The brilliant Joss Whedon simply does not know how to create a bad show. On his account the legendary series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, his spin-offs “Angel”, two superblockbusters “Avengers” and one of the most underestimated projects, the cult space western “Firefly”. The actors and the roles that they performed, as well as an interesting idea and an original plot, are so loved by the audience that even after thirteen years they are still waiting for this story in one form or another to return to the screens.
Casting News
This is a story about nine completely different people who, by the will of fate, ended up on the Serenity spacecraft of the Firefly class. Actors who played the main roles were selected long before the official start of filming. Joss Whedon himself led the casting process. However, there were some glitches. Alan Tudik failed the test twice, but nevertheless the director saw something in him that allowed him to approve the guy for the role, and he did not fail. After the first takes, it turned out that the actress Rebecca Gayheart, originally approved for the role of Inara Serra, did not fit into the image at all, and she was the only one who was replaced. Some actors were already relatively famous, and some only showed great promise, but after “Firefly” almost all of them became stars.
The series “Firefly” - actors and male roles
Back in 2002, practically unknown to Nathan Fillion, he was approved for the role of captain of Serenity Malcolm Mal Mel Reynolds, a former military man with a secret past. After the success of Firefly, the career of this American actor rushed up, and for eight consecutive seasons he has a leading role in the TV series Castle.
The failed casting Alan Tudyk played Hoban "Wash" Washburn, the main and only pilot of the ship, who mastered this profession to see the stars. The actor is also very much in demand now, on his account dozens of TV shows and films, such as "I, Robot" and "Slaughter Holidays."
The ambiguous mercenary Jane Cobb performed by Adam Boludin is another member of the ship’s crew and an important character in the series “Firefly”. Actors selected by Whedon, not only after the filming acquired an impressive track record, but also could boast of such earlier as Adam.
Sean Maher embodied the image of Dr. Simon Tam, an excellent surgeon who quit his practice to save his sister, and who, as a result, became a criminal from the point of view of the authorities. After "Firefly", the actor mainly starred in the series, including the popular "Arrow" and "The Mentalist."
A very mysterious priest of Derrial "Pastor" Buk, "dark horse" on "Serenity" was played by Ron Glass, who, after the show closed, also remained a serial actor.
Separately, it is worth mentioning a supporting character named Badger, in the image of which Marc Sheppard got accustomed, famous for his skill in playing villains and most famous for the role of Crowley in "Supernatural."
The main women on the ship
But not only the actors who played in the series “Firefly” are interesting, the beautiful half of humanity is also represented by strong and talented actresses.
Gina Torres was a well-known and sought-after actress even before the role of Zoe Alleyn Washburn, the first assistant, as well as the former combat associate of captain Reynolds and wife Wash, she played in two sequels of The Matrix, as well as in other films and a large number of TV shows. The actress did not immediately agree to play in the space western, but the script convinced her.
The incredibly popular actress Morena Bakkarin was approved for the role of companion Inara Serra after the filming began, but she also wrote off to the team of actors and the show itself very organically. On her account a large number of popular TV shows and films.
But with Summer Glau, Joss Whedon has already worked more than once and approved her for the role of one of the first. Her character, River Tam, was a child prodigy in the past, but after experiments by scientists from the Alliance, her mental health is in doubt, and her paranormal abilities woke up. Summer today remains a serial actress.
Canadian Jewel State before the role of on-board mechanic Kayleigh Fry flashed in many popular shows, but only occasionally. Her character is the brightest and most positive on the ship. After “Firefly”, she received one of the leading roles in another science-fiction series “Stargate: Atlantis”, and continued to act in other television projects.
Instead of continuing
August 2003 brought terrible news to fans of television science fiction: the American television station Fox, for inexplicable reasons, stopped broadcasting the cult series Firefly. Actors and creators, but first of all, numerous fans of this space western, for a long time and persistently asked the studio to continue the show and extend the series for the second season, but Fox did not make concessions. The plot clearly required continuation and logical conclusion. But the television company had the rights to the project, and it was not possible to change the channel. Therefore, Joss Whedon found another way, he decided to transfer events to the big screen and make a full-length film. The idea was embodied in the release of the film "Mission Serenity" in 2005, which was the continuation and end of the story that began in the series "Firefly". The actors who played in the television version, in full force appeared on the big screen and embodied the favorite characters. For those viewers who did not watch the source, the film seemed a little strange, full of the so-called "black holes" and not entirely clear. Nevertheless, the full-length tape turned out to be successful and added many more new spectators to the army of Firefly fans.