<p id=”par-1_67″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/actors/”>Actor</a> Nathan Fillion has long since argued that his hit sci-fi series <em>Firefly </em>wasn’t given the proper <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/nathan-fillion-felt-firefly-treated-like-problem-show.html/”>respect it deserved from its network</a>. Because of this, the show only lasted for one season before being canceled. However, one season was all it needed to make the impact that it did. And although many fans clamor for the show’s return to this day, Fillion wasn’t one of them.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-nathan-fillion-made-a-case-for-firefly-not-needing-anymore-seasons”>Nathan Fillion made a case for ‘Firefly’ not needing anymore seasons</h2>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/firefly-nathan-fillion.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Nathan Fillion talking at comic-con wearing a green shirt.” class=”wp-image-3792300″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Nathan Fillion | Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-2_69″>Fillion is used to starring in long-running television shows. Often times, a series’ longevity can be a decent measure of a show’s success. But it’s in this regard that <em>Firefly </em>stands out. Despite lasting only one season, the show was just as popular as Fillion’s <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/nathan-fillion-couldnt-believe-firefly-popular-castle.html/”>eight-season long show <em>Castle</em></a>. In a resurfaced interview with <a href=”https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/interviews/a33827/nathan-fillion-alan-tudyk-firefly-reboot-tournament/”>Esquire</a>, Fillion made the argument that <em>Firefly </em>being canceled early only added to its success.</p>
<p id=”par-3_96″><em>“</em><em>Firefly</em>, as short-lived as it was, never had an opportunity to suck. It didn’t have that, ‘Oh, well. Season two was kind of slow,’” he said. “It picked up in season three and season four was great.” It didn’t have that quality. It just has this wonderful introduction to this incredible world where everything is new and everything’s different and everything’s great. In every episode we learn something, we see something, we experience something. It’s a slow build and it’s going somewhere… and then it dies a horrible death. So we can never make it suck.”</p>
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<p id=”par-4_31″>Fillion also felt that <em>Firefly </em>benefited from not being tampered with. Unlike other classic shows or movies that were augmented by modern special effects, Joss Whedon’s show was left entirely untouched.</p>
<p id=”par-5_53″>“We didn’t go back and change anything; we didn’t put any extra CGI in it or change any story points or character points. We have that advantage. So along with the opportunity of never having been able to suck and people having access to it, people are coming to <em>Firefly</em> all the time,” he added.</p>
<p id=”par-6_35″>Incidentally, not revisiting the franchise might’ve also been why Fillion wasn’t completely on board with developing a sequel. Despite being the<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/nathan-fillion-named-firefly-turning-point-career.html/”> turning point in his career</a>, Fillion wasn’t sure if <em>Firefly </em>needed more seasons. </p>
<p id=”par-7_44″>“It’s really hard to look at that kind of stuff and say, ‘Give me more, because it’s not enough,’” he once said at a Comic-Con according to <a href=”https://ew.com/article/2016/09/22/nathan-fillion-firefly-reunion/”>Entertainment Weekly</a>. “Oh my God. It was everything. It was everything. How can everything not be enough?”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-joss-whedon-had-a-dream-about-continuing-firefly-that-excited-nathan-fillion”>Joss Whedon had a dream about continuing ‘Firefly’ that excited Nathan Fillion</h2>
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<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
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<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/nathan-fillion-revealed-firefly-co-star-ended-the-rookie.html/”>
Nathan Fillion Revealed How His ‘Firefly’ Co-Star Ended up on ‘The Rookie’ </a>
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<p id=”par-8_60″>Fillion wasn’t completely against the idea of revisiting or even <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/nathan-fillion-wants-to-see-a-firefly-reboot-with-a-younger-cast.html/”>rebooting the <em>Firefly </em>universe</a>, however. In fact, he even got excited when Whedon told him about a dream he had about the TV show. In the dream, Whedon and the cast seemed to pick up right where they left off on the same chaotic set that Fillion was familiar with.</p>
<p id=”par-9_49″> “Joss sent me a text that said he had a dream that we were all shooting <em>Firefly</em> again and, you know, this was happening, this was happening, this was happening, and the scripts were coming in late — ‘It was like a little slice of heaven,’” Fillion once told <a href=”https://ew.com/article/2011/03/18/nathan-fillion-firefly-campaign/”>Entertainment Weekly</a>.</p>
<p id=”par-10_33″>Fillion emphasized that he enjoyed how disorganized the series could be when compared to other shows. The lack of coordination made for an even more unpredictable but fun time while shooting the project.</p>
<p id=”par-11_87″>“We were always under the wire with scripts. Scripts were coming in the day before, or the day of, or would change for that afternoon, and everybody said ‘Okay. No problem.’ We loved it. We<em> loved</em> it. Because what you see on TV is what we ended up with in our hands. So it was always great. There was never a day I went to work on <em>Firefly</em> where I looked at the script and went, ‘Eh, today will be alright.’ Everyday I was doing something so great. So great,” he said.</p>