A fan’s gotta do what a fan’s gotta do, and seeing Nathan Fillion tops the list for many Dragon Con attendees. Around 2,000 fans got their chance on Friday at 10AM in Centennial II–II, Hyatt, as well as an additional 2,000 fans in the overflow in the Marriot Atrium via video feed. Beloved for many of his roles, such as Captain Malcolm Reynolds on Firefly, Captain Hammer in Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and Richard Castle in the popular television series Castle, Fillion didn’t disappoint.
In fact, he seemed as excited and thrilled as his fans. He spoke of remembering everything about moments like this, “the temperature of room, how the seat feels against your butt, the energy of everything that’s going on around you, the excitement, the level of…Ho, man. You ever do that? I’m doing it right now.” What a guy.
When asked what his favorite role was, there was no hesitation: Captain Mal. His most difficult role was playing Dogberry in Joss Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing. “Doing Shakespeare is hard. Yeah, it’s English, but it’s not English.” He was worried about screwing it up, but he played the character based on his observations of people who think they are smarter than they really are. “It’s been my experience that people who are not too bright don’t know that they’re not too bright.” To keep his cool, he kept reminding himself, “Don’t blow this, buddy, don’t blow this,” because all the other actors were so good.
During the Q&A, one of the fans called him Mr. Fillion. His response? “Don’t be so formal. Please, call me Your Lordship.” He quickly lost it laughing, but the title stuck…all in good fun. He even answered a question about which products he uses in his hair. With wry wit and enthusiasm, he confessed that “being good lookin’ (pause for effect) is merely a question of keeping your distance… My secret to good hair: don’t fight it, man.” (Insert Fillion sexy hair rake.) “Just let it do its thing.” He proceeded to give the gentlemen in the audience a quick course in proper hair care, including admonishing them to be sure they smelled clean. He also told them that every man should be able to make five meals, plus clean up afterward. The ladies in the audience heartily approved.
Fillion said that his favorite scene in Firefly was… (Want to guess? Maybe the naked butt scene? Oh, wait. That was our favorite.) His choice: the scene where he was lying on the sickbay table with the entire crew around him. He loved the times when all of them were together.
Recalling his first role, which was in Saving Private Ryan (he played the “other Ryan”), he said he loved the part and working with Tom Hanks. He has had many roles in his career, including voicing characters like the Sterling in Cars 3. He laughed as he pointed out Sterling talks out of the right side of his mouth, just like Fillion does. As for future roles, he would love the opportunity to do a Wes Anderson movie with Bill Murray. Fillion also spoke of being constantly in awe of Alan Tudyk, with his multiple credits and his talent.
Fillion feels he is the luckiest man in the world. He’d never go in a shark cage because he’d be that one-in-a-million guy where the door breaks off. “One in a million, Nathan Fillion.” It even rhymes. “I’d rather be lucky than good, and so far that’s like my career. I’m super lucky that I get to do these incredible roles, and even more lucky that you guys seem to dig it.” He has been blessed with great roles, has been given the opportunity to work with (and become friends with) a variety of actors, and has the greatest fans in the world. This charming, ruggedly handsome man seemed to be having the time of his life. He assured fans that he had everything he needed right here, right now, with them. His wit and genuine love for his fans made for an entertaining and informative time.
