Episode #3: Once We Were Scrappers

Summary

Once We Were Spacemen

Episode #3: Once We Were Scrappers
Nathan Fillion & Alan Tudyk
November 19, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk—two friends, actors, and “former spacemen”—reflecting on their careers, lasting friendship, and creative resilience. Together, they recount stories from auditioning, taking risks, and making bold (sometimes disastrous) choices, highlighting the unpredictable nature of the acting business and the critical role of creative partnerships, perseverance, and humor. Both recount failures and unexpected triumphs, celebrate each other’s successes, and underscore the power of supportive friendships in show business.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Nature of Creative Scrappiness

Tudyk on Auditioning and Typecasting

• Alan describes being a “scrapper” artist, still auditioning despite a long, varied career (“People go, we know he can be a robot, but can he be a robot? Who cares? And so I have to audition for that, too.” [00:00])
• Alan routinely plays “weird people, usually aliens and robots and things that don't have romance.” [00:23]

Nathan on Getting Passed Over for “Nathan Fillion Types”

• Nathan highlights the oddities of Hollywood casting: “I once didn't get a job where they were looking for a Nathan Fillion type.” [00:41]

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2. Friendship, Banter, and Loyalty in Creative Life

Mutual Ribbing Builds Trust

• Nathan cites an article saying friends who tease each other are more likely to remain loyal: “If anyone needs to take you down a peg, you can count on those ones to do that for you.” [01:13]

Recounting Resident Alien Memories

• The two recall Nathan’s guest role as “42,” an octopus, in Resident Alien — including an over-the-top death scene and a dramatic attempt at octopus CPR.
  • “When you died, I insisted on giving you chest compressions… when you’re an octopus, it’s its own death sentence.” - Alan [03:31]
  • “Honor my life by eating my dead body in a butter sauce with a nice Chardonnay.” - Nathan [04:34]

Notable Quote:

• “It was an honorable death. Honor my life by eating my dead body in a butter sauce with a nice... Like a really nice Chardonnay.” (Nathan Fillion, [04:34])

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3. Missed Collaborations, Unlikely Successes

Attempts to Work Together

• Nathan tried to get Alan on Castle, but scheduling and work conflicts prevented it.
  • “You kept having these near death or would actually die and come back… I was convinced you were Bruce Willis from… Unbreakable.” [05:21]
  • “We did get to work together in The Rookie.” [06:14]

Alan’s Canadian Conundrum

• Alan shares about Resident Alien’s distribution issues in Canada, with Canadian fans knowing him only from his Rookie role [07:12].

Mutual Admiration

• “You were a big hit… People enjoy your company. They like having you around. They enjoy watching what you create, but they have to spend the day with you. And I think that's for them, the worthier part.” - Nathan [07:47]

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4. "What Were You Thinking?" – Creative Gambles

Alan on Con Man

• Alan details the rocky start behind his series Con Man: losing representation, being told not to pursue it by agents, failing to get the pilot picked up, and ultimately pivoting to crowdfunding to massive success.
  • "My agent said, if you keep pursuing Con Man, we can't be your agents anymore… you're not making any money. You keep turning things down that get in the way of Con Man.” [12:03]
  • Crowdfunding led to $3 million, a game, comic books, and industry recognition. [12:33]
• Notable cast in the fundraiser promo included James Gunn, Seth Green, and even support from William Shatner. [13:18]

Notable Quote:

• “I'm still pitching the movie, by the way… I have, I've got ears out… They always write something down. I don’t know what they said. Never in a million years. I don't know what they're writing, but they always write something down.” - Nathan [15:07]

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5. Auditions & Humbling Experiences

Alan’s “Haunting” Audition Stories

• Alan once nearly blew his chance at Resident Alien because the casting director remembered when he played a blind swordsman for laughs, not as requested ([17:47])
  • “There's a reason why I was 104, because she didn't want to call me.” [18:20]

Nathan’s Audition Horror Story

• Nathan tells of a sweltering, 109-degree, two-hour wait for a one-page, phone-call audition, eventually walking out after a testy exchange: “That’s a whole room of people who will never, ever hire me, ever. What was I thinking?” [20:39]

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6. Absurdities of the Industry – Cut Scenes & Roles

Roles Lost and Bullet Dodged

• Both actors recount near-misses: losing out on roles, being cut from films (Deadpool, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 for Nathan; Rocket Raccoon for Alan), or projects they’re glad not to be associated with.
  • “Sometimes you say, I don't mind… Sometimes you think, oh, that would have been great if I could have been in just a little bit.” - Nathan [33:27]
• Alan notes if he’d been cast as Rocket Raccoon, he’d have missed an opportunity to be in Star Wars: “I would have been busy and I wouldn’t have been up for doing another motion capture role.” [34:32]

Notable Moment:

• Nathan’s comic retelling of a cut Deadpool scene: “I remember I was the bathroom attendant in the strip club. Morena worked in. And Ryan Reynolds comes in…” [32:51]

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7. Worst Advice Ever Given & Best Mentors

Alan’s Bad Advice Story

• A hometown mentor urged him not to attend Juilliard:
  • “Don’t go to Juilliard. They can’t teach you anything that you don’t already know.” [35:02]

Nathan’s Mixed Advice

• Soap acting mentor, Bob Woods, gave step-by-step career advice about leaving a steady job for riskier opportunities, all of which came true [36:41]
• Contrasted by bad peer advice:
  • “You have a job, you have a steady gig as an actor and you’re going to let it go on a chance in some other city where nobody knows you? Are you crazy?” [37:18]

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8. What’s Next? Creativity and Aging in Showbiz

On Quitting and Reinvention

• Alan shares a recurring impulse to “quit” acting, his desire to write more, and debates whether to seize new creative opportunities. Humorous resignation: “I think I'm always going to be quitting.” [24:10]
• Nathan predicts Alan would always end up acting in his own writing: “You're playing that step back, and now you're in it.” [25:03]

On Fear and Directing

• Alan opens up about his fear of rejection in asking directors to join Con Man, which led to him taking on too much himself [25:21]
  • “Fear of rejection. That’s real.” [25:41]

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9. Nostalgia: Rebooting Childhood Shows & The Firefly Pitch

Firefly Revival Fan Fiction

• Alan describes an imagined Firefly revival with an older Mal Reynolds assembling a new crew: “I would do the thing that ... somebody lands on some distant moon somewhere ... and older Mal Reynolds opens the door...” [26:22]
• Both reminisce fondly on shows like Simon & Simon, MASH, and Gilligan’s Island, playfully debating which character they'd be in a reboot. [27:23–28:50]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

“It was an honorable death. Honor my life by eating my dead body in a butter sauce with a nice Chardonnay.”
— Nathan Fillion ([04:34])

“I'm still pitching the movie, by the way… I have, I've got ears out, you know, people listening... They always write something down. I don’t know what they said. Never in a million years. I don't know what they're writing, but they always write something down.”
— Nathan Fillion ([15:07])

“Don’t go to Juilliard. They can’t teach you anything that you don’t already know.”
— Alan Tudyk ([35:02])

“We are still spacemen. Once you’re a spaceman, that’s it, man. There’s never… you can’t go back. No, you go out to the black. There’s no coming back.”
— Nathan Fillion ([37:53])

“I'm really good at making errors. I just. So I know that whatever I am doing is meant to be because I screw up a lot. I just—I make bold choices when I audition.”
— Alan Tudyk ([23:21])

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Important Segments & Timestamps

| Segment Description | Timestamp | |------------------------------------------------------|---------------| | Alan on always auditioning, being a “scrapper” | 00:00–00:23 | | Resident Alien, “42” octopus death scene | 01:49–04:46 | | Friendship and mutual support in showbiz | 07:20–08:33 | | Con Man’s crowdfunding origin story | 09:41–12:33 | | Audition horror stories (Alan then Nathan) | 15:50–21:45 | | On being cut from movies and near-misses | 32:41–34:58 | | Worst career advice each received | 35:02–37:06 | | Firefly revival fan-fiction discussion | 26:22–27:18 |

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Final Reflections

Nathan and Alan, through candid stories and fast-paced banter, illuminate the highs and lows of creative careers—marked by resilience, failures, and the value of camaraderie. The episode is a testament to embracing missteps, laughing at yourself, and always remaining a "spaceman" at heart.

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Tone & Style

Throughout the episode, both hosts display a mixture of warmth, quick-witted humor, and self-deprecating charm. Their casual, affectionate ribbing underscores a deep mutual respect and highlights the importance of supportive friendships in an uncertain industry. Conversation is peppered with inside jokes, honest confessions, and a sense of playful irreverence towards the absurdities of Hollywood.

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This summary covers the episode’s main content and most memorable exchanges, providing a comprehensive guide for those who missed this rich and amusing conversation between two of Hollywood’s most beloved ‘spacemen.’

Transcript

[Alan Tudyk]

I'm a scrapper as an artist, so I gotta. I still gotta. I have to audition. A lot of people go, we know he can be a robot, but can he be a robot? Who cares? And so I have. I have to audition for that too. It's.

[Nathan Fillion]

Can you.

[Alan Tudyk]

It's a different kind of caring from the last robot who cared that he played.

[Nathan Fillion]

Gotcha. Gotcha.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah. Once we were spacemen. I tend to play weird people, usually aliens and robots and things that don't have romance.

[Nathan Fillion]

I once didn't get a job where they were looking for a Nathan Fillion type. Once we were spacemen.

[Alan Tudyk]

Once we were spacemen.

[Nathan Fillion]

This episode, Alan.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

Just you and me, we're gonna hash some things out.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, okay.

[Nathan Fillion]

I read, just read an article. Friends who like poke fun at each other are more likely to be a long term friends and the more loyal friends.

[Alan Tudyk]

Ah, yes. Because they feel like they can say whatever and they're not like hiding.

[Nathan Fillion]

Yeah. If anyone needs to take you down a peg, you can count on those ones to do that for you. They'll tell you the truth about something and you know, because they're always gonna. They're gonna rib you about something, but in good natured way. This part of the show is called what were you thinking? You have this incredible show, you're having a great time, you're doing a lot of really creative things. Resident alien, really enjoying it. Some great special effects too. And you said, oh, I'm gonna call up my buddy Nathan to do something that will fit in his schedule because he can't just come to Vancouver all of a sudden.

[Alan Tudyk]

Agreed.

[Nathan Fillion]

He's got his own job. I'm gonna have him be an octopus in sushi restaurant.

[Alan Tudyk]

Right. Number 42. You are just jealous because I discovered another alien who is my people, my real family. You are just a distant cousin who lives in a mobile home.

[Nathan Fillion]

Hey, cousins are real family. I'm at least more family than that dumb land seal sitting next to you.

[Alan Tudyk]

Do not talk badly about this beast. When I give him treats, he is happy. When I give you shrimps, all you do is complain.

[Nathan Fillion]

All I said was, could you serve them with a smile? What were you thinking?

[Alan Tudyk]

What was I thinking? I was thinking fans were gonna love this. And in fact, do you know what the cast gift was? So this was the final season we just finished a minute ago on Monday and at the time of this recording, we just this week finished.

[Nathan Fillion]

Congratulations.

[Alan Tudyk]

Fourth and most likely final season. The cast gift was makeup effects gave everybody little 42s. They gave out a ton of your characters because it's a character favorite. Also. I meant to send this picture to you did not. At the cast party for the fourth and most likely final season of Resident Alien was 42. He was there. They had a couple of alien things. They had the alien body. They had some masks and some different alien faces. And then they had 42 up on a pedestal, which was appropriate. They loved your character. And then they loved. Also your death was one of the. One of the most exciting things because you were killed by a dog. Just chew toyed up. And we didn't have much of a budget, which is one of the reasons why it's probably most likely the final season of Resident Alien. And when. When you died, I insisted on giving you chest compressions in an attempt to revive you, which when you're an octopus is it's its own death sentence because it's all of my weight just being forced into you. But they didn't have money for VFX, so what they had with this rubber U42, they had a little filament. And your tinle came up and touched me on the cheek as you were telling me in your dying breath to go on. And whatever happens if I. When I die, eat me. Eat me with white wine and a garlic butter sauce. I think lemon butter sauce. And. And the little tentacle comes up and touched my cheek and it's so obviously a filament on there. And it's so obviously just being crappily puppeted it. It makes it that much funnier. I will never forget you.

[Nathan Fillion]

It was an honorable death. Honor my life by eating my dead.

[Nathan Philip]

Body in a butter sauce with a nice.

[Nathan Fillion]

Like a really nice Chardonnay.

[Alan Tudyk]

42. No, no. 42.

[Nathan Fillion]

No.

[Alan Tudyk]

You can't come. Stay with me. Stay with me.

[Nathan Fillion]

But you were really selling the emotion. First of all, thanks for having me. Thanks for having me on your show.

[Alan Tudyk]

I don't know how you died so quickly. 42 was gone. Too soon. Too soon.

[Nathan Fillion]

Thanks for that.

[Alan Tudyk]

You were my compadre at home that I could confide in.

[Nathan Fillion]

Not the first time we were together. I actually tried to get you on Castle. I know we had a great character for you. This. Basically we find you having been murdered and you pop back up and you're not dead and someone was clearly trying to kill you and never succeeded. You kept having these near death or would actually die and come back. And I was convinced you were Bruce Willis from the movie where he gains superpowers and he can't be killed. Oh, right.

[Alan Tudyk]

The film Nathan is Thinking of is.

[Nathan Fillion]

Unbreakable and you couldn't do it. Unfortunately. You, you, you were, you, you're. You're a working man. You have other jobs. I totally got it. We got Jonathan Silverman to come do it, actually.

[Alan Tudyk]

I know. And he did a really good job, which made.

[Nathan Fillion]

I'm not going to complain.

[Alan Tudyk]

It's. It's not okay.

[Nathan Fillion]

We did get to work together in the Rookie.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes. I've been doing resident Alien now for seven years. It's been my life. Seven years. So we did four seasons in seven years. We weren't great at scheduling. I'm gonna. I'm gonna say plus Covid. And anyway, Canada doesn't get our show. They. Not that they don't get it. Like, I don't understand. More like they turn it on. It isn't there. There's nothing to turn on. It's gone to Netflix. It has not gone to Netflix in Canada. You can't see it on Netflix. So I went to the con and I was signing Firefly things and I was signing Star wars things, and I had a ton of people come to me and talk to me about Rookie. A lot of young people. I meant to tell you this because Nathan would like to know this. Probably a bunch of young people like, I love you on the rookie. Are you going to come back to the rookie? I love the rookie. When do you come back to the Rookie? So I had that because for Canada, that's the only work I've done in the last seven years is the Rookie and they want more of my character there. So just saying. I'm just putting it out there.

[Nathan Fillion]

I'm not going to lie. Allan, you were a big hit, not only on the show. Your character is hilarious. You do great stuff. You were a big hit. Not only with me because, you know, I'm your buddy, but, man, you are honest. Hell, just watching your process, watching you come up with stuff, the stuff you just find, just that occurred to you is amazing. But you're also a huge hit with my ladies cast and crew.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, oh.

[Nathan Fillion]

And some of them are ladies, right? You're a big hit. People enjoy your company. They like having you around. They enjoy watching what you create, but they have to spend the day with you. And I think that's for them, the worthier part. And then people, they go home and people say, what's Alan Tudyk like? And then they can go, you know what? He's great.

[Alan Tudyk]

Total jerk. Oh, jerk.

[Nathan Fillion]

He's great at being an a hole.

[Alan Tudyk]

Well, you and I should probably get together. And do something again on camera. If it's the rookie, fantastic. If it's something else, fantastic. We kind of did it on Resident Alien. Not really. You were an octopus. It was your voice. So we didn't get as much going on, as much play because we didn't get to do back and forth like we normally get to do.

[Nathan Fillion]

That's true. Yeah. Just let it. Let it rip, boy. That would have been Castle. Castle. Be Castle. We would have had a lot of free reign, I want to tell you. Oh, man. Could run that. We could run that one. Would have been lovely.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

Did get to work together in Con Man. Yeah, let's go back, Alan. Con Man. What were you thinking?

[Alan Tudyk]

Man, my career at that point in time was in the. No, it was.

[Nathan Fillion]

No, it wasn't.

[Alan Tudyk]

There was a pro. I was having issues, man. That was a big, big problem. So I wanted to make this thing Con man, because I'd been writing it for a while. I wanted to make the heist movie. But anyway, I had a manager say, hey, go pitch this as a TV show. And so I pitched it at this one company that was making little short form entertainment. So I pitched it as a 15 minute episode thing and then I fell in love with it. So I just kept writing it and that thing all fell through. But then I just enjoyed writing it. So I just kept writing it. Writing it. Writing. Right. Ended up writing the first season and I was going around with our friend pj who was producing two different people. Went to Gayle Berman, who canceled a little show called Firefly. And Kathy didn't, though.

[Nathan Fillion]

I think in going back, I think she was there when it happened. I don't think it was her call. I think that's. It's haunting her.

[Alan Tudyk]

I think it is haunting her. And she takes credit for it, though.

[Nathan Fillion]

Okay.

[Alan Tudyk]

She didn't deny it.

[Nathan Fillion]

I might be wrong.

[Alan Tudyk]

I always thought it was Sandy, what's his name, the other guy who she worked for that did it. But the way she talked about it sounded like somebody who canceled Firefly. She said, you know what? Nobody ever says, alan, I picked up Firefly.

[Nathan Fillion]

See, Haunted. That poor lady.

[Alan Tudyk]

And she's done great work in her career and she continues to do great work. In fact, I'm working for her right now.

[Nathan Fillion]

No, God bless.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah, she. And I'm doing an animated show with her called Grimsburg and Jon Hamm. We just got picked up for season three.

[Nathan Fillion]

Love that guy, Hulu. I really like that guy.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah. So she's. She's. So I was. I was the. At the time we were taking it around, trying to get it sold. Trying to get sold. Nobody was buying it. Nope. Everybody kept saying, we don't. I don't think. Short form. Anyway, it was ahead of its time. And my agents came to me and said, we want you to be on this TV show. And there was a TV show that was going to be going on NBC and they wanted me for the role. And. And I said, they need to carve out Con Man. I've been working on this too long not to do it. And NBC said, no, you won't be allowed to do it. And. Or it was abc. I apologize. Abc, you won't be allowed to do it.

[Nathan Philip]

And I said, okay, our apologies go out to NBC.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes. And then I said, let me just do one episode of con man on YouTube and that's all I need to do. I just need to do one episode. It will satisfy the itch. That's my final offer. And they were going back and forth with lawyers. Going back and forth with lawyers. I was having to go up and test for the thing at abc and I was in line to go through the guard shack thing to get on the lot at abc and I got a call from my lawyer saying, they won't go for it. You can't do any Con man for as long as you're doing this show. And I said, all right. I got out of the line. To which my agent said, we're out of here. To which I fired my lawyer. It was like a mutual thing with my agents. I had a manager. I had lost all my representation.

[Nathan Fillion]

This sounds a lot darker than I remember it because it ends up being a success story.

[Alan Tudyk]

Right. So they were like, it sounds.

[Nathan Fillion]

Really sounds like it was soul crushing.

[Alan Tudyk]

They said, if you, if you go. My agent said, if you keep pursuing conman, we can't be your agents anymore. We need to make money off of you, and you're not making any money. You keep turning things down that get in the way of Con man.

[Nathan Fillion]

And.

[Alan Tudyk]

But nobody's buying Con Man. So what are you doing? You're doing nothing. I said, goodbye, get out of here. Goodbye.

[Nathan Fillion]

I feel that's unfortunate that they didn't see the long term potential of just the relevance and the idea, the love letter that it was just. That's too bad. I wonder if they regret that now.

[Alan Tudyk]

They did. Because it wasn't once we. After that, it was like, we're gonna do go to Indigo, go to the fans. And the fans supported it so much so, as you know, that we broke all Sorts of records and ended up being $3 million to make the first season. Plus, we made the game and we made comic books. And I remember.

[Nathan Fillion]

Can I do a side note here?

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

I remember we did a promo video, and they said something to the effect of, you can't have it be longer than two minutes. No one's gonna watch it. And yours was like, upwards of seven. Yeah, that's right. And you said, no, no, no, it's gonna be. Listen, you don't understand. He said, no, you don't understand. And cut to the incredible. How many huge, big stars, by the way, did you have in your little promo video? I remember James Gunn was there.

[Alan Tudyk]

Right.

[Nathan Fillion]

Josh, I want to say was there. Gene De Torres was there. I was there.

[Alan Tudyk]

You were there. Seth Green was there. I got to go. I went by where he records all of his robot Chicken, and he did a promo there.

[Nathan Fillion]

And then there was the unfortunate timing. There was another couple of guys who wanted to do another show based in the convention circus. Guys who were in sci fi shows called, like, Con. Yeah, it was basically similar name and everything. Yeah. Just the timing was so unfortunate. But their video was like the two of them saying, hey, man, this is something we want to do. Sitting on lawn chairs in front of a garage. It came out like the day After Hours did.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

I feel kind of terrible about that.

[Alan Tudyk]

They're very nice guys.

[Nathan Fillion]

I'm sure they really are.

[Alan Tudyk]

Cursed our names at the time. They did, because, yeah, we just upstaged. We upstaged them. And we had a big production value because pj, our producer friend who was producing with us, he had a flair for, you know, let's get a studio, let's get it. This is how we need to make it. You know, he. He had better idea of production value going in. But I also got Star wars then right after the Indiegogo launched. And so my agents, who had just fired me, I had a Star wars movie and this success, Indiegogo, and all these people who then really wanted to be in it because it was such a hit. Everybody knew that it was a big success on indiegogo. A lot of actors were very, you know, remember you were tweeting. It was back when Twitter was still fresh and fun, and William Shatner tweeted for us, and, yes, it was really, really cool, man. People still ask about it. Definitely at the cons, they would love to have more of it because it tells the story of people who do cons. So I feel like it's something that could always be done for YouTube now, finally, for YouTube, which is one of the most successful streaming platforms out there, if not the most successful streaming platform.

[Nathan Fillion]

I'm still pitching the movie, by the way. I, I have a little. I have, I've got the, I've got ears out, you know, people listening. And I, I, I always throw that idea out there. People go, oh, and they write something down. I don't know what they said. Never in a million years. I don't know what they're writing, but they always write something down.

[Alan Tudyk]

Good.

[Nathan Fillion]

I have another question for you, Alan.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes, what was I thinking?

[Nathan Fillion]

What were you thinking? Clearly, you're a huge success. You, you have, you have, you have tons of movies, incredible voiceovers. I don't think Pixar makes a movie without you. Congratulations. It's amazing all these incredible things that you do. You lead this incredible show. How about a failure? The worst audition you ever did. That just haunts you to this day, buddy.

[Alan Tudyk]

I have so many bad ones. There's so many. I don't know if they haunt me.

[Nathan Fillion]

Which one would I enjoy hearing?

[Alan Tudyk]

Ah, here's one.

[Nathan Fillion]

That was fast.

[Alan Tudyk]

Well, this one is. This one's bad. But it, it also. I almost didn't get Resident Alien because of this.

[Nathan Fillion]

That's recent.

[Alan Tudyk]

That is recent. So it was four. Do you remember that movie? Dinner with Dinner of Schmucks? Dinner with Steve Carell, and.

[Nathan Fillion]

Yes.

[Alan Tudyk]

Right. So I was coming in to audition for the director, and the casting director had said they wanted me to. I auditioned for somebody else, but they said, we want to see you for the blind swordsman, and we want to see what you do with that. And so I came in early, before the director came there, and she said, we want you to know that he does not think that it should be funny that he's blind. Like, that shouldn't be the humor. He's a great swordsman. He just happens to be blind. So I was meeting Jay Roach, and I was like, well, he's kind of missing a lot of humor there. And she said, well, that's. Don't. Don't do anything. Just be a good swordsman, okay? And so the joke was. There was a joke in the scene where he says, he goes up to the wall and he flips a switch, which he thinks is the light switch, and it turns on a ceiling fan. And he says, now I will make everything equal. See how good you are in the dark. And he flips a switch and the ceiling fan goes on. And I did that. And then I jumped, like, did a fencing jump right into a Wall. And it was exactly what I was asked not to do was to be to making fun of his blindness. I considered a success because the two people, the guy was running the camera, the assistant was running the camera and the other assistant who was second reader, both went. They were there laughing, but they're trying not to laugh out loud and they're.

[Nathan Fillion]

Not allowed to laugh.

[Alan Tudyk]

So they're trying to hold in their laugh going, ha ha ha, ha ha ha. Jay Roach is dismayed and is like, oh, like, oh, what just happened in the, in the casting director. I remember her look of just betrayal. She felt like I had betrayed her. And that's who cast Resident Alien. And they all tell this great story about Alan. When Alan came in with, we knew it was him. And we had auditioned 103 people before Alan came in. There's a reason why I was 104, because she didn't want to call me.

[Nathan Fillion]

Oh.

[Alan Tudyk]

She's like, I can't trust that guy. He's going to jump into walls. But I considered it a success because I made those two guys laugh and it was obviously funny and wasn't that what it was supposed to be? So that's. I have a lot of. I have a lot of failures that are based in my own. My poor judgment in what is important. Making the people who are running the audition laugh when they're not supposed to laugh. That was the acme of success. Not getting the job. That's a problem. How about you, Nathan? What were you thinking that one time when you auditioned and everything? What happened? What didn't you get?

[Nathan Fillion]

I wish I could remember what the project was. It was on Bob Hope Drive Over, I think the NBC Studios in Burbank.

[Alan Tudyk]

Warner Brothers.

[Nathan Fillion]

No.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, right. They're all sort of.

[Nathan Fillion]

Yes, it's on the backside of Warner Brothers way over there. But I think it was a separate from the Warner Brothers lot. But I think it's. It's over there and it was hot. It was like 109 degrees in the shade in the valley. And I get to this spot and there's like an entry with a little lobby. But you can't sit in there. You have to wait outside.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

And like I said, it was hot. And they're behind and they've got, I don't know, 11 people out there wandering around. And shade is at a premium. Everybody's trying to crowd under a tree. And there were no less than 15 pages of sides that I have been preparing. And I am an hour and 45 minutes, I think outside waiting in this heat because I need the job. And I get called in. I finally go in and there's like nine people lined up in chairs. And they're all having what looks to be the same kind of day I'm having. They're not. Everybody's unhappy. It's hot in there. Not as hot as it was outside. And the casting director who led me in said, we're just doing scene four. And it was kind of abrupt. And scene four was like a quarter of a page less than one side of a phone conversation. You know, where it's just you on the phone, there's no one else there just going, what do you mean? Well, I can't be there at 4 o'. Clock. No, you have. Yeah, okay. Yes, I like.

[Alan Tudyk]

It's just that you got the job as far as I'm concerned, my friend. But go ahead.

[Nathan Fillion]

I. She said, we're just doing scene four. And I go, oh, fart. And I had just kind of come to a thing where I, by the way, I. I hadn't worked in a long time. This is my. My long stretch of being unemployed and just a lot of rejection. I wanted to try to control that experience a little more. So I said, clearly, you guys are running late. And what I hear you saying is, you don't have a lot of time. How about I do scene seven? It's about the same length of time, but I worked really hard and I think you're gonna like what I did with it. And she looks at me with this snarly face like I just slapped her. And she goes, no, scene four. And I. It was so abrupt and so awful. I just said, there's no way I'm getting this role now. And there's no way I'm acting this late. I said, you know what? This job isn't for me. And I kind of rustled up the papers and I walked toward the door and I threw them in the trash can and I swung open the door and I left. And I was just like, chest out, strutting. And I said, yeah, that's a whole room of people who will never, ever hire me, ever. Like, What have I done? What was I thinking? I learned a lesson that day. I learned a lesson that day. Keep it to yourself, man.

[Alan Tudyk]

I don't know.

[Nathan Fillion]

Also. Go home, man. Go home. If they're making you wait outside in 109 degree heat, say, hey, clearly you guys are running late. Let's reschedule this. Because hour and three quarters, that's inhuman. Yeah. And you May I. Yeah.

[Alan Tudyk]

There's a lot of. A lot of bad auditions. It's. It's crap. Now you don't get the. Now you don't have the fun of going in and sitting in 103 degree heat. Now people just give you roles or offer you roles, or you audition on tape at home and you do it. You. Have you done any of this? You don't have to do this stuff. Let me tell you what it's like. I'm a scrapper as an artist, so I gotta. I still gotta. I have to audition a lot. People go, we know he can be a robot, but can he be a robot? Who cares? And so I have. I have to audition for that, too. It's.

[Nathan Fillion]

Can you.

[Alan Tudyk]

It's a different kind of caring from the last robot who cared that he played.

[Nathan Fillion]

Gotcha. Gotcha.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah, I have to audition a lot. So now it's all on. Now it's all on. You get to just do it yourself.

[Nathan Fillion]

For you younger listeners at home, going on tape means recording yourself digitally, referring back to an older technology where we.

[Nathan Philip]

Used VHS magnetic tapes.

[Nathan Fillion]

They were the size of a shoebox.

[Alan Tudyk]

It's so true. So, yeah, there have been errors, and I continued to make them. I still. Gosh, I'm. I'm really good at making errors. I just. So I know that whatever I am doing is meant to be because I screw up a lot. I just. I make bold choices when I audition.

[Nathan Fillion]

Yeah, but you fall upwards, Alan. You've clearly carved something out for yourself. But it's not cheap. It's not easy what you do.

[Alan Tudyk]

We'll see from this date on how long it takes me to get out of acting, because I do feel like I'm gonna get out of acting. I said this to my wife the other day.

[Nathan Fillion]

You're married?

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes. Yes. You were there, the wedding, remember?

[Nathan Fillion]

That's right. She's a Canadian. She's from my hometown.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah, she's from Edmonton. Carissa. I said I'm going to quit acting. And then I got a job offer to do something in June. And I was like, maybe I should do this job, though. This. This one job I'll do because it's an independent movie and it's some really cool actors and it was a play that they're going to make into a movie and I want to do a play. So I'll just do a play for a movie in Chicago in June because who doesn't want to be in Chicago in June? So I'm not quitting yet, but it seems like I'm just all I Think I'm always going to be quitting. Now I'm at that point in my life. We're at the same age, in our 50s, where I think, you know, what would you do? I think I just write. I could maybe start smoking weed again. I don't know. The second one sounds like a bad idea.

[Nathan Fillion]

Here's what. Here's what I see you doing. I'm going to quit acting. I'm going to do this writing thing. I'm pretty good at it. Oh, I've been writing this. I've been writing this. Oh, it got sold. Oh, I'm going to be on the set. I'm going to be talking. No, no. Know.

[Alan Tudyk]

Okay.

[Nathan Fillion]

That's not how. No, this. You're playing that step back, and now you're in it.

[Alan Tudyk]

So I end up acting my own writing. It's possible. I do want to. I do want to create something again. I do want to write something again. You mentioned Con Man. Now enough time has gone by from Con Man. I remember it was very hard. I gave myself.

[Nathan Fillion]

I didn't.

[Alan Tudyk]

I didn't allocate enough jobs. I like, directed most of the episodes just because I was afraid to ask directors to do it.

[Nathan Fillion]

So you were afraid?

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

What would happen? Like, what was the fear like, oh, if I do this, then what would.

[Alan Tudyk]

Happen if they said no? It would make me feel bad. I don't know.

[Nathan Fillion]

Fear of rejection. That's real.

[Nathan Philip]

That's.

[Nathan Fillion]

That's a real thing.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah. And I had built it up, so I was like, I'll just do it. I'll just. I'll just direct it. And I gave myself too many jobs, so now I like directing, and I learned a lot from that. But I now. Now directing something else. Like after. After doing it for Con Man. Then acting after that was different. So I was watching directors in a different way after directing, and now I've directed again and again. It's changing.

[Nathan Fillion]

If you could reboot a show from your childhood.

[Alan Tudyk]

Firefly. Oh, from my childhood. Got it.

[Nathan Fillion]

Got it. I like where you're going with this thought. If you rebooted Firefly, would you bring it back or would you reboot it?

[Alan Tudyk]

I would do the thing that, you know about that we talked about one day in your house. It was a. It was a fan fiction where they, you know, we didn't read. I didn't read the whole thing. I read page one, which was, somebody lands on some distant moon somewhere, there's no habitation. They're making their way out to this little shack of a Cabin. And they knock on the door. And older Mal Reynolds opens the door and says, what? And he says, we need you. And that's how you started. It's rebooted. You're now flying the spaceship. You've got a new spaceship. Probably a firefly class. I don't know. My guess is yes. And you come and you find us all. All the ones that are still alive. I'm currently dead. I'm a leaf on the wind. Too soon. But you find the other guys and then you're. You're. You had. You put together a new crew.

[Nathan Fillion]

Now that was very good. I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna.

[Alan Tudyk]

It was a. It was a fan.

[Nathan Fillion]

I'm writing this down as well. I wrote that down. Now, television shows from your childhood. What made an impression on you? I loved Simon and Simon. I thought MASH was cool, but it got me down sometimes. Gilligan's island was the only kind of window into a non winter tundra that I had access to. I just liked the beach, the sand, the palm trees, the leaves.

[Alan Tudyk]

Were you Ginger or Marianne?

[Nathan Fillion]

Oh, it would shift constantly. It would shift constantly. I mean, you couldn't. You couldn't shake, stick at either one of those ladies. They were wonderful for different reasons, but.

[Alan Tudyk]

That'S pretty solidly Marianne. I don't know, something about loved her. I realized that most boys who watch Gilligan's island had that question in their mind. Which one would you want to date of those two women? Ms. Howell wasn't really on the.

[Nathan Fillion]

She was.

[Alan Tudyk]

She wasn't dating where she was married. That's why. But if a girl watched that show, she didn't have the same options. She either had the professor or Gilligan. Or Gilligan.

[Nathan Fillion]

Yeah, unless you like the big hunky guys. And then she got the skipper.

[Alan Tudyk]

She wanted a bear. I bet there were some young men who wanted the skipper. That's a type.

[Nathan Fillion]

Who would you play in this scenario with that Gilligan's island reboot?

[Alan Tudyk]

I would want to play Gilligan, but now I'm too old to play Gilligan, so I guess I'd play Mr. Howl. I don't know. There's no reboot of that show. It's too ridiculous. Now in this world, it would have to be sci fi.

[Nathan Fillion]

They did reboot it.

[Nathan Philip]

They called it Lost.

[Nathan Fillion]

It was a big hit. Next question? Yes, We've talked a lot about the project you've done, the successes you've had. There's so many. What's a part that you didn't get that you are really happy about now.

[Alan Tudyk]

Part I didn't get that I'm happy I didn't get.

[Nathan Philip]

Okay.

[Alan Tudyk]

There's a lot of these ones that I thought were gonna be good. Oh, okay. I went up for M. Night Shyamalan movie.

[Nathan Fillion]

Very talented. Very nice man.

[Alan Tudyk]

I want a cover our basis by saying M. Night Shyamalan is very talented. He did old movie called Old. And you are not allowed to read the script. When you audition for M. Night Shyamalan, you read.

[Nathan Fillion]

Oh, yeah. They want to keep that big secret.

[Alan Tudyk]

God, there's a big secret. Because that's his trick at the end. Oh, my God. It's a beach where everybody's getting older. It's in the title. It's called Old. Anyway, so I auditioned for that, and I actually know who got the role. It was the actor who played Count Adhemar in A Knight's Tale.

[Nathan Fillion]

Oh, yeah, he's great.

[Alan Tudyk]

Rufus Sewell.

[Nathan Fillion]

Yes.

[Alan Tudyk]

And so Rufus got the role. And I remember doing it, and I was like, I thought I did a good job, and I thought I did. I don't get so down on myself because I never get to play just normal people. And it was kind of a normal guy. I was like, I wanted to play a normal guy. I just want to play a guy. And for a change, everybody wants to play the thing they don't get to play all the time. So I wanted to play that. And I didn't get it. And then it came out, and that thing is difficult to watch. It doesn't make any sense. I mean, it makes sense, but you get it and it doesn't. It's not. It's what the people who don't like him Night Shyamala would say is typical.

[Nathan Fillion]

You were there. I did a movie with the lovely and talented Renee Zellweger.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

It was a romantic comedy with Harry Connick Jr. Both very charming, charming people. The movie didn't end up hitting. It didn't. It just didn't. It didn't.

[Alan Tudyk]

I came by.

[Nathan Fillion]

For whatever reason you came to set when I was filming you. You were hanging out with me and Renee Zohegger just. She was so pleasant and lovely.

[Alan Tudyk]

What a. I thought we had a shot. I thought her and I had a shot there for a second. I really did. That's how. That's how. That's my foolish optimism. I invited her out for beer and burgers. Oh, remember? Right there on set, I was like, hey, we're going to go grab a beer and some burgers over at Hanano.

[Nathan Fillion]

Did she go Tap, pat, pat on your back. Not a chance.

[Alan Tudyk]

She said, I can't just go hang out in a bar. She said, it sounds really great, but I just can't go hang out like that.

[Nathan Fillion]

Well, she was absolutely adorable. She was really, really wonderful. Really kind. Myself and another actress had more secondary roles in that show. And by the end of the movie, when it was all cut together, we got a call from the director saying, so sorry, but your parts just. We cut them. Cut your parts out entirely. So you're not going to be in the movie anymore.

[Alan Tudyk]

You had a shower scene.

[Nathan Fillion]

I remember that. That sounds like it was more. I was in the shower by myself.

[Alan Tudyk]

Pressing your breasts up against the glass steam. Clearly I was there.

[Nathan Fillion]

I did that every time I showered.

[Alan Tudyk]

There was that loofah. What was that, that about?

[Nathan Fillion]

Well, no hands. Anyway, the movie came out and. And to, you know, not, not, not very glorious fanfare. And to this day, that actress and I, we kind of. When we run into each other, if that ever comes up, we're going to look at each other and go. Kind of. Kind of dodged a bullet there. Not that we would, you know, have our faces all over it and be responsible for the movie not doing well. Again, we had smaller parts that could be easily cut out of the film.

[Alan Tudyk]

I know that feeling, man.

[Nathan Fillion]

But it's not the first movie I was cut out of. Do you know I was cut out of Deadpool?

[Alan Tudyk]

That's right. You were the. You were in it. I remember the picture. I don't want to get. I'll let you say who you were.

[Nathan Fillion]

I remember I was the bathroom attendant in the strip club.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

Morena worked in. And Ryan Reynolds comes in.

[Alan Tudyk]

And Morena's character worked in. The one Morena worked in was down by the airport.

[Nathan Fillion]

Jesus. And. Oh, we should get. We really need to get Marina for the show.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah. If I don't. If I'll stop insulting her, maybe she'll say yes.

[Nathan Fillion]

And Guardians 2. Guardians of the Galaxy 2 cut out.

[Alan Tudyk]

What?

[Nathan Fillion]

Yeah.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, you were in 3 and 1. I'm pretty sure I saw.

[Nathan Fillion]

I mean, all three cut out of number two. It happens in this industry.

[Alan Tudyk]

Right?

[Nathan Fillion]

But sometimes you say, I don't mind so much that that happened. Sometimes you think, oh, that would have been great if I could have been in just a little bit.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, here's one. But I was almost in Guardians of the Galaxy as Rocket Raccoon. Raccoon.

[Nathan Fillion]

That's true.

[Alan Tudyk]

It's before they got Bradley Cooper and I went to London. Even I got confused about what I was supposed to be doing. And I, I flubbed the audition and I flubbed it in a room full of people like actors. David Bautista was there. There's a lot of people just around. It was very strange. I kind of remember. Kind of don't remember it, but I. It was kind of. It was kind of. It was a shoe in situation that then I didn't get. And because I didn't get that, had I gotten that, I would not have been able to do Star Wars. I would have been busy and I wouldn't have been up for doing another motion capture role. I would have done one. Once I did Rocket, I would have been like, I can't do any more motion capture. Because motion capture is great. But people don't get how much work goes into it. And there's a certain amount of. It's one of those jobs. You have to appreciate everything you're doing. You have to appreciate the creative process and like it for what it is. Because people are not going to see you in the role. They're going to watch the role and they're not going to go, hey, that's that guy. And that's part of our job. A good part of our job or good for our business is exposure. And when you're a digital person, you're not exposed. They don't expose you. It's not in the final exposure.

[Nathan Fillion]

Alan, let's wrap it up with worst advice you ever got.

[Alan Tudyk]

Oh, don't go to Juilliard. They can't teach you anything that you don't already know.

[Nathan Fillion]

Who told you that?

[Alan Tudyk]

This dumbass. His name. I forget, luckily, so I don't have to hear from him. But he was a stunt choreographer guy in Dallas, Texas. And I had already gotten into Juilliard and I was back in Dallas bartending to make money so that I had some money and to go to restaurants and buy cigarettes. And Ron was his. I'll just go with Ron. I remember his name now, but he went by Ron. And I knew him from the Dallas theater world. And I told him I got into Juilliard and that's what he said, julliard, you don't need to go to Juilliard. They can't teach you anything you don't already know. And I thought, God, I kind of was thinking you might be an idiot. But now I know you're not positive. Yeah, you're not very bright.

[Nathan Fillion]

I had a guy when I was on soaps, the fellow, one of my mentors, Bob woods, who played my uncle Bo Buchanan, sat me down two years into a three year contract and said, here's what's going to happen. They're going to say, do we invest more time in this kid or does he want to get out? And we need to start phasing him out so they don't notice so much when we replace him. And you're going to tell them you're out and they're going to offer you more money and you're going to say no. And they're going to say, we're going to let you out for other projects. You're going to say, can I get that in writing? They're going to say, well, we can't put it in writing, but we'll do our best. That means it's not going to happen. Here's what you're going to. And he told me to move to LA and he had a whole plan for me. Wow. And he said, and you can't fail because if it doesn't work out, pick up the phone, call One Life to Live and we'll welcome you back. Whoever's took your place, we're going to fire that guy. Don't worry about that guy. We don't love that guy.

[Nathan Philip]

We love you.

[Nathan Fillion]

No one's going to say, oh, you.

[Nathan Philip]

Tried to get out and you didn't.

[Nathan Fillion]

No, we're just going to embrace you and welcome you home and we'll pick up where we left off and everything's going to be safe and fine. And he just gave me the courage to pick up and leave. And I said, okay, that's what I'm going to do. Everything turned out exactly like he said. Everything he said. They're going to say. They said. When I responded, everything he said, they were going to respond with. They responded with. It was crazy. Thank God I had him.

[Alan Tudyk]

Wait a second. This is the worst advice that you ever got.

[Nathan Fillion]

Another kid on another show who was my age said, you're going to what? You have a job, you have a steady gig as an actor and you're going to let it go on a chance in some other city where nobody knows you? Are you crazy? You're making a terrible mistake. Wow.

[Alan Tudyk]

And that actor was Mr. James Franco.

[Nathan Fillion]

And that actor was James Franco. James. Thanks for your advice, Alan. Thank you very much just for being amazing and being my friend all these years. I got.

[Alan Tudyk]

Yeah, you too, buddy. You too, man. I think we are still spacemen. We are still, you know, once you're.

[Nathan Fillion]

Once you're a spaceman, that's it, man. You can't, you. There's never you can't go back. No, you go out to the black. There's no coming back.

[Alan Tudyk]

That's what I've heard.

[Nathan Fillion]

Thanks.

[Nathan Philip]

Hello, and thank you for listening. This is Nathan Philip. Now is the part where I read aloud the credits for our show in my best telephone voice. So put on some headphones, lay back and relax because this is our time. If you haven't yet, you can always head over to our Patreon to get bonus content, longer episodes, and a chance to get your hands on some incredible crap. If you love the show, please leave us a review and feel free to tell all your friends. If you didn't love the show, now is the time for quiet contemplation. Once We Were Spacemen is a collision 33 production. Some of the names I will mention are my favorite people in the world, and some of them have room for improvement. You know who you are. If you hear your name being read, please stand up. This show is produced by Siobhan Homan and Josh Leppy of Collision 33. We are edited, mixed and produced by Resonate Recordings with special thanks to Courtney Blomquist and Adam Townsell. Our theme music is done by Carlos Sosa and Joshua Moore. Artwork by the incredible and incomparable Louis Jensen. But going to tell you right now, I think he fakes his accent. Until next time.

[Alan Tudyk]

I could maybe start smoking weed again.