Canadian-born actor Nathan Fillion gained critical acclaim and a large cult of fans when he starred as Captain Malcolm Reynolds on the Joss Whedon TV series _"Firefly" (2002/I)_ , having previously been a regular on One Life to Live and Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place. Fillion had also appeared in small roles in the films Blast from the Past and Saving Private Ryan.

Whedon gave Fillion a chance to display his range when he cast Fillion as the twisted preacher Caleb, a villain, in the seventh and final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

When _"Firefly" (2002/I)_ was prematurely canceled in late 2002, the show's cast, crew, and many fans were devastated. Whedon vowed to resurrect the series in some way, and Fillion played Captain Reynolds again in the feature-film Serenity, followed by a role in the horror-comedy Slither.
He is a distant relative of the Civil War general Jubal Early, and mentioned the name and the story at some point to Joss Whedon. As a result, Joss used the name for a character in the Firefly: The Series episode, "Objects in Space". Wanted to be a high school English teacher (a profession that runs in his family). In college he majored in art, and minored in drama while pursuing an acting career on the side. Originally auditioned for the role of "Angel" for Joss Whedon's first television series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. However, Whedon did not remember him from that when he contacted Nathan about the part of "Mal" on Firefly: The Series. Had corrective surgery on his eyes when he was 12.