, I consider it great, in part because I'm a huge Whedon/Firefly fan. Another part is because the opening sequence was structured a bit as a sort of love letter to the ship and its crew with its beautiful continuous long shot of the inside of ship with the audience being introduced to each of the principal cast.

Before I talk about the sequence some more, you must watch it first. Here's the link to a YouTube video of the entire sequence, except it's in French. Better yet, go to this website and scroll down a bit and watch the sequence in Quicktime.

So right off the bat, we are treated to the title which is superimposed to the title ship, which we see for the first time flying (or trying to fly) through space. Both fans and non-fans of the TV show are then treated to breezy introductions of not only the crews' situation (in a old run-down ship in the "raggedy edge" of the universe struggling to find work while making sure not to run into the Alliance), but the various relationships and power struggles as well (Mal as the captain, Zoe/Wash as married, Mal vs. Simon, Simon/River as siblings, etc.).

The humor and witty dialogue, which are staples for Whedon and his various projects, are in full display early on with Wash and Mal reacting to the possible crash of the ship. We are also introduced to the main conflict and drive of the film i.e. River and her history with the Alliance. Again, all of this done in one continuous shot and with the beautiful score playing in the background, and in only about 5 or so minutes. It just makes me want to watch the movie again right now.

Honorable Mentions: Stranger than Fiction, Casino Royale, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, The Fall, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Zombieland, Se7en, Coraline, Billy Elliot, 500 Days of Summer, An Education, Wimbledon, and probably a lot more...

Great Sites I Discovered During My Research: Watch the Titles, Art of the Title, Movie Title Stills Collection

Online Lists of Best Movie Title Sequences: Smashing Magazine, Forever Geek, Creative Review, Flix Chatter

TV Meme: Day 01

"30 Days TV Meme"


Day 01 | A show that should have never been canceled

Firefly is the easy and most obvious answer here. While Joss Whedon is freakin' brilliant, usually his shows tend to take a season or so to catch up to his brilliance. It took about one episode for Firefly to achieve that. Granted, I'm not talking about the first episode that FOX decided to air in placed of the ACTUAL and very well-done two-part pilot episode "Serenity." What FOX thought they were doing is beyond me. I'll give it to them and admit that the show upfront WAS a tough sell. I mean was it a western or was it a space drama? Why did that ship look all clunky and weird? Who was that handsome man with those tight pants? Unfortunately, not a lot of people checked it out and it was canceled way too prematurely.

Thankfully there was a movie follow-up, Serenity, which again didn't fire up the public, but by then it had turned into somewhat of a cult favorite. In subsequent interviews Joss Whedon said that the bulk of the plot of the movie was pretty much what he envisioned for Season 2 and 3, albeit in a much more condensed form. Apparently S2 would be all about discovering River's abilities while S3 would be about the quest to find more about Miranda/Reavers/The Alliance. Now let me ask you, wouldn't have that been AWESOME?

For my part, I've watched the complete series comprising of 14 episodes more than I can count and that feeling of awe doesn't ever go away. I'm glad that most of the people involved have moved on to other projects so I can enjoy their ridiculous talents somewhere else, but for this Browncoat, I just want to go back to Firefly.

Captain Tightpants on Castle

I think we can all agree that Joss Whedon's Firefly was canceled way too soon, but its characters live on forever in the hearts and minds of its small, but very loyal and rabid fanbase. So it was a nice treat for us fans when a character from Firefly re-appeared on the small screens, more specifically on last night's Castle. Nathan Fillion, playing the titular character, dressed up as Capt. Mal Reynolds for Halloween!

Alexis: What exactly are you supposed to be?
Castle: Space cowboy.
Alexis: Okay, A, there are no cows in space, B, didn’t you wear that like five years ago?
Castle: So?
Alexis: So, don’t you think you should move on?
Castle: I like it.

The only thing that would've made the episode better was if he ended the episode dressed as Captain Hammer, or better yet, Dr. Horrible.

And then led the whole cast in a rousing song about vampires. Or something.