The series, which is filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, was in development for nearly ten years, as creator Kripke spent several years unsuccessfully pitching it as a series. The pilot was viewed by an estimated 5.69 million viewers. and the ratings of the first four episodes prompted The WB to pick up the series for a full season of 22 episodes. Originally, Kripke planned the series for three seasons, but later expanded it to five. The fifth season began airing on September 10, 2009, and concluded the series' main storyline; however, The CW officially renewed the show for a sixth season on February 16, 2010. Kripke has confirmed that he will not be returning as showrunner; however, he will still remain as an executive producer. Sera Gamble, replacing Kripke as showrunner, has stated that the sixth season will focus on the brothers' relationship and the secrets they find out.
Cast and characters
Main article: Characters of Supernatural
“
When I read the script, Dean just jumped out at me. With that character there was always a bit more comedy, and a bit more recklessness, and it just appealed to me more. So when I asked to read for that, they were like, ‘That’s what we’re looking for.’ So it was great. I found a character that I really enjoy playing.
” |
—Jensen Ackles on what drew him to the character of Dean Winchester.
The series focuses primarily on the brothers Sam and Dean Winchester, played by Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, as they travel throughout the country hunting the supernatural. Padalecki became interested in the role due to his liking of horror series such as The X-Files and Twilight Zone, which he found similar to Supernatural. He was also excited to play "the reluctant hero", comparing Sam to The Matrix's Neo and Luke Skywalker of Star Wars. As well, Padalecki had previous experience with executive producers McG and David Nutter, the former convincing him to audition for the role. Ackles was originally asked by Nutter to audition for the role of Sam, but preferred the character of Dean after reading the script. At the time of his audition, he was already a series regular on fellow WB series Smallville. After landing the part of Dean, his Smallville role was cut short.
While the series does not have many lead characters, there are many recurring characters. Jeffrey Dean Morgan portrays John Winchester, father of Sam and Dean. Making an appearance in the pilot episode, John does not return until nearly halfway through the first season, after which he becomes a recurring character until his eventual death in the second season's premiere episode, though his spirit returns to help his sons in the season finale. According to writer John Shiban, it was decided early on that John would die. The writers found that having the brothers being separated from their father "split the show". Shiban noted, "...the boys were looking for Dad, and they were looking for a monster of the week, whatever that is, whatever case crosses their path. It became difficult, because it was like - 'what is Dad doing? Is he doing more interesting things than the boys are doing, or what?'" Morgan was initially reluctant on returning to Supernatural for the second season due to his recurring role on the series Grey's Anatomy. Future appearances of the character have been hindered due to Morgan's busy schedule.
Also introduced in the first season are the demon Azazel and his unnamed daughter. While Azazel mainly appears merely as shadows or silhouettes in the first season, only taking physical form when he possesses John Winchester, Azazel's daughter uses a girl named Meg Masters—portrayed by Nicki Lynn Aycox—as a host. Aycox was hand selected for the part by executive producer Kim Manners. In the second season premiere, Azazel's host is portrayed by Fredric Lehne; originally brought on only for one episode, Lehne impressed the showrunners so much that he was asked to return for the season's two-part finale. Even after the character's death, Azazel makes appearances in the fourth season, being portrayed by Christopher B. MacCabe and Mitch Pileggi in the time travel episode "In the Beginning" and by Rob LaBelle in a flashback in the season finale. Likewise, after Azazel's daughter is exorcised from Meg towards the end of the first season, the demon and her host continue to appear in the series, although now as two separate characters. The demon returns for an episode in the second season, temporarily taking Sam as a host, and appears once again in the fifth season premiere, her newest host being portrayed by Rachel Miner. As well, Aycox continues her role in the fourth season when the angry spirit of Meg tries to kill the Winchesters.
The writers eventually wanted to flesh out the concept of hunters, resulting in the introduction of many new characters. Actor Jim Beaver makes his first appearance as Bobby Singer, an old family friend of the Winchesters, at the end of the first season. Becoming a sort of surrogate father to Sam and Dean after their father's death, the character recurs throughout the rest of the series. Other hunters appear in the second season with the introduction of Harvelle's Roadhouse, a saloon frequented by hunters. It is owned by Ellen Harvelle—portrayed by Samantha Ferris—whose late husband was a friend of John Winchester. Working alongside her mother is Jo Harvelle, who is portrayed by Alona Tal. Also present is the genius Ash; portrayed by Chad Lindberg, he uses his vast computer skills to track the paranormal. Tal was eventually written out of the series, and believes the reason to be that the producers felt she looked like Sam and Dean's "14-year-old sister". Kripke claims the character was incorrectly conceived, and also cites poor fan reaction for her removal.[ As well, the character of Ash is killed off in the second season finale with the destruction of the Roadhouse. Ellen was meant to return in the third season, but the episode had to be scrapped due to the writer's strike. As well, the writers intended for her to be featured in the third season finale, but Ferris declined because the deal offered to her was not acceptable, as "It could cost [her] money and work".However, both Jo and Ellen later returned in the fifth season.
For the third season, the writers decided to introduce Ruby, a demonic former witch who claims to the Winchesters to be an ally, to the cast. However, the CW requested that another female be added, so the character Bela Talbot, a self-centered thief who sells occult objects to wealthy clients and who was already intended to appear in multiple episodes, was upgraded to a series regular. Katie Cassidy and Lauren Cohan were eventually cast as Ruby and Bela, respectively, though they originally auditioned for the others' role. Though only making six appearances each in the third season, both actresses were credited as stars for their episodes. At the end of the season, Bela was killed off due to negative fan response, and Cassidy was let go due to budgetary reasons. Ruby was recast for the fourth season, auditions only describing the character as "a love interest". Genevieve Cortese took over the role until the character's death at the end of the season.
Wanting to bring in Christian mythology to the series, the writers created the angel Castiel to introduce it. With Kripke wanting to keep the introduction of angels a secret, the character was instead described as a demon during auditions. Misha Collins was cast as the character. Making his debut in the fourth season premiere, Castiel resurrects Dean from Hell after his death in the third season, and comes to be an ally of the Winchesters. The character was originally intended for only a six-episode story arc, but the role was later expanded. Collins was promoted to a series regular for the fifth season, something Collins believes to be mainly due to fan support.
Along with Castiel came other angelic characters, with Robert Wisdom portraying the "militant" and "dogmatic" Uriel, who secretly supports Lucifer; Julie McNiven playing the fallen angel Anna Milton, who eventually regains her angelic form but remains an outcast of Heaven; and Kurt Fuller as Castiel's superior Zachariah, who wishes to start the Apocalypse in order to bring Paradise to Earth. Though Wisdom's character is eventually killed, McNiven and Fuller continue their roles into the fifth season, and are joined by Mark Pellegrino as the recently released Lucifer. Pellegrino had been the second choice for the role of Castiel, and was offered the role of Lucifer without an audition. Further on, McNiven's character was also killed along with both the Harvelle characters.
Because the show focuses mainly on the two Winchester brothers, the writers realized that viewers would know that the characters are not in danger of being permanently killed. To fix this, the staff often writes in guest characters to give tension to the episode, occasionally having them die.
source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural_Tv
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