Nathan Fillion's Forgotten Comedy Is A Surprising Firefly Sequel With A Twist

Published Oct 30, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT

Adrienne Tyler is a movies & TV features writer, with a focus on horror. She has written for Netflix, FanSided, & more. She was a regular guest on the Netfreaks podcast and was a YouTuber at some point. Guillermo del Toro said “hi” to her once.

Nathan Fillion’s most popular TV show continues to be Firefly, but in 2015, he starred in a forgotten comedy that serves as a surprising Firefly sequel with a fun twist. Nathan Fillion has become one of the most beloved and popular TV actors thanks to his charisma, the charm and uniqueness he brings to every character he plays, and to the TV shows he has been a part of. Fillion has starred in some of the best TV shows of all time, one of them being Firefly.

Created by Joss Whedon, Firefly takes the audience into the far future, where the surviving powers form the Alliance, the central federal government. Disagreements over the Alliance’s plans to rule the planets led to a civil war where the Alliance wins, and those who fought on the opposite side find themselves on the run. Among them are Mal Reynolds (Fillion), his second-in-command Zoe Washburne (Gina Torres), and the rest of their crew, who travel across space doing their best to survive while running away from the Alliance.

Despite its early cancelation after just one season, Firefly is regarded as one of the best sci-fi TV shows of all time, and it boosted the careers of its main cast, particularly Fillion’s. 13 years after Firefly’s ending, Fillion starred in the now-forgotten comedy show Con Man, which is a surprising sequel to Whedon’s show, but with an unexpected and fun twist.

In 2015, the comedy web series Con Man saw the light. Created by Alan Tudyk, Con Man follows Wray Nerely (Tudyk), an actor who once starred as a spaceship pilot in a popular sci-fi TV show titled Spectrum. Unfortunately, Spectrum was canceled way too soon, and while the show went on to become a cult classic, its cast didn’t have the same luck. Wray’s career didn’t really take off, and he now mostly appears at conventions, comic book stores, and other pop culture events.

Wray’s friend and co-star, Jack Moore (Fillion), had a very different career post-Spectrum, though. Moore’s career took off, and he became an A-list movie star, being a constant reminder to Wray about what he couldn’t achieve. The first season of Con Man was released on Vimeo in 2015, with the second streaming on Comic-Con’s subscription service Comic-Con HQ, and it made its TV debut in 2017 after being acquired by Syfy.

The best part about Con Man is its real-life parallels. It’s quite obvious that Con Man makes fun of what happened to the careers of Tudyk and Fillion after Firefly, though it has to be said that, while Fillion definitely is the bigger name, especially on TV, Tudyk has an impressive career as a voice actor. Spectrum is a parody of Firefly, including its early cancelation and cult status, so while Con Man isn’t a sci-fi show, it’s a perfect continuation of Firefly with a good dose of comedy and cleverly firing shots at the industry, sci-fi shows, and conventions.

Con Man Is Proof Of The Enduring Success of Firefly

Not only is Con Man a unique sequel to Firefly with a very fun concept, but it’s also the biggest proof of the enduring success of Whedon’s sci-fi show. Despite its short run, Firefly is still one of the best and most popular TV shows of all time, as well as one of the most influential sci-fi shows. However, its impact has been felt through the years beyond the sci-fi genre, and Con Man was possible thanks to Firefly.

Con Man came to life thanks to crowdfunding, surpassing double its goal in just one day. The audience’s support and interest in Con Man is thanks to Firefly, as it was mostly fans of the show who spread the word about the project and donated to make it happen. It’s fair to say, then, that if Firefly wasn’t the hit it is, Con Man would never have happened, and they now make a very unique double-feature.

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  Wray Nerely

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  Amy Acker

  Dawn Jones (uncredited)

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  Beth Grant

  Susan

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  John Semper Jr.

  John Semper