Nathan Fillion Talks Joss Whedon and Reminisces About Firefly: "I Knew I Was Part of Something Special"

Before he was Richard Castle on ABC's hit crime drama, Nathan Fillion was Captain Mal Reynolds on FOX's short-lived sci-fi drama Firefly. Although it was given the ax after just one season, the show acquired a rabid fanbase that's just as loyal now as when Firefly first premiered back in 2002.

For Nathan, one of the most rewarding things about playing Captain Reynolds was working with show mastermind, director Joss Whedon.

"Joss Whedon is a guy who does what he does out of love. He has a love for storytelling," the actor told The Hollywood Reporter.

"I knew I was part of something special,” he said looking back on his time aboard the Serenity. “It had an effect on people.”

Nearly a decade later, many of those people still hold a candle for the show that could have been. Not only do they continually proposition Nathan to buy the rights to Firefly, but they still come out in droves for annual science fiction conventions.

"If you want to be a rock star for a weekend, if you want to be adored and flattered and complimented for a weekend, if you want to feel like something you've done is incredibly worthwhile to a huge amount of people, do a sci-fi convention. Well, do Firefly and then do a sci-fi convention,” he said.

“Those events are just a huge gathering of like-minded people who just want to appreciate you and adore you and tell you how much they love Firefly and there I am in the middle of it saying, 'Me too! I love it too! Right, wasn't it great?'"

It was great, and thanks to shows like Castle, which never fails to pay homage to Nathan's sci-fi roots, the legacy of Firefly can live on indefinitely.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Lindsay Dreyer is an editor at Wetpaint Entertainment. Follow her on Twitter @LindsayNYC.