Co-showrunner Andrew Dabb also says that although the two will finally get closure, it doesn't mean John's story will come to an end.
- Jan 22, 2019
AceShowbiz - "Supernatural" will bring back a fan-favorite character for its upcoming 300th episode. Jeffrey Dean Morgan is set to return to The CW series, reprising his role as John Winchester, the father of Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles). Now, co-showrunner Robert Singer explains why it's a perfect time to bring back Papa back.
"The 100th episode was just an episode," Singer reveals in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly. "The 200th was so special. It was bold and great. We knew we weren't necessarily going to top that so we said, 'What would make the fans happy? What would they like to see? Bringing John back.' So we sort of built the idea around that."
He continues teasing that the upcoming episode, which will air in February, will be very "John-centric." Co-showrunner Andrew Dabb adds, "The 300th is in a lot of ways, for Sam and Dean, about home. You're dealing with two guys who, when this story started and for the bulk of our show, never had a home."
"It was motel rooms and the Impala and they'd have a place they'd stay for a few weeks or maybe a few months at a time, but that's pretty much it. Now Sam and Dean have a home, they have a family, and they have Lebanon and that's really where the idea started," he continues. "Like okay, what does the town of Lebanon think of these guys? And conversely, what do Sam and Dean think of the town? And then when the idea of Jeffrey Dean Morgan was floated it was great, because not only is it awesome to have him back for a number of different reasons."
"It's thematically consistent because suddenly it's about home, it's about family, it's about having that family dinner, it's about coming home in a more emotional way," he explains.
Of Sam and Dean's reactions when they see John, Dabb says, "The way you react to your dad when you're 25 is much different than the way you react to that person when you're 40." He goes on saying, "The fact that the guys were older now and could have different reactions to John was what made it exciting because they're not going to have the same conversations they had in seasons 1 and 2 of the show."
Although the two will finally get closure, it doesn't mean John's story will come to an end. "It's not like, 'And now roll credits, we'll never see you again!' It feels like it allows these guys to put some, not all, of their 14 years of baggage down and move on to the future maybe with some new knowledge, maybe a little bit more unencumbered," he notes. "Because if we had just brought him back and it had been like, 'And then they go and hunt a demon together,' it wouldn't have been satisfying."
John was last seen in season 2 finale titled "All Hell Breaks Loose: Part 2" back in 2008. The episode saw John, who appeared in a total of 12 episodes beginning with the first season in 2005, escaped through the open gate to hell before helping his sons kill Yellow Eyes. John himself died in season 2 opener, "In My Time of Dying", after he sacrificed himself to save Dean by making a deal with a demon.
"Lebanon", the episode featuring Morgan, will air on Thursday, February 7 at 8 P.M. on The CW.
