The television series Firefly lasted only for 14 episodes, yet fans of the show are perhaps more passionate about it than anything else made by Joss Whedon. In 2005 that intense passion was rewarded when Fox gave Whedon the green light to make Serenity, and while the movie was far from a huge success, making only $38 million globally on a $39 million reported budget, the film only made the Browncoats (the nickname for the show's fans) more giddy and clamor for more. Whedon has expressed time and time again that he would be thrilled to reenter the universe of the show and tell more stories about Captain Malcolm Reynolds and his ragtag crew, but in a recent interview he has revealed that if he does ever go back, it won't be any time soon.
The Toronto Sun recently had a chance to sit down with Whedon and while discussing the show's legacy he revealed that he has never fully accepted that Firefly is gone and that it's something that is always in the back of his mind. Unfortunately, the truth is that after making The Avengers, a film with seven main characters, he is now looking to do something smaller and less crowded. Said the series creator, ""When I made Serenity, I said here's one thing I'll never do again -- a movie based on something that some people know about and some people don't, with tons of characters who all know each other and who you have to introduce. And then my second movie was The Avengers."
So what about after The Avengers 2? As fans are likely aware, Whedon has signed a three-year contract with Marvel Studios that will end when he writes and directs The Avengers 2, so is there a chance that we could see the return of the Firefly after 2015? Not unless fans would be satisfied with a movie focusing on just one member of the crew. Said the filmmaker, ""I suspect very strongly that after Avengers 2 the next thing I do will be a one-man show. Possibly one monkey."
The lesson to take from all this: Whedon wants to tell more stories about Serenity, but who knows when or if it will actually ever happen. Hooray?
