He's the man Firefly fans call Jayne (the hero of Canton!), and Chuck fans call John Casey. Since Chuck wrapped up, Adam Baldwin has offered his acting talent to a number of TV projects, including a voice role in Transformers Prime, and guest spots on Leverage and Law & Order: SVU, not to mention an episode of Castle, which reunited him with Firefly's Nathan Fillion. Baldwin may have found a more permanent place to hang his hat on the small screen, should things go well with Michael Bay's TNT pilot The Last Ship.
Executive produced by Michael Bay, The Last Ship is a pilot directed by Jonathan Mostow and written by Hank Steinberg and Steven Kane, based on a novel by William Brinkley. It follows the crew of a naval destroyer that ends up being among the remaining survivors following a global catastrophe that wipes out most of the planet's population. Deadline reported the news this week that Lost's Titus Welliver had to leave the role he was originally cast to play, departing the TNT project due to a family health emergency, which may or may not be related to his wife. It's bad news for fans of the Man in Black, and our thoughts go out to Welliver and his family.
Adam Baldwin has been cast to take over the role vacated by Welliver. He'll play Mike Slattery, "second in command to Captain Tom Chandler (Eric Dane) onboard the USS Nathan James." He's described as a fair main who cares about his family. The thought of Baldwin as a military man conjures the image of his character in Independence Day, the glass-shooting Major Mitchell. Baldwin's good at playing the serious guy, though Firefly and Chuck fans are likely familiar with his quiet sense of humor. Whether or not that comes in handy for this new role remains to be seen. We'll have to wait and see how The Last Ship does and whether or not it goes to series.
