Whedon gave Fillion a chance to display his range when he cast Fillion as the twisted preacher Caleb, a villain, in the seventh and final season of Buffy, cazavampiros (1997).
When Firefly (2002) was prematurely canceled in late 2002, the show's cast, crew, and many fans were devastated. Whedon vowed to resurrect the series in some way, and Fillion played Captain Reynolds again in the feature-film Serenity (2005). Fillion followed this film with more big screen leading roles in the horror-comedy Slither: La plaga (2006) and the indie hit La camarera (2007). He also continued to be a force in television, starring in the short-lived Fox-TV series Drive (2007) and appearing on ABC's Mujeres desesperadas (2004). He took his first singing part (and cemented his cult appeal) as Captain Hammer in Whedon's musical Internet smash Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog(2008). - IMDb Mini Biography By: Azure_Girl
“ He is a Canadian actor and voice actor best known for his role as Richard Castle on the ABC series Castle, as well as his earlier portrayal of the lead role of Captain Malcolm Reynolds in the television series Firefly and its feature film continuation, Serenity … “
For his role as the title character Richard Castle in ABC's hit television series, "Castle," which is going into its 8th season and has aired more than 150 episodes, Nathan Fillion won three People's Choice Awards for Favorite Dramatic TV Actor, most recently as 2015.
Fillion also starred as Dogberry, the incompetent chief of security, in Joss Whedon's feature, "Much Ado About Nothing," based on Shakespeare's play. He and Whedon have been working together for over 10 years, starting with the cult television series "Firefly" in 2002. While short lived, "Firefly" was adapted for the big screen, with Fillion reprising his role as Malcolm Reynolds in "Serenity," which Whedon wrote and directed in 2005. He also had a recurring role as Caleb in the final season of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," and took his first singing role as Captain Hammer in Whedon's Emmy award winning musical internet smash, "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog," with Neil Patrick Harris and Felicia Day.
Fillion lent his voice to a lead character in Pixar's "Monsters University" with Billy Crystal, John Goodman and Helen Mirren. He voices Johnny Worthington, the smug leader of Roar Omega Roar fraternity, the most elite house on campus. Since opening on July 21st, "Monsters University" has grossed over $300 worldwide. He also voiced the lead character, Shojun, in the animated movie "Yamasong: March of the Hollows" along side Abigail Breslin and Freida Pinto. In addition, Fillion appeared in Thor Freudenthal's "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters," as Hermes, the messenger god. Plus he's the narrator for the documentary, "Highway of Tears."
Fillion also lends his voice to wildly popular video games such as "Destiny" and "Halo 5: Guardians," where he has had a recurring role as Edward Buck.
Other film credits include Adrienne Shelly's "Waitress," opposite Keri Russell; James Mottern's "Trucker," opposite Michelle Monaghan; James Gunn's "Slither," co-starring Elizabeth Banks; Patrick Lussier's "White Noise 2" and "Dracula 2000"; Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan"; and Hugh Wilson's "Blast from the Past".
Television credits include roles on "Big Bang Theory," "Drunk History," and "Kroll Show". He's had a recurring role on "Community," "Desperate Housewives," "Two Guys and a Girl," "Drive," "Pasadena" and "Miss Match." Fillion earned an Emmy nomination for his role in the daytime drama "One Life to Live."
Fillion is a native of Edmonton, Alberta, and studied at the University of Alberta. He starred in productions at the Edmonton Fringe Festival and performed with comedy groups in town before moving on to pursue an acting career in New York and Los Angeles.
Trade Mark
Known for playing unusual but highly likeable characters
Trivia
Wanted to be a high school drama teacher. In college he majored in art and minored in drama while pursuing an acting career on the side.
Originally auditioned for the role of Angel for Joss Whedon's first television series, Buffy, cazavampiros (1997). However, never met Joss Whedon until he auditioned for the part of Mal on Firefly (2002).
When he won Best Actor at the 2006 SyFy Genre Awards for his portrayal of Captain Malcolm Reynolds in Firefly (2002), the show had been off the air for around three years.
Parents are Cookie and Bob Fillion, both of whom are retired English teachers.
Has an older brother, Jeff Fillion, who decided to go into teaching. He taught in schools in Edmonton, Alberta, and became a principle at St. Richards Edmonton catholic school where he made a movie with the kids and got his brother Nathan to do the introduction. It was about the school going into space.
Attended Concordia University College of Alberta and the University of Alberta.
One of four actors from Firefly (2002) who voiced superheroes on La Liga de la Justicia(2001). He voiced the Western-themed "Vigilante" while Adam Baldwin voiced "Hal Jordan," the Silver Age-Green Lantern; Gina Torres voiced "Vixen"; and Morena Baccarinvoiced "Black Canary.".
Claims to be descended from Confederate Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early. When told this, Joss Whedon created a bounty hunter by the name of "Jubal Early" for the Firefly(2002) episode Firefly: Objects in Space (2002).
Auditioned for the role of Michael in Amanecer de los muertos (2004).
He considers his time on Firefly (2002) to be the most fun he had on a TV series.
Was a popular fan choice for the role of the heroic pilot Hal Jordan in Linterna Verde(2011), but the role went to Ryan Reynolds instead. Fillion voiced Jordan in the animated feature Green Lantern: Caballeros esmeralda (2011) as a replacement for Christopher Meloni, who had voiced Jordan in Green Lantern: Primer vuelo (2009), but was unable to reprise the role due to scheduling conflicts.
He is deaf in his left ear. He lost his hearing in that ear in 1977.
Has voiced Hal Jordan/Green Lantern in three different animated features: Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (2011), Justice League: Doom (2012), Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (2013) And Justice League: Throne of Atlantis (2015).
Is an avid fan of video games and collects comic books.
Before Stana Katic was ultimately cast, he read with 125 actresses auditioning for the role of Kate Beckett.
Personal Quotes
I've always fantasized about being on TV. And I was. Then I fantasized about being in the movies. What could be better than captain of a space ship? I get to ride horses, shoot guns, have adventures ...
My favorite villains are the ones you don't see coming. What I enjoyed about playing Caleb was that he was so very, very clever, so very, very sweet, and so very, very twisted. I liked that he's not a typical villain. He's soft and sweet and righteous, and yet he's perverted and twisted in his head.
(Talking about the cancellation of Firefly (2002)): I broke the cardinal rule of don't fall in love with what you're doing, because the rug can get yanked out from underneath you, and when it did, I was heartbroken.
(On Firefly fans attempts to save the show) It's very Jehovah's Witness. I'm not sure if anyone's actually going door to door, but it's not far off.
(When asked about his relationship with Joss Whedon): I'll tell you this. No one has ever shown the kind of faith in me that Joss Whedon has shown, in both giving me a lead on his sci-fi show Firefly (2002) and in letting me play a villain for the very first time. No one's ever let me play a villain before. So, I would say that I think he's done great things for my career and certainly my confidence in general.
(About Serenity (2005)): There is nothing like a major motion picture to make you feel a little bit better about having your TV show canceled.
(When asked what he likes about playing a villain): Being able to be evil. You can't do the evil things that you want to do in real life. You certainly can't because it's against the law and society says all that they have to say about being evil. You want to be bad everyday. You want to do the bad evil things that you can't get away with and now I'm able to be bad and super strong. It's a fantasy.
(When asked what makes Caleb unique and threatening): His accent. Never trust a southerner. No, I'm kidding. They're wonderful. You want to believe in his niceness and his charm, but he's an evil kind of crazy man who's righteous. Fear the righteous.
(When asked if he would go back and do a Firefly (2002) TV series again after Serenity(2005)): I hope so. Daddy's got bills to pay!
[on Firefly (2002)] - It was my favorite job ever. What wasn't great about it? I got to wear a low-slung holster. I got to ride horses. I got to have a spaceship. I got to act mean and curmudgeonly. [Creator Joss Whedon] is really good at kicking characters in the nuts so the other characters would have laughs at my expense and that was great too.
... If I got $300 million from the California Lottery, the first thing I would do is buy the rights to Firefly, make it on my own, and distribute it on the Internet.
... We're the most story-literate society the world has ever seen. What Joss tends to do is twist story conventions into reality. Whereas the story goes like this, real life goes like this, and that's what Joss has mastered.
[on the DVD commentary for Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (2008), talking about his skill at portraying "Joey Buchanan" on One Life to Live (1968)] The only question you have to ask yourself is 'How good a Joey Buchanan was I?' A man's 'Buchananity' is what separates him from reptiles and lawn furniture.
[describing how he blew his chance at serving on a jury] We're talking to this judge who belonged on TV. He was handsome, had good hair. He was telling us about the importance of jury duty. I was riveted. He was funny, and at one point they call you back into the room and they're gonna decide whether or not they're gonna use you. I walk in. They're all charming, they're all nice, and one of them says, 'Hey, you're an actor!' I decided to have a little fun and I said, 'Yes, I'm a very good actor, which brings me to the point: I don't know which juror I'm playing. I still didn't get my script.' The judge didn't get it. He looks at me and he says, 'There's no script', I said, 'Oh, improv. Good. Let me give you a little back story to my character. I'm the guy, when they sequester the jury in the hotel, I tie the bedsheets together, I come out the window and I pit the plaintiffs against the defence attorney'. I got excused.
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