Despite being canceled after just one season, Firefly features one of the strongest ensembles in television history. Every character dynamic is distinct and memorable, the conflicts feel believable, and the cast has incredible chemistry. Unsurprisingly, despite its short run, Firefly has had a long-lasting legacy of love from its dedicated fanbase.
In the 20 years since the show's time on the air, the actors who played the crew of Serenity have gone on to appear in numerous shows and film projects. While not all of them have been as iconic as Firefly, IMDb users found the following to be each cast member's best role outside the beloved sci-fi property.
Summer Glau - Chuck (2007-2012) - 8.2
One of the most talented young actresses of the early 2000s, Summer Glau made a name for herself playing River Tam on Firefly before branching off to star in other science fiction shows The 4400 and Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles. Acclaim followed her in these roles, but longevity did not.
In a twist of fate, Glau's best-reviewed project is Chuck, a show which, despite lasting five seasons, only featured her in a single episode. She stars as an important player in the season four story "Chuck Versus The Fear of Death," and though she is only relegated to a supporting role, absolutely nails the glowering required to portray a cold CIA assassin.
Sean Maher - Looking (2014-2016) - 8.2
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Serenity's resident doctor has had a relatively quiet career since Firefly's untimely cancellation. He famously played against Firefly co-star Jewel Staite in Warehouse 13 and has been the voice of Nightwing in the DC animated movies since 2014, but has largely kept out of the spotlight to focus on his family.
When it comes to the actor's best role outside of Firefly, one needs to look no further than the critically acclaimed HBO drama Looking. In the show's season 2 finale, "Looking For Home," Maher plays Jake, a mural artist whose work brings some of the show's main characters together. It's a bit role, but one that allows the actor to be more open than he normally is on-screen.
Jewel Staite - The X-Files (1993-2002; 2016-2018) - 8.6
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Long before Firefly, Jewel Staite was an accomplished child actress with roles in Flash Forward and Higher Ground. Also during this time, she starred in the season three episode of The X-Files, "Oubliette."
Playing a young teenager who is kidnapped by a mentally unstable photographer, Staite is largely offscreen for much of the episode, yet she does an excellent job of capturing the sheer terror of being abducted. She might have only been blossoming as an actor, but Staite proved herself as more than capable thanks to this role.
Adam Baldwin - Young Justice (2010-2013; 2019-present) - 8.7
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Adam Baldwin has had a famous career playing tough guys and morally dubious persons in live-action and animation. Besides Jayne, he inhabited the role of John Casey in Chuck, Jonah Hex in Justice League: Unlimited, and Animal Mother in Full Metal Jacket.
When it comes to Baldwin's most acclaimed role on IMDb, it should come as no shock that it's the villainous Parasite in Young Justice's first season. In the episode "Performance" he is tasked with stealing the components of a black hole device, and his absorbing abilities make him a threat that the Young Justice team are unable to defeat through conventional means.
Gina Torres - The Shield (2002-2008) - 8.7
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Gina Torres has a history of taking on elegant but tough women. Whether this is a physical toughness as in Firefly or relating strictly to personality like in Suits, Torres has a clear archetype that she can inhabit and do something original with.
In a reversal of her more well-known characters, IMDb users noted that Torres' best role was as the mentally-ill Sadie Kavanaugh on The Shield. It's easy to understand considering how she sells the pain of not being totally in control of her actions while also eliciting sympathy from the audience despite some of her morally dubious decisions.
Morena Baccarin - Justice League Unlimited (2004-2006) - 8.7
A veteran of speculative genre fare given her stints on shows such as Gotham and Homeland, Morena Baccarin is one of the few Firefly stars to have had just as much success on film as she has had on television. Yet despite her role in the Deadpool movies, the small screen is still home to Baccarin's best roles.
Baccarin plays the underrated Black Canary on Justice League Unlimited and inhabits the character effortlessly. It's a minor role in comparison to others on the show, but Baccarin makes what limited screen time she has to count thanks to the poise and no-frills attitude she brings to her performance.
Ron Glass - Friends (1994-2004) - 8.9
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Of all the actors from Firefly, Ron Glass had the most prolific career before joining the show. He was a regular guest star of '70s television programs such as All in the Family and The Bob Newhart Show, voiced Randy Carmichael on Rugrats, and played Detective Ron Harris in 164 episodes of Barney Miller.
Despite Glass's storied television career, IMDb users noted his appearances on Friends to be the actor's most memorable. In some of the sixth season's funniest episodes, he plays Ross's divorce lawyer, and his exacerbated responses to Ross's legal troubles are comedy cold.
Alan Tudyk - Rick and Morty (2015-present) - 9.2
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Of all the actors to come out of Firefly, few would have expected Alan Tudyk to have the most successful career. This is not to say he's bad, but it seemed unlikely that the screwball comic actor would go on to voice numerous Disney characters such as King Candy and K-2S0.
In fitting with Tudyk's filmography, his best-rated performance comes from the adult animated show Rick and Morty. Specifically, he voiced the microverse president Chris in "The Ricks Must Be Crazy," offering a gullible yet inadvertently crass personality to the character.
Nathan Fillion - Rick and Morty (2015-present) - 9.2
Despite Firefly's short-lived run, the series lead has had a very successful career in film and television. Nathan Fillion headed the successful crime-drama Castle for seven seasons, has voiced Hal Jordan in numerous DC animated projects and has been the star of The Rookie since 2018.
Given the wealth of roles Fillion has taken on over the past 20 years, it might come as a shock to find his highest-rated performance is in an episode of Rick and Morty. Playing the Galactic Federation agent Cornvelious Daniel in the season three premiere, "The Rickshank Redemption," his charismatic presence helps elevate what is otherwise a generic role and enhance the allure of the episode.