I’ve always loved Firefly and felt that it deserved a much longer run, but this detail about the show’s iconic cast is a reminder that this short-lived sci-fi western series had so much wasted potential. Joss Whedon took Gene Roddenberry’s famous original pitch for Star Trek – Wagon Train to the stars – to its literal conclusion with Firefly’s tale of gunslingers traversing the final frontier. Firefly ran for just one season, consisting of 14 episodes, back in 2002, and it’s frequently included on lists of TV shows that were canceled much too soon.

Firefly had limitless potential, and its one and only season just scratched the surface of that potential. It had a juicy premise, bringing the pioneer culture of the Old West to a dystopian future in need of a new world order, and it had an ensemble of colorful characters whose stories had only just gotten started when the show was axed by Fox. And on top of that, it had a terrific cast bringing that ensemble to life. The actors’ careers post-Firefly have proven how much squandered potential the show had.

Many Firefly Actors Have Become Sci-Fi Icons Since The Show Ended

Nathan Fillion and co. have gone on to become sci-fi staples

Almost everyone from the main cast of Firefly has gone on to become an icon of the science fiction genre since Firefly was canceled. Nathan Fillion, who starred in Firefly as Mal Reynolds, the captain of the Serenity, has become a god in the eyes of sci-fi nerds. Fillion has appeared in a bunch of big-name sci-fi properties, playing guest roles in Rick and Morty, Resident Alien, The Suicide Squad, and two of the three Guardians of the Galaxy movies. He cameoed as Headpool in Deadpool & Wolverine and voiced DC icons Steve Trevor and Hal Jordan in animated movies.

And on top of all that, he’ll be playing the Guy Gardner version of Green Lantern in James Gunn’s Superman movie, which will kick off his rebooted DC Universe. Fillion’s Firefly co-stars have been just as prolific in the sci-fi genre in the years since, too. Wash actor Alan Tudyk played Dutch in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, K-2SO in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and the Flash in Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Morena Baccarin, who plays Inara, has been in two superhero franchises: she played Vanessa in the Deadpool trilogy and Leslie Thompkins in Gotham.

Zoë actor Gina Torres played Wonder Woman in DC Universe Online, Airachnid in Transformers: Prime, and Cas in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. Summer Glau, who played River in Firefly, has played Cameron in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Isabel Rochev in Arrow, and Tess Doerner in The 4400. Sean Maher, who played River’s brother Simon, has voiced Dick Grayson in a bunch of animated DC projects. Just about everybody from the Firefly cast has become a staple of science fiction in the years since the show went off the air.

The Firefly Cast’s Success Proves How Much Potential The Show Had

Fox unwittingly assembled one of the greatest sci-fi casts of all time

The Firefly cast’s success outside the series just goes to demonstrate how much potential the show had. Fillion, Tudyk, Glau, and their co-stars were about to become some of the most sought-after actors in the sci-fi genre. Shortly after Fox canceled Firefly, just about every producer working on a sci-fi movie or TV show would seek out one of its actors for their own cast. It’s like having an action series starring Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis right before they became huge stars and canceling it right before their careers took off.

If Fox had just kept the show going for a second or third season, it would’ve captured sci-fi fans around the world and become a huge hit. But the network jumped the gun and canceled Firefly before its time. Since sci-fi is kind of a niche genre and it’s expensive to produce, networks have a tendency to get cold feet about sci-fi shows. But the success of the Star Trek franchise has proven that the sci-fi fan base is big enough to sustain a property for decades. Firefly just needed a little more time to find that audience.

The Firefly story got a near-perfect ending in its film adaptation, Serenity.

Why Firefly Was Canceled After Just One Season

Fox is notoriously trigger-happy when it comes to canceling cult shows

Fox has a notorious reputation for being trigger-happy when it comes to canceling shows whose ratings don’t immediately meet expectations. The cancelation of Undeclared, Arrested Development, and The Sarah Connor Chronicles proved that. It didn’t help that Fox aired Firefly’s episodes out of order. The network aired the pilot episode as the 11th episode in the series’ run, which was needlessly confusing for viewers. Firefly amassed a cult audience, but Fox didn’t consider the cult to have enough followers.