When it comes to visiting Australia, actress Morena Baccarin has been a victim of her own ever increasing popularity.
The talented, sought-after performer planned to come to Australia for the Supanova Expo on at least four prior occasions, but had to cancel each time due to last-minute casting or scheduling changes.
Happily for her fans however, those roles provided the captivating Morena with more screen-time than they could enjoy, and they’ll soon be able to meet her in person at the brand new Gold Coast Supanova Pop Culture Expo on April 21 and 22 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre.
Morena first caught geek and genre TV fans’ attention in Joss Whedon’s ‘space western’ series Firefly and its spin-off movie, Serenity, in which she appeared as the beguiling ‘Inara’.
Set on a smuggling spacecraft in the year 2517, Firefly traced the fortunes of a courageous band of adventurers, refugees and dissenters against the oppressive Alliance.
Morena struck a blow for the representation of women on TV as her character, Inara, played a Companion: a highly esteemed 26th-century courtesan whose presence on the ship conferred legitimacy and respectability.
Free from the stigma traditionally associated with such roles, Inara’s profession and high level of education was a benefit to her onscreen shipmates and was appreciated by viewers.
Morena went on to achieve further sci-fi celebrity in Stargate: The Ark of Truth, then as the reptilian alien queen in the creepy series reinvention of V, before appearing in Showtime’s intellectual thriller Homeland.
As the wife of returned U.S. marine and P.O.W Nicholas Brody, Morena brought complexity, gravitas and sensuality to her role. Series one of Homeland is currently airing on Australia’s Ten Network.
Morena will meet fans, pose for portraits with them and autograph character shots and collectibles at the upcoming Supanova on the Gold Coast (April 21-22).
And in sad news for ‘Buck Rogers’ fans, Gil Gerard can no longer attend the April tour after being signed to appear in a theatrical production.
Fortunately for Stargate fans not only is Morena now attending; Gil’s replacement is Stargate Atlantis actor, Rainbow Sun Francks, whose other credits include Aliens Vs. Predator – Requiem and the TV series, The Listener.
Supanova, celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, has a huge line-up of stars confirmed for the Melbourne and Gold Coast expos. In addition to the leading lights of anime, comic books and genre literature, the screen industry guests include:
EDWARD JAMES OLMOS – Admiral Adama of Battlestar Galactica, Dexter’s most recent nemesis Professor Gellar, and Blade Runner’s enigmatic origami-folding cop, Gaff.
JAIMIE ALEXANDER – The goddess Sif from the blockbuster movie, Thor, and co-star of The Last Stand, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s imminent return to the silver screen.
PETER FACINELLI – Carlisle Cullen (Edward’s adoptive dad) in the massive Twilight movie franchise, as well as Mike Dexter in the movie Can’t Hardly Wait, and Dr. Fitch “Coop” Cooper in TV show Nurse Jackie.
OLIVER AND JAMES PHELPS – Fred and George Wesley, Ron’s cheeky and courageous twin brothers in the epic ‘Harry Potter’ film series.
WIL WHEATON – Twitter phenomenon (with almost 2 million followers!) and star of The Guild, The Big Bang Theory, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and cult ‘80s favourite Stand By Me.
SUMMER GLAU – Firefly and Serenity’s enigmatic River Tam, and the eponymous femme fatale of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
JANET FIELDING – Tegan Jovanka, Companion of the Fourth and Fifth Doctors of Doctor Who.
CLIFF SIMON – Stargate SG-1’s villain we love to hate, Ba’al.
ELISABETH RÖHM – Brainy bombshell Röhm appeared in Joss Whedon’s series ‘Angel’ (Detective Kate Lockley), ‘Heroes’ (Lauren Gilmore), and ‘Law and Order’ (A.D.A. Serena Southerlyn), as well as in ‘Miss Congeniality 2’ alongside Sandra Bullock.
RICHARD HORVITZ – voice of the cult cartoon character, Invader Zim.
JIM KELLY – The original “Afro Samurai”, Kelly was an integral African-American performer and karate champ on the ‘70s Blaxploitation scene. Star of ‘Black Belt Jones’, ‘Enter the Dragon’ and many more.
CHANDLER RIGGS – young Chandler stars as Carl Grimes in the critically acclaimed TV series ‘The Walking Dead’, helping his Sheriff dad fight off zombies in this comic book adaptation created by Frank ‘Shawshank Redemption’ Darabont.
