Nathan Fillion Said His Starring Role in ‘The Rookie’ Left Him Bruised and Battered
The TV show The Rookie has been one of the most enjoyable projects Nathan Fillion has ever been cast in. But if there was one drawback the show had, it was making Fillion feel his age.
Nathan Fillion sometimes found it hard to physically keep up with ‘The Rookie’
Fillion and his Rookie character John Nolan had a few overlapping similarities. The Rookie is about a middle-aged man at a crossroads in his life, and because of this, pursues a career in law enforcement. But being a novice police officer in his 40s can come with more than a few challenges.
Fillion’s John Nolan has to keep up with his younger, fitter peers when it comes to the more physically demanding aspects of his work. But in an interview with Jacksonville, Fillion shared that he sometimes experienced these physical challenges in real life. The stunts he had to perform on the show have often left him battered and bruised. As he grows older, this convinced Fillion to leave some of the more exhausting stunts to the professionals.
“I’m at the point at my life, if I can have a stunt guy run down the street for me, these knees will appreciate it,” Fillion said. “But I like that it’s tough for John. That’s not far away from my truth.”
Nathan Fillion didn’t want to be like Tom Cruise when doing ‘The Rookie’
Cruise has set a sort of standard when it comes to actors doing their stunts. The actor is known for performing most of the physical work in his roles despite the risks of bodily injury. But Fillion doesn’t ever see himself replicating Cruise’s physical work ethic. Although there might have been a time when Fillion shared Cruise’s enthusiasm.
“I’m not the guy who wants to do the Tom Cruise stuff at all,” Fillion once told Stuff. “I used to be the guy who was super excited about doing my own stunts and then you hurt your back and then you hurt your knee … It starts to lose its luster.”
Fillion wasn’t just wary of his own well-being, but the well-being of the projects he was working on. Cruise’s consistency in stunt work may have offered him the conditioning needed to do physically dangerous scenes while minimizing risk. But Fillion, who didn’t have the same level of consistency, was worried what getting injured might mean for his co-workers.
“I have to come to work tomorrow. I have to. I can’t miss it. If I was to sprain my ankle today, a lot of people’s employment is on the line. We are a machine. We can’t stop. We can’t hold up production for six weeks while my ankle heals. So I am less inclined to do my own stunts,” Fillion said.
How Nathan Fillion felt about being in another hit TV series
Fillion was no stranger to starring in successful television shows. He led the crime drama Castle to a successful eight-season run. Still, the actor’s career didn’t slow down after the series’ conclusion, it only gained momentum with Rookie. Not too long ago, Fillion shared what it was like jumping from one successful show to another.
“I don’t know how much it is ‘starting over’ as much as it is ‘keep going.’ I’m so fortunate in this industry to have a job. You hope you work and you hope, it’s great. When people enjoy it, even better. When you are regarded as a success, you’ve made it. If you can continue to work after that and remain somewhat relevant? My secret is riding on coattails,” he said according to Whedonsworld.
