Pilot: Featuring Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles

Okay guys, I need to put you on to something and it's something I really think that the supernatural audience is going to like. It's called "Rain of Shadows and Endings" by Melissa K. Rorick. An instant part New York Times bestseller had originally blew up on book talk like tens of thousands of reviews, major fan obsession energy. If you love dark romanticy, which I didn't know was a thing but it is, with serious world building, this one delivers "Fay, Dragons, Gods, Chifters, Vampires" basically everything that a supernatural fan could want. Plus a really unique twist with modern technology woven into the fantasy world. And the tropes, oh man, don't get me started on the tropes. You got faded mates, enemies with benefits, morally gray characters like rich, chutcher and dye, forced proximity, truly all the good stuff. But what really stands out is the emotional depth. The main character is dealing with anxiety and depression in a way that actually shapes the story so it hits on a deeper level while giving you that addictive dramatic romance. Also, if you're a special edition person, there's a gorgeous deluxe version with stenciled edges, foil details and full color character art from Kensington Publishing. It's on sale now, so if you've been looking for your next fantasy binge, this is it. "Rain of Shadows and Endings" by Melissa K. Rorick. You can find it anywhere books are sold in print and in e-book. In 2005, two brothers set off on a road trip that would eventually save the world and change television. For 15 seasons and 327 episodes, Supernatural took audiences on a wild ride of family, fate and faith, with a rocking soundtrack and a seriously cool car. But that was then, and this is now, and while the show might have ended, we're not quite done with the journey. And that's why we're watching it all over again, diving deep into every episode of Supernatural with the fine folks who made it, and we're taking you along for the ride. I'm Rob Benedict, I played Chuck Shirley, aka God, and yes, it's a bit of a spoiler, but spoilers are going to be fair game here. And I'm Richard Spade Jr., and I played the trickster, also known as the Archangel Gabriel. We'll be talking about the entire series, so don't say we didn't warn you. Buckle up and settle in. This is Supernatural, then and now. Hey everybody, I'm Rob Benedict. I'm Richard Spade Jr., and we are here to walk you through the series Supernatural, episode by episode. We're going to gently take your hand and guide you through every swing and episode, the show ever shot an aired, and that's 327 bad boys. Let's start with the first one, the pilot episode. The one that started it all, Bobo. You know, in this episode, we get to sit down with Jensen and Jared. Who are they? They played Sam and Dean Winchester, the leads of the show. What? Yeah. I wish I had known that before the interview. We get to cover quite a few things with them, including the audition process, how they came to be Sam and Dean. How they met. I mean, it's not only just the audition process, but how those individuals, that and bonded, because you know, the core of the show is their relationship. Right. Exactly. And it really is. If they hadn't hit it off, we wouldn't be having this podcast. Robbie and I would be talking about a pilot. It'd be a one-up-a-side podcast, and we would have never met. Right. So it's not even the Sam and Dean origin. It's the Jensen and Jared origin story. Correct. And then we talk about they had a lot of fun shooting with people on fire on the ceiling. I was going to say they actually, you know, in the day of practical effects, meaning they did it in real time, right there on the sound stage. They had to actually shoot in rooms that were on fire. Things that were would be considered, quote unquote, illegal to do today. That's right. And run for cover. And then we get into another, let's talk about show called Threshold that ran for 13 episodes on CBS. But I'll leave that to the boys to discuss. And let's just say we touch on that with great clarity. But let's stick with Supernatural, the pilot episode. This is the pilot episode of Supernatural. We are introduced to the Winchester Brothers, Sam and Dean, whose mother was killed in 1983 by something not natural. Oh, yeah. Mary Winchester's death set her husband, John, on a hunt to find what killed her. 22 years later, Dean retrieves Sam from college at Stanford after John goes missing. Yep. Now this search makes the boys to Jericho, California, where they hunt the ghost of Constance Welch, a woman in white who killed her children and herself and now lures unfaithful men to their deaths. The little brotherly teamwork in a 67 Chevy Impala, Sam and Dean send Constance back home for good. Sam heads back to college, only for his girlfriend Jessica to end up dead on fire, on his ceiling, just like his mother, 22 years before. What a kawinky dink. Yeah, right. We in the episode with the boys determined to find their mother and Jessica's killer and their lost father. Oh, they've got some work to do, Bobo. They sure do. Let's get into it. Okay, here we are. First of all, Jen Snackle's Jared Paddlelecky. Thank you so much. Thanks so much. Thanks for your hard work, Sam. Um, Rich. Rich, thank you, Rich. Thank you, Rob. And so we're going to start with the pilot of Supernatural. So I have to admit something. I watched it just the other day for the first time. And I have been doing the conventions for what 12, 13 years, but I've never watched the pilot. How many episodes have you actually been in? Like 20, 20. Yeah. What are you spate? Are you winning this battle? Are you losing this battle of most episodes of Supernatural? No, Rob one. Rob is appeared in more episodes than I did. Then I would rather you not talk for the rest of the podcast. We'll direct our comments and questions to, although, that's a recurring theme in this whole process. If you add your directing credits, you run. Although unlike, unlike Rob, Rich did his research before coming on the show. So he did watch the first episode. Rob still called me. I was getting texts from Rob last night going, did you know that Jeffrey Dean Morgan was in Supernatural? I was just discovering. No, a lot of stuff that a lot of stuff made sense. Like that's why he comes to the convention sometimes. It was, it was listening to Rob live tweet, the pilot 15 years later. He was like, holy s**t, they're brothers. I watched the show. When is it gonna air? When is it going to change? It's a premier. It's a premier. I, yeah, no, it was actually great. And you guys have been your friends now for a while. Well, we've known each other. Okay, sorry, sorry, sorry. We've known each other for a bit of acquaintances. You sometimes answer texts. But you did watch the pilot. You're so young. It was a long time ago. Do you have a memory of what that was like of shooting it? How clear is that in your mind? The pilot for me is pretty clear. Yeah. So, I think that's the process, the pilot, I think because shooting the series, Supernatural, sometimes you'll be filming an episode on Tuesday that you get the script on the prior Friday. So you have three days to kind of like, okay, I better not forget my lines. Whereas the pilot, it was like shooting a movie where you have, where you're living this 48 page script for a month or two months or three, whatever it is, not like for three days. So you don't forget your lines. And so you're trying to figure out who you are. You're trying to establish like, okay, who is this character? What do they want me to do? What am I going to do? I feel like we were, and I could be wrong, but I'm having a memory of us doing preliminary reads prior to the holidays and then coming back in like January and doing our executive reads. I feel like getting the role. So you're auditioning like in front of producers and then you came back in January and tested in front of the right. For us? I think so. I think you're right. For us, it wasn't really an audition as much as it was a meeting because Jensen was on smallville. I was on Gilmore Girls. And so we both already had a relationship with one of other studios and at the time, one of other's network. And so they're like, we know these guys, like they show up on time. They hit their marks. They say their lines. They hang their wardrobe. Right. There are a lot of talented actors and actresses out there. But I think one of the reasons, and I don't know if I'm jumping the gun here and talking about something that we're supposed to have later. But one of the reasons that I fully believe that supernatural went so long is because everybody who got involved with minor exceptions was just easy. You know? Like in "Ackles and I" we're just sort of like, we always talked to each other. Like we just kind of thought of ourselves as soldiers who didn't have to risk their lives. And it's like, okay, you tell me where to be. Tell me where to go. Tell me what you need to do and I'll do it. Yeah. Not like, well, you know, 4 a.m. is early. Yeah. And I remember, and I'm sure "Ackles" as well. Back in the early days, there was no social media, the ways to publicize a show and we shot in Vancouver. There were no iPhones. Yeah, that's right. So, crazy. They would swap us out and be like, hey, we're doing a radio press tour next Monday. Jensen did the last one, so you're doing this one. And what that meant was that we'd wake up at 2.45 in Vancouver to make sure that we were on a phone call at 3 a.m. to air live at 6 a.m. on the East Coast. And so we do an hour of, you know, New York, Boston, DC, Jacksonville or whatever. And then at 4 a.m. Vancouver time, it was now 6 a.m. and Chicago, Dallas, whatever. And so you would do four time zones. So four hours worth of radio interviews. You'd wake up at 2.45, start from 3, go till 6 or 7 or whatever. And then you'd get picked up and go to set and shoot 18 hour day. Yeah. So it was just a lot of work. And again, especially in those days, when we were both 20 something without wives and kids. We can handle it. We were like, all right, whatever. We'll be a little tired. I'll take a sip of coffee at 8 p.m. to give me through the next six hours. Right. Do you remember when you met each other? I do. Yeah. Was there a chemistry read? the, literally the network studio test was basically our chemistry read. >> Okay. >> So, I mean, yeah, I can see it as clear as day. We walked into the WB Ranch. >> And- >> Now, is Eric Krypki there in the room and David Nutter, the director? >> They were there. >> And is that when you first met them as well? >> No, we had breathed with them. >> We had met them. I- >> I worked with them before. >> I'd done one of my first ever jobs was an episode of ER that Nutter was directing and I was a guest star on it. And Jim Ballucci was my dad. And so I'd worked with Nutter and I feel like I had auditioned for something else with him. I can't recall exactly. But then Krypki I'd met just independently. PJ, I think was there. Nutter, Krypki, producers on the show. >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. >> I knew Nutter from Smallville. He directed the pilot of Smallville. >> Okay. >> And it came down to me and Welling for Superman. >> Wow. >> So I'd run that gamut with Nutter once before. I mean, I read once for them. I didn't even read for Dean. >> Really? >> I read for Sam. >> Sam. >> Wow. >> Those were the sides. >> Yeah. >> They were like, okay, we have an idea of who Sam is. >> But the sides were a scene between Sam and Dean. >> Did it end up, was it just empty sides? >> I don't recall. >> We were only reading Sam's. >> Was it empty sides? Do you recall if it's empty sides or if it was actually a scene from the episode? >> It was empty sides. >> It was just a basic audition. >> I don't remember. >> But Dean was still written with the voice that carried through and became the character. And I read for Krypki and David at Wonderland, at McGee's offices on Sunset. >> Of course. >> And I sat down and David said a few nice words because we'd gone through that small, little thing together. And then I read for Sam and then at the end, I was like, guys, I really appreciated. But is there any way I could read the other guy for you? >> [LAUGH] >> And they both looked at each other and laughed and they were like, you don't have to. >> And then that was it. And then the first time I ever read Dean was when I walked in, met him at the ranch. I looked at the sign and sheet. There was no other names. He was the number one name on there. And I signed in right underneath him and I looked at him and I was like, where's everybody? Because usually there's five other actors, three characters. >> And you chemistry read, you read, you swap people out. >> One with six, two with seven. >> And nobody showed up. >> And they finally came out and said, Jared, Jensen, we're ready to have you back. So we went back there, we went into the room with all the suits and we read together for the first time. >> My God, it was a decision. >> In front of everybody. >> In front of 20 and 2530. >> And that was 30 executives. >> In a big office. And I read for PJ, Nutter, Crypti and McGee and I read Sam. And I had a holding deal with one of brothers at the time, which basically meant they were going to put me on something. So it was like, hey, you can't audition for CBS or ABC or NBC or Fox or whatever else was on at the time. Because we're going to hire you next year on something. We just don't know what, maybe you'll be a guest star on Dawson's Creek or maybe you'll have your own show or whatever. And I read and I'm going to sell out our mutual friend Eric Crypti right now. So after I read either that day or the next day or by the end of the week, my manager and producing partner and friend to this day Dan Spillo, he called and was like, hey, what's the word? Like how was Jared's read? You want something else? And at this point in time, I really wanted this show. And the note from Crypti was, he's great. We love him. But we're looking for like a really intelligent decovny type. >> [LAUGH] >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. >> And so Dan was like, what in the time I was 21 or 22? And Dan had to call and be like, listen, Jared was magna cum laude. >> [LAUGH] >> He was going to be an academic. >> He was going to be pre-med at UT with engineering double degree. >> I think he was on the top of the screen. >> From the scholar. >> Don't let it look spoo you. >> He is a smart guy. >> He looks dumb and he bumps into stuff. But I promise he can play the decovny intelligent part as well. >> He spots a lot. >> He just said, yeah, I fart a lot. >> He smells and he'll break shit. >> I still, I still teach Crypti that he didn't want to hire me initially because he thought I was stupid. >> A layer. >> What turned his opinion around? Like, he's a lot of money. >> I paid him a lot of money. I wrote him a check. >> He still thinks that. >> Back in the day, he just wanted to straighten it. >> No, he never changes opinions. >> Yeah. >> But you never went back to read again. >> So what am I keeping you? >> Back in the day, Crypti, he just wanted to brown paper bags of black tar heroin. >> Right. >> And that's a different kind of that. >> I just, I just heard the boys. He's still going strong, man. >> I don't know. I wasn't privy to all the conversations, but I think when Spilo called, it's like, listen, this guy was actually an academic in school. Like, you know, like he was National Merit and he was going to do pre-med engineering at UT. This and that, they were like, okay, well, let's give him another shot, but have him smart it up a bit. Or dumb it down a little bit. And so that's when, so a week later, whatever it was, that's when Ackles and I met there at the ranch. >> I see. >> Yeah. >> And then when did you realize that you had chemistry, that the two of you, that this was going to work? Because in the pilot, you know, the thing that really makes you, oh, this is a show I want to keep watching. Is the two of you in the chemistry you have? >> I do say by the way. >> The first scene on the bridge is when they knew. >> I felt it kind of instantly, because you know, it was just he and me. And so you're in a 10 by 10 waiting room waiting to get summoned to walk two doors down the hall to the room with the 30 people that will decide your future. >> Right. >> And so you just kind of shoot the **** a little bit and he's like, so are you from? I was like, Texas. >> Texas. >> He's like me too. I was like, cool. And then he softened a little bit. He's like, who's your team? I was like, Cobb was the long-horned spurs. He's like, all right, well, I don't know about spurs. You know, from Dallas, like, Mass. But all right, he's like, he's softened ever so slightly. Bristle a little bit at the spurs comment. He's like, so, you ever listen to country music? And I was like, do I ever listen to country music? I'm a Texan. He's like, okay, softened a little bit more slightly. He's like, a ton of rich family. And I was like, all right, well, I got an older brother younger sister. What about you? He's like, I got an older brother younger sister. >> It's easier to work for the CIA. >> That's right. >> [LAUGH] >> I never do a chemistry read with Jensen Ackles. But long story short, we shot this for whatever, 10, 15 minutes. >> It realized that we both had parents that were still married, living in the house we grew up in. In Texas, we like the same teams, we listen to same music, we both kind of play guitar and like to be athletic and fit. >> And that was also something, and I don't know if you guys remember this, but back in the day those audition rooms were really an interesting kind of- >> Toxic almost. >> They were an interesting window into like human emotion and >> Yeah, all of it, human nature. And I always kind of strived to take the air out of that. >> Right. >> The people sitting there, really nervous, kind of rocking, reading their lines, standing up, going over their stuff. >> Yeah. >> And for me, I almost took a little pleasure in popping that focus for a lot of people. >> Yeah, it was a bandaid because I had my lines down, I was good to go. So if somebody was really intensely like, and I don't know if I did it for just the overall feeling of the room, or if I was just messing with them a little bit. But I would just start making small talk with them to almost knock them off their game. >> I mean, I think that's what you do in a him in that moment. >> Well, no, because we were going against each other. >> We were going against each other. >> I was just used to popping that pressure, at least in that pressure a bit. >> Also. >> And so it was just make some conversation with the guy. >> And even to this day, once you're about to test for studio and network, you've signed a six year contract. And so if you go into the room next door to the waiting room and they say cool, we'll take you, that's the next six years of your life. And so, Ackles too, his credit was like, well, sh**, let me ask some hard questions off the bat, as opposed to like, how's your day? Good, how's your day? Oh, good as well. >> I might have to put up with this guy. >> Yeah, I might have to live with this guy for the next five to six years, if we are so lucky. >> Yeah, right. >> And I kind of do a similar thing. It's been a while, but if you have 10 minutes before you have to get married to this person or not, you don't want to ask like, what's your favorite color? You want to ask like, all right, are you from what your likes and dislikes, what's your family history? >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> Okay, guys, hold on. We're coming right back. >> Welcome to the realms of peril and glory. Explore the mechanically magical vistas of veil. The paranormal mysteries of liminal London. The cyberpunk chaos of cyborg. Be odd by our incredible guests from familiar shows like Ox Venture and No Rolls-Bard. Search realms of peril and glory to find out more. The war is over and both sides lost. Kingdoms were reduced to cinders and armies scattered like bones in the dust. Now the survivors claw to what's left of a broken world praying. The darkness chooses someone else tonight. But in the shadow dark, the darkness always wins. This is old school adventuring and it's most cruel. Your torch ticks down in real time. And when that flame dies, something else rises to finish the job. This is a brutal rules light nightmare with a story that emerges organically based on the decisions that the characters make. This is what it felt like to play RPGs in the 80s and man. It is so good to be back. Join the Glass Cannon podcast as we plunge into the shadow dark. Every Thursday night at 8 p.m. Eastern, on youtube.com/theglasscanon with the podcast version dropping the next day. See what everybody's talking about and join us in the dark. [MUSIC] >> Thanks for listening everybody and now back to the episode. >> You get along in the reading and that obviously leads to you guys both at the gig. And so like when you both know you have the job, how long from I'm hired to now you're on set together. >> I think it was. >> I was telling that was quick. - Just a few weeks. - Yeah. - I remember before I was in Warner Brothers, the big lock up in Burbank, in Burbank, and we're going through like the big wardrobe lock up, and we're kind of picking our outfits with the costume designer, and I felt like that was pretty quick afterwards. - And so you got this great cast around you, Andrea, Adrian Pellecki. - Pellecki, yeah. - And Steve Railsback, man. Let's not forget Steve Railsback. - Yeah, no sh*t, I was up in your wallet. - He's awesome. - Like that dude, - Rob, Steve Railsback played Manson in the Charlie Manson story. - It's right, he's great. And then of course Samantha Smith playing your mom, then we didn't know that she'd be bad. - Sarah Shahi, - Yeah. - Yeah. - Jeffrey Dean Morgan, I mean, so great. So when you finished-- - All the earn, right. - When you finished-- - Wasn't Windigo, but I mean-- - Yeah, yeah. - Don't forget R.D. Call. - Who did he-- - He was Sheriff. - The Sheriff. - Oh yeah. I mean, this guys are great. You can tell too, like these are great actors. Did you, when you finished shooting it, where you're like, I think we've got something here? - That's a good question. I mean, I felt like Peter Roth was running one of those studios at the time. He just started. And he believed in this show and believed in Jensen Me a lot. And I've only kind of realized how much he believed in the two of us after the fact. 'Cause at the time he was like, oh well, like they're hiring big names and really talented people. They're spending a ton of money. Doing long days, we're having our cinematographer had just won an Oscar for a short film that he had directed and lit. And so it was just, you would look around and go like, "Well, yeah." And you're like, these people are all great. They surrounded us with people who were more technical because they had worked for years or is that racially talented. And so I knew that we had made a great product. But the vagaries of the industry are intense. And so you're like, well, maybe they go like, no, we wanna do comedies next year. And so you don't really know, I realized that I have a job when I get a check in the mail after having filmed it. Not like, oh, that was really good. And so I think we looked at each other and I had done a few pilots prior to supernatural. Jensen as well. Jensen even did a show that shot several episodes and didn't get it. So you're never really, you're like, I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna catch this check. Like, I'm proud of the one that did. - Yeah, I didn't even shot seven episodes of that show and Fox just shelved it and never saw the line. - Yeah, yeah. It was like $15 million they put into this thing and it's just collecting dust somewhere. - Yeah. - Wow. - Yeah, I'll let's see. - I remember that year 2005, their every network seemed to have some kind of supernatural kind of show or alien show or something. It's right after lost. - Lost was on the year before. - The year before. And so this year there are a lot of that like. - Heroes. - Heroes was in the. - Was that some year? - It was the year after I thought. - Year before. - Really? - 2005 was invasion on like ABC surface on NBC. And a show that I was on called Threshold on CBS. - Never heard of it. - And thank you. And. - Not a fan. - 13, 13 episodes. - It's a weird name. - But anyway, the point is. - That's funny 'cause Firefly did 13 episodes. They made a whole movie about it. There's still adventures. - Threshold, I don't know that that really did anything. - It didn't, I mean, it didn't, I mean, it didn't, I mean, you know, it's Karla Gugino and Peter Dinklage and myself, but the point is, this isn't about me guys, this is your podcast, but the point is that every no or the head is your, the only one that made it, the only one that made it past was your show. - We definitely outlasted. I think the only show that was of that year of that class was Grey's Anatomy that is still on, that outlasted us. - They didn't keep the same cast though. - They didn't keep that cast. - But also. - Yeah, great. - Grey's made the choice to go on odd, and Fennita, whereas Ackles and I, and the gang that put the show together at the rest of us, decided like, hey, we should probably meet our wives and kids someday and live in our country of our resistance. - We should come up for hair at some point. - Yeah, we should take a breath. - Yeah. - So, tell us more about Threshold. - No, no. (laughing) - No, I have two thoughts about the pilot. So you jump with the DP. I noticed visually, it's much darker than the rest of this. Visually, it's the darker tone and more contrasty lighting. It's really, like, it's more like a horror movie, I think, than the show ended up being. - Well, that was kind of the initial idea. It's almost like a horror movie per week. But, monster short, that's unsustainable. That, you know, we would have three-hour lighting set up sometimes. We had over three weeks to the pilot. We shot a 42-minute pilot, you know, with 18-minute commercials. - In the time that it took two episodes. - Two and change episodes. And so, we went from Aaron Schneider to Sarah's Lotus year. And when you go to episodic television, and they say for an actor, and I imagine for crew as well, that one-hour episodic television is the most difficult job. You know, like we mentioned earlier, if you do a movie, even if it takes as long as a season television, you have that movie script six months in advance, three months in advance, at the minimum, a month in advance. And you know what to expect. You know that if you're writing a horse in the movie, you better start taking a horseback writing lessons. You know if you're doing Kung Fu, you better start going to learn Jitsu and Kung Fu and whatever. You know that like, oh, I have a sexy and I better start eating less candy. Or oh, I have to make some jokes in the midpoint of the script. I better try and work on my comedic timing. Whereas with one-hour episodic drama, there are 20 times as much as 23 for us, where you get a script, you know nothing of, that you're gonna be filming in three days. So I was like, hey, here's an episode where you speak Spanish. You're like, oh, f*cking no Spanish. Or you speak sign language. You're like, I don't, or you're doing a handstand for three scenes. You're like, I've never done a handstand in my life. And so you don't have any time to prepare. And so every moment you're not filming the current episode, you're scrambling, trying to figure out how to get prepped for the next episode. - Right. - You just read the film. - Coming to Vancouver casting offices for a handstand guy. - Yeah. - Yeah. - With long hair and a big forehead. - Pick it back on that. How much when you shot the pilot, did you think about what your character situation was in terms like there's a great scene between the two of you, where you're like, dad's on a hunting trip. - Dad's on a hunting trip. And he hasn't been home in a few days. - And you're like, oh, f*cking no, it's time to, you know. And then did you think about what your life was because your character Dean didn't have a home? - Essentially, yeah. - Well, and tying that into what we were talking about prior to this, like when did we know that we had something that we thought could be a success? I just been thinking about that. And I think it was the day that we shot that particular scene. It was the house. It was Sam's house, which I believe was down by you. - Oh yeah, yeah, it was in USC. - It was, yeah, it was a USC house. And that was the day that we shot the fight scene, which he and I were very comfortable doing. And I was like, oh, good, 'cause it was gonna be a lot of action. - It's gonna be one of the many. - And he and I are both athletic enough to handle this stuff. So that's great. And then that scene, the, you know, dad's on a hunting trip, hadn't been home in a few days. And then I think there was also matching that with, I saw the playback of me kicking the door in after Jess lights on the fire. And it cuts to me coming back for him and kicking the door in. - Right, yeah. - And I remember I saw that shot and I was like, oh, that's some heroic shit right there. - That's awesome. - And I was like, we might get three seasons out of this. (laughing) This is gonna be a home run. We might even get four seasons out of this show. I remember that day and it was also the same day that we went outside when the sun went down. We went outside and we shot the very last shot of the pilot. - We got work to do. - Yeah. - It was that same, that day. - So was that ex-monger at Satoqueo? Was that at Satoqueo Studios? Was that the day that we lit the roof on fire? Literally? - No, that, I mean, that wasn't that day. This was literally on location at USC, filming at that house. - Wow. - And we shot that street. - Okay. - And with the back of the Impala. - That night after we shot the fight scene that afternoon. - That's so cool. - We had seen the end sequence of the pilot. And I don't think I've ever talked about this just 'cause I never thought about it. But it was multi-part. We shot him kicking in at the door at USC, me getting the cookies and the note laying down the bed and seeing her body just like Jeff saw Sam's body on the roof. And then we shot a scene at Satoqueo Studios where it was, it was as if you took a four-walled with a floor and a roof bedroom and took one wall off. And so when you looked at the set, it would be the bed on the right. - It's like a sate com set. - The door on the left. - Yes, it comes at. And they don't do this these days, I don't believe. - No. - But we actually shot the wide angle that nutter wanted of Sam laying on the bed with live fire. - Inside. - Inside the soundstage. - With Jared in the bed and me running in and grabbing him. - And safety people with live fire. - And then they were like, as soon as you get warm run. - Right. - If you feel too hot, get out. - Yeah, give us what you can. But as soon as you feel unsafe or hot, get out of the fire and then fire trucks there. - Shhh. - Full on fire department there. - I remember there was one take and you were really, you were really emotional in that particular scene. And I'm supposed to pull you back. And you were fighting so hard against me. And I was starting to get hot. And instead of me going like, you know, we gotta go, we gotta go. I was like, I'm getting hot, we gotta go. (laughing) And that's when he went from like, that wasn't too heroic. Maybe two seasons. - Yeah. - Maybe not for maybe two seasons. Maybe two seasons or at least until my eyebrows grow back. - That's exactly. - Oh, it burns, it burns. - It burns, it burns. - Hot, hot, hot, hot. - The effects in the first episode too, I thought I was impressed with. - Right. - Because sometimes you see someone made 15 years ago and you're like, I could have been better, but like the ghost was like-- - Someone's been throttling. I should never, I should never brought that up. I thought this will be a funny tip, man. - No, that's got legs. - Sh*t. I thought the effects were pretty good. The ghosts sort of, but going in and out, I thought it was a cool way to go. - It holds up remarkably well. I mean, and even, well, now I know it's real fire, but like, so let me ask you this, the ceiling gag for Jess and for Mary. Were you guys around when they shot that? - No, I was not. - No, I don't know how they did that. - Yeah, 'cause that's intense looking too. - And that also leads me to ask, because you did a pilot with the lady, but you didn't have any scenes with her. Did you ever meet Sam Smith? - Yes, yes. We met her the day they shot, the "Get the Boys at a House." We met her, I remember meeting Jeffrey Dean Morgan as well, that day. We met him, he was really excited. He was like, "That way, man, that was great." - Yeah, that was great. - When he runs with young Sam, to get out of the house. - And Hans Wock Dean says, "Deen, turn around "and run a special cantor right?" - Yeah. - So that was the same day. I mean, he was a big day. - He was a lot of big days. - Every day was a big day. Like these were long days, and there were a lot of them. And the set where we shot the scene, driving up to the house, it was a practical house. And I feel like that was also, and I remember Jensen had, he was, he's still obviously his musician and he's really into music, but he had just told me about Ray Lamontane, who I just had with his first album come out. So I bought the CD, drove in my SUV, and I think I made it through the entire Ray Lamontane trouble album between the time I left my house in North Hollywood and got to set wherever it was. And there was one day where, I don't think we shot anything after lunch. And that was the scene where Sam pulls up, and then Sarah Shahi's character, the woman in white, she appears, and it's also the exterior of the house that we end up going inside a shoot where the dresser smashed against the wall. But I think like after lunch, they started setting something up, and six hours after lunch, it wasn't lit yet, and they were like, "You, we're gonna go and send you home and we're gonna do this tomorrow." And you're like, "What? Why don't you rent me six hours ago?" And they just didn't realize yet. So the days were long. - Long, big, epic, it was big. - Well, you know, there's so many iconic scenes in this episode, in this episode, especially now of course, looking back and retrospecting going, "Wow, that sets up so much stuff." Did Krippy ever tell you like, "Hey, by the way, you're gonna find your dad in episode whatever." You didn't know anything. - No, we were alone for the ride as much as the audience was. I mean, we would get a script and be like, "What's gonna happen to him?" So there was very little kind of discussion, and that model really never changed over the 15 years. I mean, the other-- - Maybe the last couple of seasons. - Yeah. - There were a few episodes like the French mistake. They called us ahead of time to say like, "Hey, how do you feel about playing Jared Patelikey and Jensen Ackles?" And we talked about it with each other and thought like, "How do we feel about it?" Like, "Okay, as long as we're Sam and Dean Winchester, then you can call us whatever you want to call us." - Yeah, for the most part, Crypt, he didn't give us-- - He never did. - And he felt like that, for me too. - And he didn't give anybody, but he had this like Bible in his head. - Yes. - Of where he was going, what was gonna happen, the character arcs and stuff, but he didn't share it to anybody. And I would imagine that's just probably self-reservation, so he doesn't lock himself into anything. - Yeah. - If he needs to pivot or he needs to adjust, he's able to-- - And he had written the initial conception of what became supernatural when he was at USC riding school. It was something that he'd been trying to sell for years. And they were like, "Eh, they didn't got legs." - We tried to figure it out. - We tried to figure it out. - I think it was a-- (laughs) - I think it was originally like cops. - What was? - Cops me through 66. - Yeah. - No, no, no, no, no, no, no, Sam and Dean were two. - Oh, we're actually cops. - Oh, no kidding. - Oh, no kidding. - Yeah, I know it was like-- - It's like a bit of a little bit. - It changed a bit. - Interesting. - But eventually laid out brothers. - Last question, then we're gonna have-- - Why wouldn't that work? - You know what, cop shows? - Returns, sir. - Well, I was-- - You know what I'm doing for a living right now? Did you ever see "Rush Old" because that explains a lot? - I did love-- okay, never. I forgot what I was saying. - Did I mention Peter Dinklage was in it? So also-- - I only watched his scene. - So you also get to meet-- I also get to meet Baby, the Impala, which is another iconic character in the show. Do you remember seeing that and seeing the Impala and going, "Wow, this is a cool car. This is gonna be neat. Do you remember that moment?" - Yeah, well, I remember reading it in the script because I was thinking, "Oh, it's gonna be "tongue with a classic car. "It's gonna be probably a Mustang "or it's gonna be a Challenger, "it's gonna be something to that." But the Impala was kind of a little bit of a left-field choice in the best way possible. So I've always been a big fan of that. Crypti could have gone with the obvious choice, and instead he went a little left-field. - Oh, gangster. - Yeah, gangster. - Which I love it. - Yeah, I like that. - So this element, a little bit of almost like a superhero, you know what I mean, that's your Batmobile. - Yeah, very much so. - Trusty old, it's absolutely an architect. - Yeah, I mean, Luke Skywalker has his lightsaber, and the natural, it was the baseball. - You know, like Harry Potter has his wand. - Threshold is Dean Kledge. (laughing) - You're not in this. - I can have it. I can have it. I'm sorry. - Threshold has his Dean Kledge. - Yeah. (laughing) - There was so much, and Crypti, I think, one of the first conversations he and I had had said, like, "Hey, have you read Joseph Campbell?" And I was like, "Yeah, I did." My mother taught heroes, myths and legends in high school, and she's English major, and we were big readers in our family. And so I was familiar with the archetypes and those classic storytelling tropes. And randomly, I always, I always was a 60s Chevy or just classic car fan. My first ever car was 69 Camaro, which is almost done. It's been being restored for about the last 10 years, just 'cause I've been waiting for like, "Oh, Ian Parts," and it doesn't. Anyways, and I also had like a 65 Mustang that I bought and restored a little bit and sold. And I had always been into late '60s muscle cars and late '60s watches. - That's cool, man. - So seeing it was like, "Yeah, I don't think I'd ever seen "in my life a '67 in Paula." You know? I knew of them, and I knew the engine blocks and whatnot. 'Cause, you know, I was kind of a nerd. - But he asked me, he was very similar conversation. He said, "Are you familiar with Joseph Campbell "and that whole character archetype?" And I said, "Are you kidding me? "I love Evil Dad." I ash his life. (laughing) One of my favorite characters. And he just, he kind of paused and he looked at me and he was like, "I chose wisely." (laughing) He's like, "Put me by a steering wheel "and I'll take this (beep) "and do what I got here." That's the Dean I wanted. - Yeah. - There he is. - There he is. Perfect. - All right, well thanks guys. Thanks for appreciate you talking about the pilot episode. It's Epic. It's Epic having you guys here. And we come to that threshold where we're gonna check. - Oh, God. - Yeah. - That note. Thanks for joining us. (laughing) - Hey there, this is Richard Spate, Jr. and I hope you're enjoying the episode. But we need to pull over for a few seconds for some messages. - Goodbye Kyle. - Did the sound of those words call to you like Pavlov's dog? Then you might enjoy our podcast Turtle Time. - Every week you can join me, Riley Hamilton, and my co-host Amy Scarlotta as we cover the most pressing bravo news and dig into the new episodes to answer important questions like, who the hell is Adrian Maloof in this world? - Listen to Turtle Time on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Wednesday and Friday. - Welcome to Mic Unplugged, the number one podcast for self-improvement and modern leadership. I'm Mic Hunt, your host, and I'm here to challenge your why and fuel your because. This is where leaders, entrepreneurs and go-gitters come to level up each week. I bring you unfiltered conversations, game-changing strategies, and the kind of motivation that transforms lives and legacies. I've learned from legends like Les Brown, Damon John, and Robert Irvine. And now I'm bringing their lessons along with mine, straight to you, from modern leadership tips to creating unstoppable momentum. This is the podcast that redefines what's possible. It play, subscribe, and join the millions who've made Mic Unplugged their go-to source for growth and greatness, because your next breakthrough is just one episode away. This is Mic Unplugged, the voice and face and modern leadership, entrepreneur and self-improvement. Let's get started. - Thanks for listening. Now, back to the episode. - I gotta say, what a rare treat, not only to be able to talk to those guys, but to get them both to actually sit down in a room. - That's right. - At one time. It's like catching a Sasquatch and a Bommel snowman and roping them together. - Or hurting two very large cats. - Very large sexy cats. - So fun though. So fun to talk to the guys. - Oh, so great. - And to get the original story of how they met and how they bonded with each other. And Jensen saying, you know, so what's going on? What are you from? What's team do you root for? - Who truly sounds like a classic accolades interview. - So we're talking about the pilot and a couple things we need to track as we go for people keeping score. - Yeah. - So this is our first installment of the Bitch Count. - Right. - We'll be tracking all the bitches and sons of bitches across the entire series. Because why not? - I think we mean as they are spoken, not the actual person who might be a bitch. - I mean, nobody thought that. - I'm just saying, I'm just saying the word bitch. You know what I'm saying, Robby? - Let's take the chat. Thank you. Okay, so we've got two bitches in this episode. - Robin Rich. (laughing) - That's right. But in the episode, but in the episode, the actual episode, we've got two bitches, both from Dean. We'd like to point out the first use of the iconic jerk bitch exchange. - Right. - Yeah, that's excellent. - Right there. It's an immortal moment between the boys right there and the pilot. - Yeah, especially in these first - In a couple episodes, you get some immortal line said, really, oh, that's where that came from. - That's to me off guard a lot. - We're also gonna start to count, we're calling it the Antiques Road Trip, and we're counting things that make the show a little bit dated. - A little dated. - Right. So for this one, do you remember when computer monitors were the size of microwaves? I mean, the computer they do the research on when they go into the library. - Yeah. (laughs) I know, it's like a dot matrix printer. - Yeah. - I got one for you. - Yeah. - And the opening scene was Sam in the bar, the guests are talking about, I don't have the perfect family, and the guy goes, yeah, well, we're not exactly the Huxtables. He makes a Cosby show joke. - That's right, you can't really make anymore. - Nope, I can't even say it here in the podcast. - No, you might be cutting that out. And then the other thing we're gonna walk you through is Creepy Kid Watch. - Oh yeah. - There are a lot of creepy kids on this show. Other trivia points worth bringing up is the note from Jessica on Sam's cookies were written by Holly Hollis, who was our longtime publicist from the WB. - Oh, that's awesome. - Yeah, one of the only two episodes shot in the United States. The other one was the Bloodlines, Backdoor Pilot in season nine. - Interestingly, I didn't know on TV at that time, you could show Sam's cookies. (laughs) - Holly did. So there was a mistake in the end and other early scripts were Dean refers to not talking to Sam for two years, rather than four, because Sam was initially supposed to be 20, not 22. - Wow, there you go. I didn't know that Eric Kripke's son was born on Sam's birthday, May 2nd? - Wow, I did not know that. - Two years after the pilot was shot, meaning it's not something that Eric set up. It just happened. - Mind blown. - Yeah. - And Dean shares a birthday with Kripke's wife. - That's kind of weird. - Kind of on the nose. - So let's get into the lore of this show. The woman in white is a real folktale with many forms. The key inspiration for this version is La La Rona from Mexico, a figure whose possibly has origins in pre-colonial indigenous culture. - Originally the woman who was the subject of the hit song from the 80s, "My Shea Rona." - That's right, but the Mexican version was La La Rona. - Right. - I mean, the most common version of the story, La La Rona, the weeping woman who lost her husband, sometimes to death and other times to infidelity as in Supernatural's version. In her grief, she kills her children. She immediately regrets this, 'cause it was what came in as, 'cause it was a bad idea. - Bad choice. - She's done that. And then she drowns herself, which is hard to do. But because of her crimes and suicide, she cannot inter-heaven and so she wanders the night weeping. In other versions, her children are illegitimate and she kills them because their father will never accept them. Oh, it's what it's nice. She obviously has her crap together. (laughing) Stories of mother killing their children go back a long ways in many cultures to figures like Medea and Greece. As Sam notes, there are other women in white all over the world. It just seems to be a popular choice color for ghosts. - Interestingly, the woman in white is not allowed to appear after Labor Day. (laughing) - This episode also combines the woman in white with another popular story, the hitchhiking ghost. Interestingly, there are stories in Hawaii of an old woman in white asking for rides on the big island. She gets in the car and then disappears and it is believed she is the volcano goddess, Pele, which was popularized in the cartoon that the rock was in. - Moana. - There you go, Moana. - And one of Brazil's greatest soccer players. - That is correct. Pele was also a soccer player. This pilot episode starts Jared Petalekia Sam Winchester, Chenson Ackles, his Dean Winchester. Jeffer Dean Morgan is John Winchester. - Samantha Smith is Mary Winchester, Adrian Policki is Jessica Moore and Sarah Shahi is Constance Welch. The episode also features Ardie Call, Steve Railsback, Derek Webster. - Emil Walker Smith lives with Bond, Miriam Corn and Robert Peters. - The episode was written by Eric Kripke, directed by David Nutter, edited by Paul Carracic. - With music by Christopher Linnerts and featured songs by Ginger, Classic, Eagles of Death Metal, the Almond Brothers band, ACDC and Keith Rozer. - Or if you're watching on Netflix, you'll hear music by Rabbit Junk, Revenge Freak Child, The Loveless and The Bad Touch. - It was executive produced by Eric Kripke and Robert Singer. - And it first aired on September 13th, 2005. Well, Rich, this is gonna be fun. - It already was fun. - That's right. - We're already mid-fun. - I know, but it usually takes me an episode to realize, you know what? You were right. I don't hate this, he thought. - This was a good idea. - Yeah, this is great. This is super fun. I mean, the fact that we already launched this bad boy with Jared and Jensen, I mean. - I know, it's great. I can't wait for episode two. - Me neither, in the meantime. Let me tell you about this podcast, the episode of Supernatural, then and now was hosted and executive produced by me, which is played junior and that guy, Rob Benedict. - It was produced by Stephen Hein, written by Jessica Mason, author of The Bins Watchers Guide to Supernatural, an unofficial companion. - And edited and associate produced by Trey Booty. - Music provided by Tim Wynn. - The episode was recorded with the help of Sonic Fuel Studios. - This podcast, it's a production from Story Mill Media. For the latest on this and other podcasts, follow Story Mill Media on Instagram and Twitter. (upbeat music) - I used to get mistaken for Barry Watson. - Barry Watson. - And I feel like I've signed a photo as or a piece of paper as Barry Watson and my-- - You seem to be a piece for a movie. - That's right, that's right. That's right. - When my girlfriend at the time in season one or two of Supernatural was flying from LA to Vancouver, she sent us some guy and they're chatting. He's like, what do you know there? She's like, I'm filming, there's my boyfriend. And he's like, oh cool, is he Canadian? He's like, no, no, he's filming a TV show. And he's like, oh, what TV show? And she goes, oh, it's new, it's called Supernatural. He goes, no way. Is he the short one or the one from Seven Heaven? Like, and she's like, well, he's not in the-- - Jensen's not short. - Jensen's like six foot-- - Something, but he's like, she's like, Dylan Hart from Seven Heaven. I was like, I've never been on Seven Heaven. I'll let him get more girls or whatever. - Absolutely. - It's 2005 and two brothers set off on a road trip that would save the world and change television. - I am an garfical? - Not brothers. I think you should say that. Well, someone the other day came up and told me they really loved a movie that Rich was in as if I was in it. (laughing) - Did you record your Rich? - I am. - They're like, we really loved you and driven. And I was like-- - It was a great movie. - Thank you so much. - You should sign something. - Yeah. - Rob, hey, love driven. (laughing) (dramatic music) - Story Melmedia. (dramatic music) - Legendary stories, awe-inspiring sound and endless adventure. Welcome to the realms of peril and glory. (dramatic music) The paranormal mysteries of liminal London. And the cyberpunk chaos of cyborg. (dramatic music) Fall in love with our core cast or be awed by our incredible guests from familiar shows like Ox Venture, three black halflings and no roles barred. Ignite your imagination and discover the realms of peril and glory today. Go to realmspod.com or search realms of peril and glory wherever you listen to podcasts. (upbeat music) - You quit. - Welcome to Miccom Plug, the number one podcast for self-improvement and modern leadership. I'm Mic Hunt, your host. And I'm here to challenge your why and fuel your because. This is where leaders, entrepreneurs and go-gitters come to level up. Each week, I bring you unfiltered conversations, game-changing strategies and the kind of motivation that transforms lives and legacies. I've learned from legends like Les Brown, Damon John and Robert Irvine. And now, I'm bringing their lessons along with mine straight to you from modern leadership tips to creating unstoppable momentum. Hit play, subscribe, and join the millions who've made Miccom Plug their go-to source for growth and greatness because your next breakthrough is just one episode away. This is Miccom Plug, the voice and face of modern leadership, entrepreneur and self-improvement. Let's get started.