Supernatural star Jared Padalecki pokes fun at the length of the show’s season, hypothesizing that a smaller episode count would have been better.
Jared Padalecki’s time on Supernatural may be over, but the fan-favorite actor believes it could have run even longer were it not for its lengthy seasons.
Speaking to TV Insider, the Sam Winchester actor explained that capping seasons at 13 episodes would have allowed the actors to live a more balanced life while also delivering a tighter, more refined story. “Jensen [Ackles] and I asked for 13-episode seasons of Supernatural, many, many, many times,” Padalecki said. “As a matter of fact, I feel like if we had done 13-episode seasons of Supernatural, we’d probably still be doing Supernatural right now. Because it’s hard to do a long network season while also trying to be a husband and a father and friend.”
Padalecki elaborated further by using an example provided by one of his Supernatural co-stars. “I think Jim Beaver at one of our Comic-Con panels said about 22 or 23-episode seasons, ‘You know, even if it’s the best batter on the planet, if Ted Williams goes to bat 23 times, he’s gonna strike out a few times.’ And so I think a shortened season would just be a really strong, action-packed, story-packed season where we don’t have to do an episode like ‘Bugs’ in Season 1 of Supernatural.” “Bugs” is widely regarded as one of the worst episodes of the show as it follows Sam and Dean fending off waves of insects trying to kill a family living on a Native American burial ground. The installment was blasted for its cliche premise and awkward writing.
Supernatural’s Future Lies in the Past
Despite concluding in 2020 with Season 15, Supernatural lives on in the form of its prequel series The Winchesters. Set decades before the original show, the spinoff follows the adventures of John and Mary Winchester, parents to Sam and Dean, as they establish themselves as bonafide monster hunters. While Padalecki did not return to his iconic role for The Winchesters, Ackles once again donned the jacket and boots of Dean Winchester to both narrate and guest star in the show via multiversal shenanigans.
Many fans approved of The Winchesters and Season 1 earned plenty of praise from both critics and audiences but it wasn’t enough to prevent The CW from canceling it. Shortly after the news broke, Ackles acknowledge that he was working to find the show a new network and enlisted the help of passionate fans in doing so.
