by Samantha Highfill: watch the interview here

Supernatural's Misha Collins previews that explosive cliffhanger's 'tragic' fallout

Warning: This post contains spoilers about this week's Supernatural episode, titled "Unity."

There are only three episodes of Supernatural left. And if episode 17 is any indication, there's a lot of drama ahead.

Thursday's episode, titled "Unity," saw the return of Chuck (Rob Benedict), which is why Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Jack (Alexander Calvert) took a quick road trip to New Mexico to complete the final ritual necessary for Jack to defeat God himself. But what they didn't realize is that they were playing into Chuck's ending. As he revealed to Amara (Emily Swallow) while Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean were fighting about what to do, this was all Chuck's doing. So, in the episode's final moments, Amara agreed to become one with Chuck and Jack was left as a ticking time bomb, with Chuck nowhere in sight.

"We pick up right [where we left off]," says Misha Collins of next week's hour. "This is almost like a two-part episode — 17 and 18 really flow into one another." As for what happens next, this week's episode saw fans get "chapters" from Amara, Dean, and Sam, which means Castiel's story must be coming up. "In 18, we do get Cas' chapter," says Collins. "[In episode] 17, it feels like Cas is there, but he's not central. [In episode] 18, he becomes much more central."

But with Jack on the verge of death, what does episode 18 have in store? Jensen Ackles has already told us the hour is "monumental" for the series, and Collins agrees. "It's monumental, it's tragic, it's — I think — pivotal," says Collins. "It's a sad episode."

Then again, when there's only three episodes left, isn't every episode a little sad? (Sorry.)

Supernatural | Socially Awkward Angel | The CW

by Jessica Mason: watch the interview here

We Talked To Misha Collins About the End of Supernatural and Making Sure Democracy Doesn’t End Too

Sam, Dean, and Castiel fight monsters on the regular. But so does Misha Collins—and so can you. You can stand up to evil by participating in this election. Grip your ballots tight and raise us from the perdition of the Trump era. Collins, and indeed most of the expansive cast Supernatural has accumulated over the years, are doing their part to get out the vote.

Today, the cast is joining fans in a phone bank event for Joe Biden, and Misha and his castmates will be chatting with senator Amy Klobuchar and Ashley Biden. But ahead of that, he talked to us! We sat down on Zoom with Misha to hear all about why it’s so important to vote in this election, what the final days of filming were like, and how the Winchesters and Cas can keep us inspired. Also eggplant.

You can join the Supernatural cast TODAY and phone bank for Biden. As Misha says above, they’re trying to set a record and if any fandom can do it, it’s Supernatural‘s. Sign up for the event here. Also, keep an eye out for Misha (and Jared!) chatting with Senator Amy Klobuchar and Jill Biden.

Oh, and watch tonight’s episode of Supernatural at 8:00 PM on the CW. It’s huge and incredibly emotional and for at least an hour, you’ll get to be stressed about Sam, Dean, Cas, and Jack instead of everything else.

by Danielle Turchiano:

‘Supernatural’s’ Misha Collins on Castiel’s Deal With the Empty and ‘Poignant’ Final Words in the Series

With only four episodes to go for the CW’s “Supernatural,” things are looking dire for Team Free Will.

While Dean (Jensen Ackles) is ready and willing to let Jack (Alexander Calvert) sacrifice himself to take down Chuck aka God (Rob Benedict), Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Castiel (Misha Collins) are hoping there’s another way. Part of Castiel’s reasoning, Collins tells Variety, is because he is “definitely clouded” by his paternal feelings for Jack “and he’s trying to do his best to both save the world and save his family.”

That quest, which has been at the center of the show since its earliest days, often sees the pieces at odds with each other, and Collins shares that such is certainly the case in the final few episodes of the long-running series.

“It’s always been about this dynamic interplay between fighting the forces of the universe and fighting for the last remaining threads of a tattered family,” he explains. “Ultimately as we get closer to the end of the season it’s not about compromise, it’s about sacrifice — it’s about characters making huge sacrifices for one another.”

Castiel specifically, Collins notes, “doesn’t give up on looking for a solution and he does find something that is really helpful.” But there is still the deal he made with the Empty (Rachel Miner) hanging over his head. In the penultimate season, in order to save Jack from the Empty, Castiel promised he would take Jack’s place there. He was allowed to stay on Earth for the time being, to maximize the pain it will cause when he is inevitably sucked back to the place that is deemed “worse than hell,” and Collins says that that deal “ends up being very significant” for Castiel at the end of the show.

For Collins, who was first introduced to the world of “Supernatural” in the fourth season premiere, wrapping a dozen-season run was always going to be emotional. But he had an unexpected one-two punch because “the way the schedule worked out [was] my last moment on set was also Castiel’s last moment in the narrative of the show. So it was like this interesting double goodbye where I was saying goodbye to the cast and crew and they were also saying goodbye to Castiel at the same time,” he says.

Collins acknowledges that through the years, everyone spent “a lot of our time there laughing and making jokes and trying to undermine one another while we’re shooting,” and shares that some such levity crept on set after his series wrap was called. “The crew put together a little party and a cake and a little retrospective video,” he says. “It felt like a retirement party.” But actually shooting his final moments as Castiel was anything but light.

“This was a very, all-around, super somber night. Everyone [was] being honestly strangely respectful of the process of acting but also really connected and emotional, and it felt like a night of grieving. It was really intense,” he says. “Cass’ final moments are really him taking the reins and making really hard choices, but definitely of his own free will.”

Watching the storyline of God planning to end the world unfold during such a tumultuous time in history is not taken lightly either. (Collins and a few of the other “Supernatural” family members, including Ackles and Padalecki, have been more vocal on social media about the importance of voting in general, and in some cases speaking out directly on who they are voting for and why. They have done interviews with Sen. Cory Booker, who is a longtime fan of the show, and also hosted a virtual watch party for the series’ fall return that acted as a “get out the vote” event for candidates such as MJ Hegar. Collins has also participated in phone banks for former vice president Joe Biden.)

“Of course there’s an escapism to this kind of entertainment,” Collins says. But the “mythology is a source of inspiration. So not just escapism but a little bit of social-emotional inspiration that people take from the show. Even when the odds seem impossible, even when you’re up against supernatural beings who are far more powerful foes, you keep fighting and if your heart is in it, you can prevail. And that kind of messaging isn’t escapism; it’s constructive — it’s how civilizations pass the torch from one generation to the next.”

“I’m happy about how the show lands in that respect,” he continues, “and I’m happy about how Cass lands in that respect. I’m really happy about the socio-political message that Castiel sends with his final words in the show. I think it’s really poignant and important and super relevant to our current social moment.”

“Supernatural” airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.

by Samantha Highfill: watch the interview here

Supernatural's Misha Collins previews a 'damn desperate' Castiel

Castiel is determined to find another way. When Supernatural fans last saw the angel, he'd just learned that Billie's plan is going to result in Jack's death. So, Cas went off looking for answers, and when he returns in this week's episode, he's still not giving up.

"Cas is still looking for a solution but he's losing steam a little bit," says Misha Collins. "Cas still feels like there has to be another way and yet, as the chips are falling, it seems like there are fewer and fewer options." As Collins describes the trenchcoat-wearing angel, "he's damn desperate right now."

With only four episodes left, there's always the question of how Castiel's story will end. "For years, fans would ask, 'How do you see Cas ending on the show?' And I've always said in some heroic sacrifice," says Collins. "First of all, the phrase has heroic baked into it, which I like. But also I think that that's just integral to his character. He's always been willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good, and ultimately if he can sacrifice himself for the greater good and for his little cabal of humans who have become his family, I think that Cas will have served his purpose as far as he's concerned."

Whether Castiel gets his "heroic sacrifice" in the show's final season is yet to be known, but Collins teases that "sacrifice is sort of part of the equation for Cas." It's unclear what exactly that means or how it will play out — let's not forget he's already sort of sacrificed himself to the Empty — but all Cas knows at this point is that he doesn't want his son to die. As Collins puts it, hearing Jack's fate was "the worst thing imaginable" for Castiel.

Supernatural airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.

by Vlada Gelman:

Supernatural's Misha Collins Previews Fight to Save Jack, Talks 'Intense' Last Day on Set and Cas' 'Poignant' Ending

With just four episodes of Supernatural left to air, the angel who made a memorably dramatic entrance on the series 12 years ago is almost at the end of his story. But before Castiel and the Winchesters sign off, Cas sets out this week to save his “son” Jack from having to sacrifice himself in the battle against God.
Below, his portrayer Misha Collins previews this Thursday’s episode (The CW, 8/7c) and shares his feelings about the “very meaningful, very poignant” conclusion of Cas’ journey. The actor also reveals the one regret he has about his character’s arc.

TVLINE | Looking ahead at this Thursday’s episode, Dean and Sam are on very different pages about Jack and what he must do to defeat God. Where does Cas stand in all of that?
Cas is desperate to find another solution still. The prophecy is that Jack will be the one to bring down God, but it’ll mean the ultimate sacrifice for him, and [Cas is] just desperate to find another solution.

TVLINE | Given his attachment to Jack, and the fact that Dean and Sam are on such opposite sides on this issue, is that worrying for Cas’ relationship with the brothers? Does it become a source of conflict?
It’s a little bit Machiavellian what’s going on right now, and everybody is trying to play the chess game of playing their cards right and, frankly, manipulating the rest of the gang into getting their way. But I can say that fences will be mended. It’s not driving a wedge that can’t be overcome between us. I think we’ve kind of been in similar situations before, where someone’s arguing, “Look, this is the only way. I know it’s terrible,” and the other is saying, “There has to be another way. We can’t do this.” It’s kind of a perennial debate that goes on in the Supernatural universe.

TVLINE | So much of the season is about the potential destruction of God. How is Cas, as an angel, processing that and the potential death of his father, in a way?
It’s interesting. I think that, on an emotional level, Cas made peace with losing his father a long time ago. I think Cas no longer sees God as a father figure. I think he sees him as this very sullied, selfish entity. It’s yet another indication of the tectonic shift that’s happened with Castiel over the years, where he went from full allegiance to the angels and a longing for God as his father to allegiance only to humanity and to Sam and Dean and really feeling like he’s a part of a different team now.

TVLINE | I talked to Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles about their last day of shooting and how they felt during those final moments. What was that experience like for you on your final day of filming?
It was super emotional. Just the way the shooting days lined up, I happened to be shooting Castiel’s last scene in the show at the very end of the day on my very last day of shooting. So my last scene shot was Castiel’s last scene in the series. And that was really potent and emotional. There were a lot of tears all around. I was crying, Cas was crying, the crew was crying. It was really intense. I don’t think I’ll ever have another character ending like that one, for sure. It was very meaningful, very poignant.

TVLINE | How do you feel about how Cas’ journey wrapped up? Was it in line with expectations that you had for the character’s arc?
Yeah, it was. I’m really happy with Cas’ ending. It’s sad, but it is kind of exactly what I would have hoped for.

TVLINE | You’ve probably spent more time shooting with Jensen and Jared than any other actor that’s been on the show. What are you going to miss about working with them?
Nothing. [Laughs] Look, I’m gonna miss the laughter. We laughed our asses off. Day after day, month after month, year after year, we laughed and laughed. Maybe if I wind up on the set of some genuinely slapstick comedy at some point, I might have something similar. But it was a mirthful experience. I’m still talking to them all the time. I miss them. They’re dear friends, and will always be dear friends. I don’t think I’m ever going to try to replicate this on-set experience again. I think that’s foolhardy. But it will always be, as far as I’m concerned, kind of the holy grail for me. This was a really lovely place to work.

TVLINE | What’s next for you after Supernatural? I know you do a lot of really wonderful and important work outside of the show in terms of political activism. Do you see more TV in your future? Would you like to find a way to blend those two worlds together?
That’s funny that you should ask that because, yes, I’ve been ruminating on an idea that would blend those two worlds together. I am interested in the political sphere. I’m completely subsumed in politics right now until the election and likely for many days after the election. I have been interviewing a lot of senators and former presidential candidates and folding Jared and Jensen into some of those interviews as well. I’m hopefully going to be interviewing Ashley Biden and Amy Klobuchar [on Thursday], and, hopefully, the boys are going to be joining that as well. It’s been an interesting kind of mash-up of this fandom and the political universe, and it’s been really cool to see that like the Biden campaign is really fired up about the Supernatural fandom and how engaged they are and how they feel like it’s worth having us interview the likes of Cory Booker and Andrew Yang and Amy Klobuchar and all of these sort of luminaries from the party, because they see how engaged this audience is, which translates to votes and caring about what happens in the country. [But] I don’t know what I’m doing next.

TVLINE | It’s a big commitment to do a TV series, especially after you’ve just done one for so many seasons. Would you want to commit to another show?
My inclination is to take a little break, but that’s partly also easy to say because nobody’s offered me a TV show. I haven’t been trying to make that happen either. At the moment, I’m trying to take a little bit of a break. I certainly wanted to give myself until after the election to dive into something. I did shoot a small role in an Amazon movie a few weeks ago, and it was my first time on a set that wasn’t Supernatural in a long time, and it was during the time of COVID, which is just such an interesting experience. I’m dipping my toes back in those waters, for sure.

TVLINE | Finally, is there anything you didn’t get to do as Cas that you really wanted to do?
The only real regret that I have over the years from Castiel is he got to be a human for a little while, [but] I just wished he played on that playground for a little longer. I wish that Castiel had gotten to experience being a human for longer, because it felt like that was a really rich well to draw from, and we kind of missed out on a little bit there. He also never drove the Impala, which is kind of a bummer. I’m going to have to go down to Jensen’s and drive around down there.