The Winchesters

The Winchesters is an American dark fantasy drama television series developed by Robbie Thompson and is a spin-off of Supernatural (2005–2020), set in an alternate continuity. It aired from October 11, 2022 until March 7, 2023 on The CW. In May 2023, the series was canceled after one season.

Synopsis
Set in the 1970s, Dean Winchester narrates the story of how his parents, John Winchester and Mary Campbell, met, fell in love, and fought monsters together while in search of their missing fathers.

Main

 * Meg Donnelly as Mary Campbell
 * Drake Rodger as John Winchester
 * Nida Khurshid as Latika "Lata" Desai, a young hunter-in-training
 * Jojo Fleites as Carlos Cervantez, a confident fighter against demons
 * Demetria McKinney as Ada Monroe, a bookstore owner who takes interest in the occult
 * Bianca Kajlich as Millie Winchester, John's mother

Recurring

 * Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester, John's and Mary's future son (narrator)
 * Tom Welling as Samuel Campbell, Mary's father
 * Bridget Regan as Rockin' Roxy
 * Andrea Londo as Betty Donelan
 * Ryan McCartan as Kyle Reed

Guest

 * Gil McKinney as Henry Winchester, John's father
 * Rob Benedict as Tango
 * Richard Speight Jr. as Loki
 * Ruth Connell as Rowena MacLeod
 * Jim Beaver as Bobby Singer
 * Alexander Calvert as Jack Kline

Development
On June 24, 2021, it was reported that a prequel series of Supernatural, titled The Winchesters that focuses on Sam and Dean's parents, John and Mary, was in development at The CW. The series is executive produced by Jensen Ackles, his wife Danneel Ackles (who portrayed Anael on the series), and Supernatural writer Robbie Thompson. Ackles also reprise his role as Dean Winchester as the narrator. A pilot order for the series was confirmed by The CW on February 3, 2022; the pilot was directed by Glen Winter.

On March 21, 2022, it was announced that Meg Donnelly and Drake Rodger were cast as Mary and John. On May 12, 2022, it was announced that The CW ordered it to series and premiered on October 11, 2022. In August 2022, it was confirmed that Ackles would reprise his role as Dean in a physical appearance in the first episode. On May 11, 2023, the CW canceled the series after one season. Producers Warner Bros. Television planned to shop the show to other outlets. On June 2, 2023, Deadline Hollywood reported that the series had failed to find anyone who would pick it up and all efforts in this direction had ceased. The next day, Ackles confirmed the news and blamed the network shift as well as the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike.

Filming
Filming for the pilot episode began in April 2022 throughout New Orleans. Principal photography for the rest of the series began in New Orleans on July 25, and concluded on December 15.

Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 8 critic reviews for The Winchesters are positive, with an average rating of 6.9/10. On Metacritic, it has a score of 49 out of 100 based on 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Ratings
The Winchesters had the most-watched series debut during the 2022–23 season for The CW. It was also the most-viewed premiere for the season.