Last weekend at Comic-Con, we joined a small group of journalists for an interview session with the main cast and executive producer of Supernatural. Stars Jared Padalecki (Sam), Jensen Ackles (Dean), Misha Collins (Castiel), and Executive Producer Jeremy Carver provided details on some of Season 9's big moments and teased what we can expect from Season 10.
Executive Producer Jeremy Carver:
It seems like there are some excellent storytelling opportunities with the introduction of the Men of Letters Bunker. Do you plan on having a continued focus on that in Season 10?
When we introduced the Men of Letters, not just as a location, but one of the final pieces or the Winchester Family Tree, it opened up for the writers and enormous trove of possibilities. Yes, we're always coming up with fantastic ways of looking at the Men of Letters and it’s become such a part of the show now that it doesn't even necessarily have to be Men of Letters-specific episode to use the richness of that whole area.
Do you have any tease for new monsters or creatures that we can expect to see?
We have a lot of spins on some monsters we've seen before. To me it’s not so much about introducing new monsters as it is finding a fresh new way to get into the world of even monsters that we're already familiar with. If we're doing a vampire or a werewolf again, it’s all about the character that inhabits that monster. That’s what gets me going the most, but there will be a few new ones that you'll see and not all monsters will be monsters.
Will we see any characters returning, such as Cain?
Cain (Timothy Omundson) is an absolutely wonderful character. We won't be seeing him in the first round of episodes, but we'd love to find a way to bring him back in. It’s a professional issue at this point, as he is involved in a new series called Galavant.
Off the top of my head, Sheriff Mills (Kim Rhodes) will team up with Sheriff Donna Hanscum (Brianna Buckmaster) in what we think is a really fun and emotional episode. It’s sort of our version of The Heat.
Also, there’s another character that I'd like to keep as a surprise for now. [Someone says “Bobby” under her breath and Jeremy laughs out loud, but gives no answers.]
Have you found a way to bring back Felicia Day's character from OZ?
They're working on a way to get her back. We absolutely adore her. I can say that we are actively working on a way to bring Felicia back.
Will there be any closure on the Kevin storyline?
Kevin is in a really weird place right now. I was as sad as anyone to kill him off. Any chance we can find to bring him back, we will.
Jensen Ackles - Dean Winchester:
Can you talk about your experience playing a demon in a previous season and did that shape your role in season 10?
Something said on the panel is that Dean is not possessed by a demon. It is that his own soul is twisted to such a point that it has become demonic. So I've taken what Dean was doing last season, which was really kind of tortured, brooding, and on a crash collision course.
I wanted to take all of that away. All the weight of the world, the heavy heart, the guilt, all of that stuff. Remove all of that because Demon Dean does not care.
This is where I went with this character. He is Dean without a care in the world and it’s not comedic... it’s almost scary. That he cares so little for everybody and he loves it… that’s scary. It was tough, but I like the challenge. That’s where I get the gratification.
Jared Padalecki - Sam Winchester:
We talked to Jensen a bit about the challenges of playing a demon, can you fill us in on your transformation into an Angel?
It was nerve-racking, man. I'm not kidding and I've had a few of those, like soulless-Sam, Lucifer, and Gadriel. They like doing that to me. What’s wrong with Sam? Just let me be Sam!
I laugh because, inevitably, I get the episodes during the summer. I'm relaxing and having a beer and reading and I'm like "I have to make up a character now?!"
It’s fun to see Jensen do it and have a chance to flex his muscles, but it’s refreshing and really challenging for me as an actor to play all these new characters. You don't just want to do a different voice, so I try to take it seriously.
Whenever I have to play a new character, I think of it as I'm auditioning for a new show. So when I found out I had to play Gadriel, I thought of it as if I was auditioning to be an angel on a new show. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s very challenging and nerve-racking.
We had shot five or six episodes before it aired and I was committed to it by then. I was just nervous, thinking "god I hope they like it." It was too late to change it at that point. The fans have always been so generous, kind, forgiving, and supportive. So after that first episode aired and they saw that character at the very end I was relieved that everyone was cool with it. It was awesome.
Misha Collins – Castiel:
Castiel and Dean already had a strained relationship. How do you think that is going to be affected by the reveal at the end of season 9?
It’s going to drive a wedge between them, but Castiel’s primary mission is curing Dean and fixing him. At the same time, Cas is determined to not let Demon Dean roam the earth. So if it comes to it, Cas is willing to kill him if Human Dean can't be rescued.
Will you be singing in the 200th musical episode?
I don't really know much more than you do. Actually, I know a little more than you do, but I haven't read the script yet. All I know is its going to be kind of meta. I'd be willing to sing. I've sung before and it was so good, so good. How could you not want more of that?
How does it feel to be going in to the 10th season?
It’s sort of bizarre because this is such a fractured business. Typically, you hop from one job to another with great rapidity. A few months, a year, a few years, but then you move on. It’s very surreal to be with a group for this long. I haven't even been there since the beginning. I've been there for seven years now and it’s almost like a family. It’s not at all what I ever expected to have in this line of work, but I like it.
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