'Firefly' returning to cable

[Tribal Warfare]

'Firefly' returning to cable; Fillion says he'd play Mal again -- EXCLUSIVE

Browncoats rejoice: Firefly is returning to basic cable — and Nathan Fillion has something to say about it.

The Science Channel has acquired the rights to the cult-hit and will air the series in its short-lived entirety, plus some new extras. Science Channel will wrap each episode with interstitial segments starring renowned physicist Dr. Michio Kaku, who will discuss the theoretical science behind the show’s sci-fi concepts.

According to Firefly studio 20th Century Fox, this will mark the first time Firefly has aired on a fully distributed basic cable channel since 2008, when it ran on USA Network.

In honor of this occasion, star Nathan Fillion took a brief break from shooting ABC’s Castle today to jump on the phone and answer five Firefly questions — including whether he’d ever reprise the role of Captain Mal again. That interview and more details about Science Channel’s Firefly plans below:

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: What was the part about playing the character?

NATHAN FILLION: 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 Castle had its series finale tomorrow and Fox said to you and Joss: “We screwed up, let’s try doing Firefly again.” Would you do it?

FILLION:Yes. Yes. I would examine very closely Fox’s reasoning — I’m a little gun-shy. 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.

What’s the most common thing Firefly fans say to you?

FILLION:No. 1, “Is there going to be more?” No. 2, “Why was it canceled?”

Why do you think the show has had such an enduring appeal?

FILLION:It’s a great question. 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.

Do you ever watch the show nowadays or is that just weird?

FILLION: It’s not weird. I haven’t watched it in a long, long time and I would like to revisit it.

Firefly premieres on Science Channel on March 6 at 8 p.m., with the two hour pilot, followed by the first episode at 10 p.m. Following that, Firefly episodes will air every Sunday — and, yes, in their original intended order and upgraded to high definition.

[Buck]

Originally Posted by JD10367

I've been a Fillion fan ever since I saw him as a bit-part on the sitcom "Two Guys, A Girl, And A Pizza Place" (which also shot Ryan Reynolds to stardom, and propelled Traylor Howard onto "Monk" as the replacement for Bitty Schram).

"Firefly" seems to have had quite an impact, for a show that only lasted 14 episodes. I liked it. I also like that, when it was killed, Joss Whedon found work for Fillion in a guest arc on "Buffy" as well as giving Gina Torres a guest arc on "Angel".

Fillion is great in "Castle". I'd hate to see it canceled--and, as of now, they're in their third season and have already been optioned for a fourth, so I don't think we'll be seeing him in any "Firefly 2.0" soon. But I wouldn't mind seeing the concept revisited somewhere down the road, even if they have to do a "Ten years later..." kind of story.

Well...

Spoiler!

Shepherd Book and Wash would be dead, and I don't want to watch any episodes without either of them.

[007]

Never even seen this. Didn't like Buffy and didn't like Angel so I never bothered with it. come to think of it, I didn't care much for Dollhouse either.

I'll probably give the reruns a chance since I do like Fillion but I'm skeptical considering my track record with Whedon shows.

[Buck]

Originally Posted by Guru

Never even seen this. Didn't like Buffy and didn't like Angel so I never bothered with it. come to think of it, I didn't care much for Dollhouse either.

It's different than those shows.

I bet you would like it.

[007]

I still think Fillion would have been a great Nathan Drake. Too bad he is too old for that character.

[JD10367]

Originally Posted by Guru

Never even seen this. Didn't like Buffy and didn't like Angel so I never bothered with it. come to think of it, I didn't care much for Dollhouse either.

I'll probably give the reruns a chance since I do like Fillion but I'm skeptical considering my track record with Whedon shows.

Just curious... did you actually give "Buffy" a chance, or did you watch a few and think, "This shit's for teenage girls," and give up? Because the first season of "Buffy" is pretty slow, as they're mainly developing characters, but in the middle of the second season the show takes off and pretty much doesn't stop until the show ends.

[007]

Originally Posted by JD10367

Just curious... did you actually give "Buffy" a chance, or did you watch a few and think, "This shit's for teenage girls," and give up? Because the first season of "Buffy" is pretty slow, as they're mainly developing characters, but in the middle of the second season the show takes off and pretty much doesn't stop until the show ends.

No. I just watched an ep here and there over its run. It just never pulled me in enough to want to invest in it.

[Lzen]

Originally Posted by KcMizzou

I think it's one of those that didn't do well at the box office, but did well on DVD. It was really pretty damn good.

I did my part. Loved the show. Loved the movie and saw it in the theaters.

Man, I wish they would start up the series again. Instead we get all these BS shows like reality crap.

[Deberg_1990]

What did you Whedon fans think of Dollhouse? I need to watch the 2nd season eventually...loved the 1st season.

[Shag]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

What did you Whedon fans think of Dollhouse? I need to watch the 2nd season eventually...loved the 1st season.

Dollhouse was great. When it first aired, I watched the first 2-3 episodes, thought it was terrible, and stopped watching. A couple friends convinced me it got better, so I gave it another shot on DVD. Glad I did, as it turned into a good show. Definitely watch the second season.

Whedon needs a new show...

[Lzen]

I never bothered to check out Dollhouse. I assumed it would be another series that Fox would cancel and I didn't want to get invested.

[HolyHandgernade]

I think my favorite scene from that series was when he kicked that guy into the jet engine intake. I laughed my ass off and said this is my type of show!

[KC Jones]

Just started watching it again. It was a travesty those morons in suits ****ed up so badly on this. I never even heard of the show at the time it was on the air. To jack around it's schedule and to not air the actual premier but instead make them create 'train job' was so dumb.

[JimBaker488]

Anybody know when season 2 of "Treme" begins ?

[Psyko Tek]

Originally Posted by KcMizzou

I wish we'd found out the deal about Shepherd Book's past. That's about the biggest unanswered question, in my mind.

they revealed it in a comic
it was meh

keep the mystery

[Psyko Tek]

Originally Posted by Shag

Dollhouse was great. When it first aired, I watched the first 2-3 episodes, thought it was terrible, and stopped watching. A couple friends convinced me it got better, so I gave it another shot on DVD. Glad I did, as it turned into a good show. Definitely watch the second season.

Whedon needs a new show...

he's a little busy with a small project called the Avengers
if he does good with that maybe we get a new firefly