Though do I think he's *awesome* enough? I surely do...

Talking to Digital Spy, fan favourite actor Nathan Fillion first joked that he’d never heard of The Avengers, then addressed the possibility of his own involvement in The Avengers 2 by saying:

“I have to be honest. The entertainment industry is an industry. I love telling stories but…finance does meet art. If I were in charge of an Avengers sequel I would be very concerned about what kind of money I could make back overseas, and these kinds of things.”

However, he gave fans a hint of hope by adding:

“I’m not quite at that level yet…but I’m getting there.”

One could argue that Joss Whedon “wasn’t famous enough” before he directed The Avengers, and now guess what? Even normal people are going, “Wow, The Avengers was amazing! Joss Whedon did a brilliant job!” Thus providing their Whedonite friends with the perfect opportunity to do the dance of “I told you so”, and sit them down to watch the boxsets of his back catalogue (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse).

Nathan Fillion’s probably just being humble, but to many Browncoats, saying something like that is like a red flag to a bull…or the word “Fox” to Firefly fans…

Fillion also mentioned how he feels like he's had "more than my fair share of Joss Whedon projects", and so he feels reluctant to ask for any more. He's played roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, Serenity, Doctor Horrible's Sing-a-Long Blog, and the upcoming Much Ado About Nothing. But that's exactly why he should have more; he's so good in those roles, and so befitting the Whedonverse in his sensibilities.

Obviously, the right actor should be cast in the right role, and so on and forth, to slay the vampires and stop the spread of their evil, yadda yadda yadda, but come on, Nathan Fillion is The Best Actor. At least, my favourite actor. In terms of sheer versatility, Enver Gjokaj is probably the best actor, and for all we know was probably even impersonating Nathan Fillion in that interview in order to wind him up…

[possible Avengers cameo spoilers follow]

After all, Enver has already been in The Avengers, even if it was just a cameo.

In Joss Whedon's Doctor Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog, Nathan Fillion’s Captain Hammer memorably sings, “Everyone’s a hero in their own way / You, and you, and mostly me, and you…” The conventional interpretion (yes, the convention interpretation of a supervillain musical comedy) is that he’s just hilariously arrogant. However, this raises another possibility, especially since a key theme of the Whedonverse is being an outsider yearning for a sense of belonging. Perhaps Captain Hammer’s just desperately trying to prove that he’s worthy to be a superhero (like the Avengers, say), in much the same way as Billy Buddy / Doctor Horrible is desperately trying to prove that he’s worthy to be a supervillain by joining the Evil League of Evil. Captain Hammer's like an ironically villainous Agent Coulson.

Though another way of looking at it is that Captain Hammer's driven by hubris, which is linked to fame, and this has implications not only for him but also for others. ("I don't have time for your warnings...") The quest for fame is driven by hubris, and generally results in more of it. So while not being famous enough make may it more difficult to get cast in certain high-profile roles, maybe it's a blessing in disguise on a personal level.

But the fans still want him to play those roles. It’s an internet fan-casting cliché that Nathan Fillion should play every role ever. But it’s a cliché because it’s good; he's a great actor who's terrifically entertaining to watch. And, in his own words, he’s “not famous enough” to be cast in many of these roles. Thus, he needs to be more famous. More people need to know how awesome Nathan Fillion is, and then watch Firefly, and then they’ll actually get some of my references.

To paraphrase a brief exchange from Firefly:

“Captain’ll come up with a box-office success.”

“And that’s a good thing, right?”

“Perhaps you’re not recalling some of the Captain’s previous box-office successes…”

Okay, he has none to speak of. Nathan Fillion’s career success is more significant on the small screen, where Castle is a popular and successful show lasting many seasons so far. Now why couldn’t that just have happened a few years earlier…?

To quote from Firefly again:

“You have…reputation. ‘Malcolm Reynolds does the job’, is the talk. What is reputation? Is people talking, is gossip… I also have reputation… You do this train job for me, then your reputation for me is solid, is fact. No more gossip. But if you not do the job…your reputation only gossip; and things between you and me…not so solid…”

Perhaps that’s how Nathan Fillion is afraid that studio executives see things. But with career setbacks instead of pain. Though he’d probably wisecrack through the former as much as the latter…

(via Whedonesque)

See also:

Andrew Garfield assumed to be in The Avengers 2 after reading Avengers comics

Tom Hiddleston talks Loki, Thor, Avengers, Shakespeare, and more

Percy Jackson 2 casts Nathan Fillion and Anthony Stewart Head

Captain Hammer voices Green Lantern

Nathan Fillion to play Hank Pym, a.k.a. Ant-Man?

Ten Actors and Actresses Who Deserve Better Roles

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