Nathan Fillion Filmography and Fan Ramblings
November 12th, 2007 Posted in Nathan Fillion
I don’t really do the whole being a fan of a celebrity thing; that is, I didn’t until a very special one named Nathan Fillion came along. Here’s a very sincere tip of the hat to a wonderful actor who seems to be the rarest thing in Hollywood: an even better human being.
This entirely unofficial fan page is partially a tribute to my favorite actor, partially a resource for fellow fans, and just maybe it’ll come in handy for those who’ve seen Nathan in something and taken to the net wondering “Who is this guy, and what else can I see him in?” Keep an eye open…I plan to expand this page as time permits!
About Nathan Fillion
A superstar in the making, Nathan Fillion has it all: incredible acting talent and the ability to make viewers connect emotionally with his characters, naturally captivating good looks, a magnetic personality, and the intelligence and humanity to make it all mean something.
He’s played a wide range of roles: a soldier in Saving Private Ryan, a space captain in the beloved sci-fi series Firefly, a police officer in Slither and Lost, a man racing to find his missing wife on Drive, a writer in Water’s Edge, a romantic lead in Waitress…..and the list goes on.
Nathan’s innate kindness, strong work ethic, and ready humor have earned him the love of his fans, the respect of his directors and co-workers, and the loyalty of his friends.
He has developed an extremely loyal fanbase across the world and is renowned for treating his fans with kindness, respect, and charm, and seems to truly be what few celebrities manage to be: A genuinely nice, together, grounded person.
Current Projects
Nathan currently has one movie, White Noise: The Light awaiting release in the US, and he’s filming for the upcoming season of Desperate Housewives. For more about these projects, see below:
Desperate Housewives
Nathan’s coming to Wisteria Lane! He’s been cast as a series regular on the popular TV show Desperate Housewives, where he will play the younger husband of another new character (played by actress Dana Delany). Let’s hope it’s a major role for Nathan.
White Noise: The Light (Abe Dale)
The story focuses around a man (Fillion) who tries to kill himself after the tragic murder of his family.
About the film, Nathan explains, “What happens in White Noise 2 is that, due to a tragic, tragic event, my wife and son are murdered in front of me. I get so depressed that I commit suicide. But I’m brought back after that near death experience. I’ve seen the white light, I’ve seen my family and then I’m pulled back. After that, I find I have the ability to, in a crowd of people, see who’s going to die. They glow white. I’ll see a trail towards people marked for death. Here’s this man who felt so helpless and foolish that he didn’t react sooner to save his wife and son…here he is trying to redeem himself.”
When asked about his character, Nathan said, “He’s a more vulnerable character than I’ve ever played before. He’s just a man; he’s not a soldier. He’s a Web designer, not a hero.”
Nathan and his costar Katee Sackhoff apparently have lovely on-screen chemistry, and Nathan’s brooding, emotional performance has touched the hearts of fans.
For reviews, trailers, and promo photos, visit www.whitenoisethelight.net, or get involved at the film’s unofficial myspace page at www.myspace.com/whitenoisethelight.
Nathan Fillion Filmography with Reviews
I’ve become such a fan of Nathan Fillion since my introduction to Firefly that I just have to keep tracking down and watching stuff he’s in to feed my addiction. To help fellow fan(atic)s on their paths, I figured I’d put together a review page of the TV shows and movies Nathan’s appeared in.
These reviews are far from unbiased; they are aimed pretty much exclusively at fans of Nathan and his work.
Nathan fans! Call to arms! Have you seen something Nathan’s been in? Tell us about it! To add your review to the mix here, just email me at jetflair@gmail.com
Waitress (Dr. Pomatter)
This independent film by Adrienne Shelly was screened at the Sundance Film Festival in 2007 and received by widespread critical acclaim. The picture was acquired for distribution by Fox Searchlight.
I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing the movie yet, nor do I know anyone personally who has. It sounds like a gentle romantic comedy, where a pregnant, unhappily married waitress develops a relationship with her gynecologist (Fillion) and finds her way to a more fulfilling life. Certainly a new type of role for Nathan, and just the sort of romantic lead I’ve always hoped to see him in.
For more information, see www.waitressmovie.net.
Drive (Alex Tully)
Nathan is Alex Tully, a “ruggedly handsome blue-collar nursery owner,” entrapped in a high-stakes underground car race in Tim Minear (Firefly, Wonderfalls, Angel)’s short-lived Fox television show Drive.
In an interview with USA today, Tim Minear said, “The race is a secret, so the race itself, I guess you could say, is a conspiracy. And not all the participants in said race are there of their own free will … Every character has either a desperate reason or a mysterious reason to race that will be revealed over the course of the episodes.”
Everyone has a different reason for competing in the race: for Tully, the motive is to recover his kidnapped wife. Fillion plays Tully with a dangerous intensity in a role that showcases his powerful acting ability. Sadly, Drive was cancelled early and only six episodes were ever filmed.
Click here for detailed information and review.
Lost (Sgt. Kevin Callis) (2006)
Nathan gets an adorable turn as a police officer from Kate’s past in the mega-hit TV show Lost. His character, a much happier, mellower sort than he usually plays, falls in love with and marries Kate, who of course, suddenly yet inevitably betrays him. Well written and acted, this episode was great mainstream exposure for Nathan’s talent and good looks. Let’s face it - Nathan in a uniform is a very… pleasing sight!
So far, Nathan has appeared in only one episode, but was originally rumored to have been cast in two. I guess we’ll just have to wait until the show starts airing again to find out the real story. The storyline of his character is such that it could be considered complete, but I could also see it being expanded.
Slither (Bill Pardy) (2006)
Nathan shines as the likable small-town police chief who has to save the world in this gross-out horror comedy. He plays the affable, not terribly heroic hero in distress to perfection, becoming a relatable and lovable good guy we walk through the film side by side with. One of Nathan’s talents as an actor is invoking empathy in the viewer, an ability shown to perfection in Firefly and Serenity. He pulls it off in a different but equally effective manner in Slither.
Bill Pardy doesn’t always know what to do to save the day, but he’s game to try and ultimately succeed. He’s not the most stoic of souls, but he’s brave enough to save those who need saving, fight who he has to fight, and keep going to the slimy end.
Serenity (Mal - Captain Malcolm Reynolds) (2005)
Do I even need to bother to write about this one? Nathan. Mal. Dashing space captain with a brown coat and a slany gunbelt. Movie based on Firefly. Do I really need to keep writing here? If you’re reading this page, I think not. Nonetheless, when I have time I’ll wax poetical a bit since I can’t bear to see my entry on “Serenity” shorter than “Pasadena.”
Pasadena (Rev. Glenn Collins) (2005)
Nathan appears in a few episodes of this very soapy soap opera. There’s really no reason to watch this aside from the sheer pleasure of seeing Nathan on screen. He plays a pastor who becomes briefly embroiled in an affair with a married woman. Die-hard fans will want to track this down and watch it, others will just as happily miss the agonizingly trite and dramatic writing.
Outing Riley (Luke)
This movie is not available on DVD (or even VHS), and it seems that very few people on earth have actually seen it. efilmcritic has a review which reads, in part: “Outing Riley does slowly overcome its frequent stumbling blocks and settles in thanks in part to nice work from McDonald and particularly Nathan Fillion as Bobby’s closest brother, Luke. Fillion actually played the first, mistaken Private Ryan in Spielberg’s epic and here really shines as the Riley clown who gets hurt so deeply that his brother couldn’t at least confide in him. He has a bright future in the business.”
Miss Match (Adam Logan) (6 episodes, 2003)
Can’t review this one - haven’t seen it - yet.
Water’s Edge (Robert Graves) (2003)
Water’s Edge is a somewhat obscure thriller starring Nathan. While the movie isn’t one of the world’s best, it has an absolutely fantastic performance by Nathan that I think nobody should miss. Thrilllers aren’t my kind of movie, but this one I own:)
Nathan’s performance actually gave what could have been a forgettable movie some very moving moments. I’ve pretty much decided that anything Nathan’s in where he isn’t playing a bad guy, I want to see even if it’s not my kind of movie.
It’s quite watchable even if you aren’t into thrillers; it gets unpleasantly intense at times but we’ve all seen worse in Serenity. There’s nothing truly horrific in it. It’s quite a decent, engaging movie. The writing isn’t the greatest, but not bad either. It seems more human than a lot of thrillers, and it ends well.
Nathan was wonderful in it and plays a very likable, upstanding guy, miserable and under a huge strain most of the time. A little like Mal, come to think of it. Maybe one of these days we’ll get to see him when he’s not being hunted, beaten, and shot. It was hard for me to get used to hearing his character called “Robert” instead of Mal though!
Nathan manages to once again really make you feel for his character. How can I put this without spoiling the movie for those who haven’t seen it……..There’s a scene near the end where “Robert” has lost everything and he’s about to be shot that just hit me in the heart. The way he played that brought tears to my eyes.
Watch it, Nathan fans!
Firefly (Mal - Captain Malcolm Reynolds) (2002-2003)
If by some bizarre twist of circumstance you haven’t seen Firefly, that’s a wrong that needs to be righted, stat! Nathan plays Malcolm Reynolds, captain of the spaceship Serenity. He’s not your ordinary hero, and this isn’t the ordinary sort of science fiction, either. In this brilliantly written series, people act like real (and intelligent) human beings, there is a refreshing absence of aliens, and you’ll find danger and love, tragedy and humor, good, evil, and every shade in between……and characters you’ll grow to love with all your heart.
The leader of that crew is Mal….a not quite definable anti-hero. The former soldier is hard and uncompromising, outwardly interested only in staying alive and keeping his ship in the air. But Mal is also a man of honor and courage, with deep love and a fierce sense of protectiveness towards his adopted family: the crew of Serenity. This, along with the movie Serenity, are the crown jewels of Nathan’s career: a wonderful show, brilliantly acted. It simply doesn’t get any better than Firefly.
Nathan as Mal: A Hero Comes to Life. This is an essay I wrote for a book compiled by my online friends in the Appreciatin’ Nathan group. The completed book, a tribute to Nathan Fillion, was presented to him at B3, the impromptu event that took place when the Flanvention was cancelled at the last minute.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Caleb)
Caleb, who appeared in the final few episodes of Buffy, is supposed to be the antithesis to Joss Whedon’s representation of female power. He is a chauvinistic, clever, despicable villain under the control of the First. Nathan played him so well that (this being the first role I had seen him in) I almost considered not seeing Firefly, he was so eerie. Definitely a different role for Nathan and he played it superbly, bringing a dry sense of humor to what is one of the best formulated villains in the Buffy verse (and who could forget his explanation of still wearing preacher garb that “…everyone knows black is slimming”).
Review above courtesy of Pseudo-Aussie Browncoat, because I haven’t watched this, and I won’t. Why? Watching my favorite actors play bad guys ruins something for me. I’m strange, I admit it:)
Alligator Point (2003)
To say this series was short-lived would be an understatement! A sort of Cheers-in-the-South comedy, the pilot features Fillion’s character (a formerly famous race-car driver whose career was ended by a traumatic wreck) as the co-owner of the fishing boat the Happy Hooker. The former co-owner dies and is buried at sea, leaving Fillion’s character’s ex-wife half ownership in the boat. She immediately decides the boat should be renamed “Here Fishy.”
A bet is soon placed to settle the matter: if Fillion’s character can get a date on the spot with the stand-offish out of town doctor who just walked into the resturaunt they’re in, the boat will remain the Happy Hooker. Things get complicated slightly by the buried-at-sea body resurfacing nearby…..twice! When Fillion’s character lands the date with the doctor (come on - Nathan was involved, it was inevitable!), the pilot ends with him leading her out to his boat….they just have to bury the body at sea for the third time on the way to that romantic date.
This show looked like it had potential……it’s too bad it never got a shot.
Dracula 2000 (Father David)
Nathan plays Father David, a likable, intensely devout priest that a main character turns to for counsel in a couple of scenes. Nathan gets very little screen time in this, but he does a good job with it.
Outer Limits: Star Struck (Michael Ryan) (1999)
The episode is nothing special: a blatant Casablanca rip-off, only more grotesque, it’s almost painful to watch…….until Nathan lights up the screen. One day this man will get more of the quality roles he deserves; in the meantime we fans gotta take what we can get, and watching Nathan’s character is the saving grace of this hour of television. We get action, witty comments, tension, and a tenderly passionate sex scene that (for female fans at any rate) makes the whole mess worth watching.
Blast From the Past (Cliff) (1999)
Nathan has a small role in this lighthearted comedy as Cliff, a bratty ex-boyfriend. He gets screen time in several brief scenes; it’s certainly a bit part but the movie’s a pretty enjoyable watch overall as well. He’s handsome as ever but not particularly likable, however in my opinion just about anything Nathan’s in is worth watching.
Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place (Johnny Donnelly) (1998-2001)
Nathan was a series regular starting in season two of this comedy, which also starred Ryan Reynolds. The show is not yet available on DVD, but an internet search will reveal people selling home-burned DVD sets of dubious legality. I’ll be getting my paws on a not-very-legitimate copy soon and I promise to post back.
Saving Private Ryan (The Wrong Ryan) (1998)
Yes, that’s right, Nathan was in it! He plays “the wrong Ryan;” an unfortunate young soldier who is mistakenly informed that his brothers are dead. It’s a small but very good part. Fillion is the master of the stunned, heartbroken expression, and he puts that skill to good use here.
Spin City (1996)
Nathan made an uncredited guest appearance on the TV comedy series Spin City. Sadly, I haven’t seen it. Now if they’d ever get around to releasing more than four measly DVDs of this delightfully funny show, that’d change. Hint hint.