Actors & Sci-Fi - Just a Stepping Stone in their Career?

[cosmichobo]

G'day,

I was just watching the pilot of Firefly, and it occurred to me that a number of actors in the show have since transitioned into "mainstream" television - prime example being Capt Mal himself - Nathan Fillion. Then I started thinking of other Sci-Fi with actors who then moved into mainstream as well... and that got me thinking.

Nathan first came to my attention in his role of Caleb in Buffy (ie non-mainstream fantasy show). Whilst Nathan did have a few years solid employment under his belt in some really long named sitcom, it was only a supporting role. His first lead was Malcolm Reynolds in Firefly... and whilst that didn't go down swimmingly, a few short years later he guested on Desperate Housewives (as mainstream as it gets), before being offered the lead in a cop/romance show - Castle.

Gina Torres, Mal's offsider, Zoë, has numerous sci-fi/fantasies roles under her belt, on shows such as Zena, Hercules, Cleopatra 2525, Angel, before joining Firefly... and after, 24, Alias, and a long role on Suits.

Alan Tudyk... well, some people are born to play sci-fi...

Morena Baccarin, after finding her acting legs as a space whore, followed by a stint on SG1, and then that expensive attempt at remaking the 80's most expensive show, V, finally settled down to a couple years on mainstream with Homeland. Yes, she's gone back via Gotham... but I guess sometimes you gotta go where the paycheck takes you.

Jewel Staite had a few sci-fi/fantasy roles in her belt before arriving on set for Firefly... Followed it up with SG:A... before... um... well... mainstream's surely just holding out for her to look like she's not a teen any more...

Sean Maher hasn't really hit mainstream in a big way either, but following Firefly he guested on a few more sci-fi/fantasy shows, but has done far more mainstream spots.

Summer Glau perhaps followed a different path - from supporting character in a sci-fi, to (one of the) main role, via The Girl Terminator Chronicles. (That's the right name, isn't it? ) She has however had recurring roles in Arrow and Sequestered since those sci-fiy roles...

Go on... play along... What sci-fi starring actor left their roots and moved into mainstream?

cheers

cosmic

[Annoyed]

Mainstream shows tend to draw bigger audiences, and therefore can and often have to pay larger salaries than niche programming does. I have to assume that most actors, like most people, put the interests of their income fairly high on the priority list, and will take the best paying job they can get. Niche shows are their way of working their way up the ladder in their profession.

It can be a curse doing this too.. How many actors have been typecast as their early roles, and never get offered much else?

[ecgordon]

Not sure I want to play this game. You seem to be implying that the general opinion that SF & Fantasy are "ghetto" genres is the correct one. How about if we flip the question and ask why actors of the caliber of Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo embraced SF rather than shunned it, even after their careers were already well established? How about Kenneth Branagh directing Thor instead of another adaptation of Shakespeare? Seems to me any actor worth the name would gladly work in genres that support an unfettered imagination.

[Infinite-Possibilities]

Personally, I was already familiar with Nathan Fillion from his role in Two Guys and a Girl. I would think most actors don't see some significant genre divide between sci-fi and non sci-fi shows, I mean a job is a job.

[Annoyed]

Sci Fi is a niche genre; aside from the occasional blockbuster such as Star Wars and the like, in general, the vast majority of sci fi shows and films draw far smaller audiences than more conventional fare. Particularly on TV.
Look at the audience numbers. What is the most successful sf based show on now? Supergirl? Limitless? Compare their audience numbers to something like The Big Bang Theory or Grey's Anatomy. They just can't pull the same quantity of viewers, or quality (as far as the advertisers go) Sci Fi fans skew older, while the ad execs want young skulls full of mush that will buy anything. The audience for Sci Fi is simply smaller. I don't look at it as ghetto, I look at it as sci fi fans having more refined taste and wanting better quality shows than the mainstream.

But audience numbers are what pays the bills, so bigger numbers mean bigger salaries for the actors involved. Yes, some will choose to sacrifice a bigger paycheck because they like the niche genre, but most people, actors included want the biggest paycheck.

[bearfax]

Though she had been acting since the mid 50s, Joan Collins made a serious name for herself in probably the best episode of the old Star Trek series 'City on the Edge of Forever'. I wonder how much this appearance boosted her stardom. She also starred in a 'B' scifi a little later called Empire of the Ants.

And I wonder if William Shatner would have got as many roles as he did after that series, if he hadnt done the Kirk thing.