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| Supernatural | |
|---|---|
| Title | Supernatural |
| Genre | Horror, Fantasy, Drama |
| Created by | Eric Kripke |
| Starring | Jared Padalecki; Jensen Ackles; Misha Collins |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Num seasons | 15 |
| Num episodes | 327 |
| Executive producer | Eric Kripke; Robert Singer; Sera Gamble; Jeremy Carver |
| Producer | Warner Bros. Television; Wonderland Sound and Vision |
| Location | Vancouver, British Columbia; Los Angeles, California |
| Runtime | 42–45 minutes |
| Company | Warner Bros. Television; Chaos Machine Productions |
| Network | The WB; The CW |
| First broadcast | 2005 |
| Last broadcast | 2020 |
Supernatural
Supernatural is an American television series created by Eric Kripke that follows brothers Sam and Dean Winchester as they hunt monsters, demons, angels, and other paranormal threats across the United States. The series blends elements of horror, fantasy, action, and family drama while drawing on folklore, religious mythology, and popular culture. Across fifteen seasons, it became a long-running franchise for The WB and The CW, spawning tie-in novels, comics, and conventions.
The series premiered on The WB in 2005 before moving to The CW in 2006, becoming one of the network's flagship programs alongside Smallville, Gossip Girl, and Arrow. Created by Eric Kripke and produced by Warner Bros. Television and Wonderland Sound and Vision, it stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as Sam and Dean Winchester, respectively, with recurring roles by Misha Collins, Jim Beaver, Mark Sheppard, and Felicia Day. Filmed primarily in Vancouver and later in locations around Los Angeles, the show ran for 327 episodes, concluding in 2020 and joining the ranks of long-running genre series like Doctor Who and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
The narrative explores family, destiny, free will, and sacrifice through motifs drawn from Christian angelology, Judaic demonology, and global folklore, referencing works and figures such as The Bible, John Milton, Dante Alighieri, and H.P. Lovecraft. Episodes often allude to popular music and film history, invoking titles and iconography related to Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, The Rolling Stones, and filmmakers like John Carpenter and Alfred Hitchcock. Recurring motifs include road-trip Americana, the Winchester family heirloom—the Impala—echoing cultural artifacts like the Ford Mustang, and intertextual episodes that reference The X-Files, Twilight Zone, and Superman.
Eric Kripke developed the concept influenced by his interest in horror literature and television such as Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and series like The X-Files and Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Early executive producers included Robert Singer and Sera Gamble; later showrunners included Jeremy Carver, Ben Edlund, and John Shiban. Production companies included Warner Bros. Television and Chaos Machine Productions, with primary filming at studios and locations in Vancouver, British Columbia and later Los Angeles, California. The series' longevity owed partly to syndication deals with TNT and international distribution through broadcasters such as BBC America and Space (Canadian channel).
Main cast features Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester, supported by Misha Collins as Castiel, Mark Sheppard as Crowley, and Jim Beaver as Bobby Singer. Recurring guest actors included Felicia Day, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Samantha Smith, and Richard Speight Jr., with cameo appearances by performers from Supergirl and Arrow crossovers. The show drew guest stars from television and film such as Rob Benedict, Alona Tal, Ty Olsson, Charles Malik Whitfield, and Danneel Ackles, creating an ensemble that intersected with actors from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed, and Angel.
Structured as a mix of serialized arcs and standalone "monster-of-the-week" episodes, the series featured season-long mythologies—such as the demon-led apocalypse, the angelic civil war, and the cosmic threat of the Darkness—while producing notable bottle episodes and meta installments. Milestone episodes include early classics that reference The X-Files aesthetics, the meta "scripted" episode that satirizes Hollywood and fandom, and season finales that mirror epic set pieces akin to The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones battle sequences. The series completed 15 seasons, joining other long-running dramas like Grey's Anatomy and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in television history.
Critical reception evolved from lukewarm to broadly positive as the series developed deeper character arcs; it earned praise in outlets that also covered genre television such as Entertainment Weekly, Variety, and The Hollywood Reporter. Though not a major awards contender like The Emmys or Golden Globe Awards, it received nominations from genre-focused bodies including the Saturn Awards and garnered fan-voted recognitions at events like People's Choice Awards. The show's long run influenced subsequent genre productions on The CW and cable networks, contributing to conversations alongside series such as Supergirl, The Vampire Diaries, and Stranger Things.
The series built an active global fan community that organized conventions, fan fiction, and charity initiatives reminiscent of fandoms for Star Trek and Doctor Who. Fans and guest creators collaborated through panels at San Diego Comic-Con and conventions produced by promoters similar to Creation Entertainment. Its fandom influenced social media discourse on platforms like Twitter and Tumblr, spawning terms and shipping cultures comparable to those around Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Sherlock (TV series). Tie-in media included official comics published with DC Comics' imprint arrangements and novels that expanded lore in ways akin to transmedia franchises like Star Wars and The Walking Dead.
Category:American television series