Even though Firefly only lasted for one (truncated) season on Fox in 2002 due to low ratings, the sci-fi series certainly had a dedicated following who have been clamoring for a return to the Joss Whedon show ever since it was cancelled. And, it's rare that a year goes by without one of the stars of the show giving fans a nod to the characters on social media, allude to a possible revival, work together on something else or just meetup in real life and drive everyone crazy.
As you might imagine, the cast (which included Nathon Filiion, Alan Tudyk, Gina Torres, Morena Baccarin, Ron Glass, Summer Glau, Jewel Staite, Adam Baldwin and Sean Maher) gets asked about Firefly a lot, with the topic of whether or not they'd want to do a revival, what they'd want to explore with their characters now and much more being broached quite frequently.
Well, Morena Baccarin, who played intergalactic companion (i.e. geisha / mistress) Inara, was asked just these questions recently, and she's definitely got some thoughts on what she'd like to have happen for her character and whether or not it would even be a good idea to go back to the Firefly well at all.
That’s a good question. She’s just so tortured. I’d really like her to be a little bit happy. [Laughs.] Maybe she’d find a way. But her relationship with Mal is so contingent on both of them being slightly unhappy, so I don’t know that they’ll ever be happy. Would I be interested? Sure. I’m open but scared—we did something great, so why touch it? And we’re all older and different and I don’t know if you get that kind of mojo back again.
I'd say that this is a pretty good answer. I mean, if you played a character who was a good person, but had some problems being happy, you'd want them to be able to finally find some joy, right? And, Baccarin's Inara was a good person. Her position as a companion actually gave her a very high social standing, and her presence on the ship that Mal (Nathan Fillion) captained gave them a lot of legitimacy, even though their activities were often less-than-above-board.
Inara was compassionate, dignified and civil, but her feelings for Mal (which were very very mutual) never really came to anything, as they figured it was best to stay professional. Of course, had the show gone on for Whedon's planned seven seasons, that probably would have changed at some point.
As far as going back to Inara and Firefly now goes, Morena Baccarin is understandably a little bit hesitant. Being "open but scared" makes a lot of sense when you consider two things. First of all, it's going on 20 years since they originally worked on the show, and as Baccarin noted the group "mojo" might not be able to be revived. Secondly, as I mentioned earlier, fans have wanted this show back since it got cancelled, and that's a lot of audience expectation to try and live up to at any point.
Speaking of fan expectations, the only reason there would be any on a Firefly revival is that folks simply have never forgotten this show or stopped dreaming of what could have been had it not been cut down in its prime. When Morena Baccarin was asked by the AV Club what it's like to have been a part of a project that people still hold dear after so long, she revealed just how surprising it's been:
It’s kind of amazing. I never expected it in a million years. Obviously, we were a little show that got cancelled. I loved working on that—I’m still really good friends with everybody on the show. It was my first TV experience. It was so lovely, and it really set the bar for everything else I did. I am really humbled by the intensity of the fans when it comes to the show. It still surprises me.
I can imagine that Baccarin speaks for a lot of the cast, many of whom have gone on to do other things with large fanbases, when she says how amazing and unexpected it's been to have a cancelled show last in people's minds for as long as Firefly has. Most actors never get to have an experience like that, so it's good that it's really made a positive impact on her life and career.
As you probably realize by now, there are no plans for Firefly to come back to TV, especially since Joss Whedon isn't too keen on television reboots, but you can watch much of the cast in a host of other small screen projects. You can keep up with everything coming to TV soon with our fall premiere guide.
