Nathan Fillion wants to be Nathan Drake

By Robert Purchese Published 13 October, 2010

Firefly star asks fans to rally behind him.

Nathan Fillion wants to play Nathan Drake in the upcoming Uncharted movie.

On Twitter, the Firefly star publicly backed fans calling for his involvement.

"If ever there was a Twitter campaign, let this be it," he digitally bellowed. "Rise, ye Browncoats. Rise, ye Castillions. RISE!"

"Browncoats" refers to cult sci-fi telly series Firefly, and "Castillions" to current show Castle.

Director David O Russell (The Fighter, Three Kings) has signed with Sony Pictures to make the movie.

The role of Nathan Drake has been filled, in the games, by Nolan North. His performances have been motion captured to great acclaim. However, his videogame fame - he's voiced plenty of other characters including Assassin's Creed's Desmond - doesn't spill into the world of film.

What's more, Nathan Fillion not only looks like the character Nathan Drake, he also shares the same name. Yours truly thought Nathan Drake was Nathan Fillion throughout the entire first Uncharted game. He's that similar. And I'm stupid.

The Uncharted film is still a long way off. Setbacks hit the project last summer, and only a first draft of the script - by Tom Donnelly and Josh Oppenheimer - has so far been produced.

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves are PS3-exclusive action adventure games. The second game is considered by many to be the finest of its kind this generation. Find out why in Eurogamer's Uncharted 2: Among Thieves review.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (59) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • McBradders #1 2 years ago

    I'm in. Where do I sign?

  • Widge #2 2 years ago

    Emily Rose is currently the lead in Haven, they could draft her in to play the character she does in the games!

  • Shikasama #3 2 years ago

    Yup. Movies need more Nathan Fillion, one of the greatest actors working today.

  • Ignatius_Cheese #4 2 years ago

    Yes please.

  • MasterNameless #5 2 years ago

    I approve. \o/

    I've just started watching Castle because of Nathan Fillion, not overly impressed with it so far - as a crime thriller anyway - but I hear it's more character driven and gets better so will stick with it to see if it improves.

  • WiseGuy #6 2 years ago

    Ah I hoped it would be Shia LaBeouf

    /gets coat

  • Cronan #7 2 years ago

    I'm in. No more Nolan North. Also, he's got the right first name and he's eminently man-crushable, what more do you need?

  • Venkman90 #8 2 years ago

    He would be a great fit, but there is always studio pressure to high some teen pretty boy to get the 13 year old girls to see it just based on the poster...

    Don't be suprised if we get a 22 year old Drake, probably some reject from One Tree Hill who will work for food.

  • Osahi #9 2 years ago

    YES HE CAN!

    He seems like the right guy for the job. He was awesome in Firefly and this role fits him extremely well.

  • carrotcake #10 2 years ago

    The way Fillion talks all the time, he pretty much is Nathan Drake already, he could sound just like the man from the games.

  • Cjail #11 2 years ago

    There is only one Nathan Drake: Nolan North.

    Edited by Cjail at 13/10/10 @ 09:54

  • mikew1985 #12 2 years ago

    Would love it to be fillion but will probably end up being gylenhall or someone of that ilk.

  • Whitster #13 2 years ago

    Mos Def on this. Also get Caludia Black in to play her character from the game and I'm there opening night!

  • Paleface #14 2 years ago

    This would be great, but, having been watching a lot of Castle... he's going to need to lose a few pounds first.

  • viper_h #15 2 years ago

    Fillion and Black? That's a pairing I'd like to see!

  • Golgo #16 2 years ago

    "I'm handsome help me gets a lucrative job, people." What a fucking pleb.

  • reelbigkris #17 2 years ago

    "Oh reginald...... I DISAGREE!"

    But in reality, I agree. he'll be perfect for the role :)

  • Deoden #18 2 years ago

    Damn right. No one brings on a man-crush like Nathan Fillion, and Drake even sounds like he was written after the scripting team held their annual Firefly marathon.

    Edited by Deoden at 13/10/10 @ 10:02

  • bodypopper #19 2 years ago

    He's great (Joe Flanigan from Stargate Atlantis would be ideal too) but I suspect the studio will want Hugh Jackman instead for the star appeal.
    I guess Ryan Reynolds is a bit too busy at the moment.
    Edited by bodypopper at 13/10/10 @ 10:08

  • Spekingur #20 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillion for the win.
    (And Antonio Banderas for the Just Cause movie?)

    Although, the "best" surprise would be if someone like Steve Carrell got the part...
    Edited by Spekingur at 13/10/10 @ 10:15

  • crickson #21 2 years ago

    Until recently I would have said it should absolutely be NF... But he's looking pretty middle-aged in Castle season 3. Just how old is Nathan Drake supposed to be? Early 30's?

  • VandelayIndustries #22 2 years ago

    David O. Russell eh? Expect Marky Mark somewhere in the movie then.
    Edited by VandelayIndustries at 13/10/10 @ 10:21

  • FortysixterUK #23 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillon ( looking like he did in Firefly ) and Claudia Black, ( looking like she did in Stargate SG1) and Jenniffer Aniston as the reporter ( Re:-Friends )

    PERFECT casting.
    Edited by FortysixterUK at 13/10/10 @ 10:23

  • Climhazzard #24 2 years ago

    He would be spot on for that role, hope he gets it.

  • Doctor_What #25 2 years ago

    Who cares... We need more Emily Rose on TV! Weirdly, she's actually prettier than Elena.

    (Okay, yes, I want Nathan Fillion too, but Emily Rose is very hot.)

  • Miths #26 2 years ago

    I'm certainly 100% behind that. Fillion was great in Firefly and I'm a big fan of Castle as well (the first season was a bit underwhelming, but the second and the recently started third seasons have been great).

    I really hope they can also bring in Emily Rose (she's been great in the first season of Haven) and Claudia Black for the movie.

    As for Fillion versus North, has the latter done anything besides voice acting? If he has I guess we can't rule out he could be a great - and obvious - choice for the movie lead as well.

  • Widge #27 2 years ago

    Nolan North on imdb is quite a read. Its like "pick the game he ISN'T in".

  • neonxaos #28 2 years ago

    Hahaha, glad I'm not the only one - I was SURE that Drake was played by Fillion all the way to the rather shocking (for me) end credits of Uncharted.

    I think Nolan North deserves a shot, but in secret, I want Fillion on this. Fillion and Black together in the same movie? Oh GOD! And what if they did an Uncharted TV series, directed by Joss Whedon? Okay, sorry, I dream too far...

  • Gambit1977 #29 2 years ago

    Please make this happen!

  • Arwin #30 2 years ago

    I would still vote for Nolan North to actually play him. It would give him a nice break from all the videogames as well, where he's being a little over-used, and I think he could easily play the part. He looks enough like him too, just get him exercising for a month or two and he'll be fine. I definitely wouldn't mind Nathan as a second option - I always felt that Nathan was a little modelled after Nathan anyway. The only shame is that Nathan just isn't as pretty as Nathan, imho. :D
    Edited by Arwin at 13/10/10 @ 11:09

  • Gambit1977 #31 2 years ago

    @spekingur

    Please not Carrel! They'd turn it into an ordinary man comedy :(

  • Kcat10 #32 2 years ago

    We want Nathan Fillion to be cast as Nathan Drake!

    Yes! NATHAN FILLION is the BEST choice to play Nathan Drake! He's got action hero written all over him, with the biceps to prove it. He's extremely bright, clever, funny, sexy, young, hot, and devilishly handsome. And he wants this role as much as we want it for him!

    It's his turn to be the next powerful leading man on the big screen. He's an up-and-coming A-List movie star with moxie and heat and he's a-comin' to take over feature films! I feel it! Grab him while you can for the Uncharted franchise. Because he'll also make the best Indiana Jones when they re-boot those movies!!

    In his campaign to be Nathan Drake, we Browncoats and Castillions firmly support our Captain Nathan Fillion!

  • Britesparc Verified Creative, ITV #33 2 years ago

    Do it. He's a better fit, a better actor, and most important for the production team, cheaper than the likes of Ryan Reynolds or Bradley Cooper (other guys whose names are sure to be mentioned).

  • KreyAtiv #34 2 years ago

    I think he'd be good at it.

  • JensonJet #35 2 years ago

    Who cares about Fillion... Claudia Black needs to be Drake's side-kick. Then in the sequel, they can drop Drake completely and have Claudia take over.

  • Bumbuliuz #36 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillion and Emily Rose, Im up for that.

  • Garlvinlandblueblood #37 2 years ago

    Fillion from Firefly would be perfect for the role, but judging from his appearances as Castle it'll take a lot of work for him to be Captain Tightpants again

  • Hunam #38 2 years ago

    He'll need to lose a few pounds though. His Castle build is becoming rather rotund.

  • CosmicFuzz #39 2 years ago

    Perfect casting.

  • Bigglesworth #40 2 years ago

    "It would be great, but having been to see many castles ... he needs to lose some weight first."

    Damn, I haven't visited nearly enough castles to comment on Fillion's physical suitability for this role.

    (Gotta love bots!)

  • Eerazor #41 2 years ago

    I fear that this would be the perfect casting that will just not happen.

  • Super_Zee #42 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillion, Claudia Black and (the delicious) Emily Rose? Yes, yes and yes. Perfect casting, and they've proved to have great chemistry together.

  • zedzee #43 2 years ago

    I'd certainly support him in doing it, yes, but I'm no fan of social networking, so I cannot contribute, unfortunately.

    I'd love a petition for bringing FireFly back though - that would be something worth getting a Twitter/Facebook account for!

  • man.the.king #44 2 years ago

    Fillion shouldn't even have to do this campaign imho.

    He is THE perfect fit for this role.

  • man.the.king #45 2 years ago

    @Gaius_Baltar

    "i vote johnny knoxville, the person the character was loosely based on in the 1st place "

    God has a purpose for you Gaius, but posting on EG comments threads isn't it ;)

  • Kaminari #46 2 years ago

    As much as I like Fillion and I'm a big Firefly fan, it's very sad to think that North's credit for single-handedly creating Drake's persona is going to get reaped by another actor. Is Amy Hennig even involded in this adaptation? Doesn't seem so. Overall, I have a bad feeling about this.

  • jefranklin18 #47 2 years ago

    @FortysixterUK

    No way on Aniston, she is way too limited. All her movies have been a reprise of her Rachel Green character in some shape or form.

  • man.the.king #48 2 years ago

    @Kaminari

    "As much as I like Fillion and I'm a big Firefly fan, it's very sad to think that North's credit for single-handedly creating Drake's persona is going to get reaped by another actor. Is Amy Hennig even involded in this adaptation? Doesn't seem so. Overall, I have a bad feeling about this. "

    I hadn't thought of it that way, but you are right. It might be nice to see North himself take the role of Drake. At least the magic that you get with Drake would be the same.

    I'm not sure how good an actor North is though - I guess he can work out and get himself in shape, but acting is a different beast than motion-capture and voice.

  • monkfishjoe #49 2 years ago

    Plus one for Nathan Fillion. Perfect fit.

  • Pistonhead #50 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillion rules. I'm in.

  • Nightbite #51 2 years ago

    Aghh hate to say but he's definitely too old to play Drake, he's a big guy too, Drake isn't, he'd look daft jumping about. Don't get me wrong, I think he was brilliant in Firefly, but sorry to give you a wake up call; that was years ago. And god, at least reference Dr Horrible, not that abysmal tripe Castle.

  • ghearoid #52 2 years ago

    Oh, he hot!

  • Oh-Bollox #53 2 years ago

    He has almost the same mannerisms for that strange mix of action and comedy. Voice/tonality is very similar too.

  • Henni_playd #54 2 years ago

    Given that there was so much Mal / Fillion in Drake's design i would have thought it's a no-brainer.

  • Pedrolot #55 2 years ago

    Nath? Lord Alan's called..


    Your hired!

  • SaberEdge #56 2 years ago

    I swear, when I first played Uncharted Drake's Fortune I kept thinking how similar Nathan Drake was to Nathan Fillion's character, Malcolm Reynolds, in my favorite TV series, Firefly. So much of the personality and sense of humor of the two characters is very similar.

    I have been advocating Nathan Fillion to play Nathan Drake ever since it was announced that an Uncharted movie would be made. So, it goes without saying, yes, I am fully behind you Mr. Fillion.

  • btrktn #57 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillion for Nathan Drake 2010!! The ONLY choice!!!

  • SeixoLady #58 2 years ago

    Yes, but Joe Flanigan wants to be Nathan Drake too! And his fans! Anyone got a coin?!!!

    And who says they're too old?

    Nathan Drake may be in his late twenties but he don't look it!

    Please don't give this role to someone younger, mistakingly believing that only teenagers play the games and therefore teenagers need someone to watch in the movie nearer their age! Anyway, surprisingly, a lot of teenagers like older guys....

  • tonyaj #59 2 years ago

    Nathan Fillion, the Gold Seal choice for Nathan Drake!