WB PRESS RELEASE
CASTLE, FIREFLY STAR NATHAN FILLION LEADS VOICE CAST AS HAL JORDAN
IN GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD KNIGHTS
Entertainment Weekly dubbed him a “Geek God.” TV Guide seems to
document his every move. Firefly/Serenity fans follow him in any
direction he goes.
And all the while, Nathan Fillion contines to go his own way, his
boyish charm and “ruggedly handsome” exterior constantly reflecting
the enchanting attitude of the proverbial kid-in-a-candy-store.
Make no mistake, Nathan Fillion is having the time of his life.
Fillion’s primetime series Castle is enjoying its best ratings,
cracking Nielsen’s Top 10 as the popular ABC drama culminated its
third season. And despite the five-plus-days-a-week grind of 14-plus
hours on set, Fillion still finds time to fulfill his own guilty geek
pleasures.
Thus, on the Sunday of the Martin Luther King Day holiday weekend in
2010, the Edmonton-born actor could be found recording the voice of
Hal Jordan for Green Lantern: Emerald Knights, an all-new DC Universe
Animated Original Movie coming to Blu-Ray™, DVD, On Demand and for
Download June 7, 2011.
Produced by Warner Premiere, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros.
Animation, and distributed by Warner Home Video, Green Lantern:
Emerald Knights weaves six legendary stories of the Green Lantern
Corps’ rich mythology around preparations for an attack by an ancient
enemy. As the battle approaches, Hal Jordan mentors new recruit Arisia
in the history of the Green Lantern Corps, telling tales of Avra,
Kilowog, Abin Sur, Laira and Mogo. In the end, Arisia must rise to the
occasion to help Hal, Sinestro and the entire Green Lantern Corps save
the universe from the destructive forces of Krona.
Fillion has starred in several primetime television series, including
Desperate Housewives, Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place and Buffy the
Vampire Slayer. He has also developed a popular cult following as a
pair of Joss Whedon’s heroic captains: Capt. Mal Reynolds in the
space-western series Firefly and follow-up film, Serenity; and Captain
Hammer in Whedon’s internet sensation Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.
Fillion returns to the DC Universe after his successful turn as Steve
Trevor in the animated film Wonder Woman, having also performed voice
work on Justice League, Robot Chicken, The Venture Bros., and several
Halo video games.
The ever-genuine Fillion spent some time following his initial
recording session to discuss comic book justice, the perils of space
travel, his love of comic books and the origin story behind his famous
Green Lantern t-shirt. Read on …
QUESTION:
Among the superhero role play games of your childhood, did you ever
pretend you were the Green Lantern?
NATHAN FILLION:
As a child, when you're pretending you're different super heroes,
Green Lantern was the easiest because all you needed to light the fire
in the imagination was the ring. Superman, you need a cape;
Spiderman, you need a full face mask. That wasn’t tough to come by in
a winter town like where I’m from, but they’re just too hot to wear in
the summer. So to be Green Lantern, all you needed to do is suck a
lifesaver down to the right size, and to make sure it's a lime one –
slip it on your finger, and you were good.
QUESTION:
What is it about Green Lantern that most appeals to you?
NATHAN FILLION:
As a kid, what I liked about Green Lantern was that he could do
anything – anything you could think of. It's like “Wow, all I need is
a giant mallet, or a catapult circa 1200s,” and suddenly he had it. I
just thought that would be pretty cool to have anything you could kind
of imagine. Imagination was always a big thing for me.
QUESTION:
You fit comfortably into animated super hero roles. Why do you think
you keep getting chosen to play these comic book legends?
NATHAN FILLION:
I will say that I've been very fortunate. I can't tell you why people
are willing to offer me the opportunity, but I can say how it pleases
me because as a kid collecting comic books, I had a great time with
the way it kind of lights the fire in the imagination.
I always thought I had an overdeveloped sense of justice. Now looking
back on my comic book days, my world kind of was formed around comic
book justice. I think I have a very strong sense of comic book
justice. Maybe that has something to do with how you take on a role.
I mean, I'm steeped in the history of these characters. I know it and
I love it.
QUESTION:
Between Firefly/Serenity and Green Lantern, you seem to spend a lot of
acting time in space. Did you ever have desires to be an actual
astronaut?
NATHAN FILLION:
I fear space the same way I fear drowning. I would think it would be
a little bit claustrophobic. Sure, you have the vastness of space, but
yet you're probably going to be in some kind of little miniature
(capsule) and, you know, anything could go wrong. I mean. if you're
scuba diving, let's say you're 10 feet underwater – if something goes
terribly, terribly wrong, you've got 10 feet to swim to the surface,
and you're good. If you're in space, you're boned. That's like being
in a submarine at the bottom of the ocean. Uh-oh … Oops. (he laughs)
Things you don't want to hear in space or in submarines: “Oops.”
QUESTION:
Castle is a runaway hit. You’re a cover boy for national magazines
with great regularity. There’s never been greater demand for Nathan
Fillion. How do you stay humble through all this adoration?
NATHAN FILLION:
I'll tell you there sure is nothing like being an actor and having
something to do every day. Get up 5:00 a.m. – I’ve got someplace to go
and I’ve got a place I need to be. I’ve got stuff I gotta do. I’ve
got stories I need to tell. This career that I've chosen, I'm
employed gainfully in it – so I’m living the dream every day. That's a
good feeling. It does good things for how you feel about your
choices.
There was a period of time, I'll say it was 1998 approximately, where
I didn't work for nearly a year. I was really questioning my
judgment. What have I done? I've made a colossal error in judgment.
I'm paying my rent on credit. What am I gonna do?
It's a much, much nicer feeling to know that you're doing something --
that you're playing some music that people want to hear. So I'm gonna
play these notes – you tell me if you like them and we'll keep playing
if you keep liking them. That's a good feeling. It's nice to walk
down the street and have someone stop and politely say “I love your
show.” That’s always great. As opposed to doing plays, where there’s
immediate feedback, you don’t get that so much in television. So it’s
really nice to hear. It doesn’t get old.
QUESTION:
You’re on the Castle set at least five days a week, upwards of 14
hours each day. Given all that work, what makes you take time – on a
Sunday of a holiday weekend – to record the voice of an animated
superhero?
NATHAN FILLION:
I take the time to (voice characters in DCU films) exactly for the
reason that it's fun. I get a call saying “Hey, how would you like to
come on down to record Green Lantern?” And I’m asking back, “Can we
squeeze it in on a Sunday because that's pretty much my only day off?”
I want to make it work because I love doing it. More than that, I love
being part of this lore. These are great characters – you’ve got Green
Lantern, you have Superman, you have Batman, you have the Flash, all
these wonderful pieces of American pop culture. And now I've got a
little piece. I can say, “Oh yeah, I was Green Lantern for a DVD
movie.” Not a lot of people can say that. “Oh, Steve Trevor? Funny you
should mention him.” (he laughs) It may sound silly, but it means
something to me.
QUESTION:
You have been seen – on the cover of Entertainment Weekly, walking
around Comic-Con on a Saturday, at your initial Green Lantern
recording session – wearing a Green Lantern t-shirt. Did you own that
shirt before being cast as Hal Jordan for Green Lantern: Emerald
Knights?
NATHAN FILLION:
Debbie Zoller is the head of my makeup department on Castle. She saw
that fan-made Green Lantern trailer and thought the t-shirt would be
an appropriate Christmas present. And I wholeheartedly agree with her.
I’ve been known to wear a few superhero shirts … and where better than
a Green Lantern recording session to wear it today? So thank you
Debbie – I told you it would come in handy someday!