‘Firefly’s Nathan Fillion Confirms Reboot Recasting the Late Ron Glass

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As a huge sci-fi fan, I was totally blown away by the news this week – apparently, we’re getting a Firefly revival! It’s not a live-action show though, this time it’s going to be animated. For those who remember, the original only lasted one season, but we got the Serenity movie in 2005, and the story’s lived on in comics and stuff since then. The best part? Nathan Fillion, Adam Tudyk, and Morena Baccarin are all coming back! Sadly, not everyone from the original cast is involved, and Nathan Fillion mentioned they’re still looking for the perfect person to fill one important role.

In the original Firefly series, Ron Glass played Shepherd Book, a spiritual guide who brought a unique and insightful perspective to the crew’s adventures. Sadly, Ron Glass passed away in 2016, meaning he won’t appear in the new animated series. However, Nathan Fillion confirmed to Deadline that the character of Shepherd Book won’t be removed from the show. When asked about Book’s presence, Fillion explained:

Yes, that’s the idea. We are definitely planning to bring the character Shepherd Book back. However, sadly, Ron Glass is no longer with us. He once made a funny observation that he didn’t get cast when they were searching for someone like him, and now we find ourselves in a similar situation – looking for an actor to play the role he made so iconic, but it won’t be Ron Glass himself.

It really hits me that Ron Glass isn’t with us anymore, and honestly, I choose to believe he’d be happy about this. It just feels like something he would have wanted.


Fox

Gina Torres, Adam Baldwin, Jewel Staite, Summer Glau, and Sean Maher are all expected to reprise their roles. While Joss Whedon, the show’s creator, won’t be directly involved in the reboot, he has given it his support.

A key detail from their discussion with Deadline is that the new TV show takes place after the first season of the original series, but before the events of the Serenity movie. This allows for the continuation of Alan Tudyk’s character, Wash, who died in the film. Tudyk playfully called this period the “Wash Is Still Alive Time,” a nickname the cast and crew use.

Reviving Firefly wouldn’t work unless we brought back the entire original cast and story. We briefly considered continuing the story after the events of the movie Serenity, but I’m not interested in that. Serenity felt like a perfect ending to a fantastic show, and I wouldn’t want to try and top that. Instead, I’d rather revisit the past, reunite the crew, and give fans more of what they loved. Continuing after Serenity just wouldn’t be the same, and I wouldn’t want to do it without Alan Tudyk.

Even though fans and the people making the show are excited about it, a streaming or broadcast home hasn’t been officially announced yet. While it used to air on Fox, so Hulu seems like a likely option, it’s still early in the conversation and nothing is confirmed.

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2026-03-21 02:02