Misha Collins and his character Castiel are loved by fans of the series Supernatural, even though he was originally only supposed to appear for 3 episodes.
Who is it about? The angel “Castiel” has become an extremely important character in the storyline of Supernatural over the years and a real favorite among fans.
The servant of God, portrayed by American actor Misha Collins, first appeared in the first episode of the fourth season (“Lazarus Rises”). Since then, he is known for his confused, alien, and monotone manner as well as for his beige trench coat and crooked tie.
Especially with Dean (Jensen Ackles), Castiel developed a brotherly relationship over the course of the seasons and is not only a great help to the main characters but also a good friend.
In May 2023, Misha Collins was a guest on the English-language podcast Supernatural Then and Now, hosted by Robert “Rob” Benedict (in Supernatural: Chuck) and Richard Speight Jr. (in Supernatural: the Trickster/Gabriel). In the podcast, Collins spoke about his early days in Supernatural, how certain character traits of Castiel came to be, and the plans that existed for his role.
Castiel was not supposed to be a long-term character
Why was he supposed to leave Supernatural? In the podcast, Collins was asked how Jared Padalecki (Sam) and Jensen Ackles (Dean) behaved towards him when he was first involved in the filming of Supernatural. Collins then recounted that he was originally cast for only three episodes and that they hardly paid attention to him. The character Castiel was not supposed to appear in the series for as long as he ultimately did.
I was not significant. Originally, I was supposed to have a story arc of 3 episodes and they had no idea, they didn’t even read the script we were currently shooting. They didn’t know that the character was coming back. […] They didn’t know they would have to deal with me in the future. So they didn’t create any groundwork.
Misha Collins via Supernatural Then and Now
Collins asked the showrunner for a regular role
How did Castiel stay in the series? Another topic in the podcast was the question of how Collins had known back then if his character was well received by fans. He recounted that he had scoured various websites and forums to read what fans of the series were saying about Castiel.
He realized that the angel was popular among fans. At that time, the show’s creators had already written him into more and more episodes, and it was not just limited to the originally planned three episodes.
Collins then called the showrunner Erik Kripke and bluntly asked him whether he should become a so-called “series regular,” making Castiel one of the recurring characters.
By the end of season 4, I thought: “People really like this, and they keep bringing me back for new episodes. That’s great.” So I called Eric Kripke and said: “Hey, do you want to maybe integrate me as a regular in the series for the next year?” And I felt that I might have enough storyline and maybe enough fan excitement for the character to justify that. To my surprise, he said: “Yeah, okay.”
Misha Collins via Supernatural Then and Now
Misha Collins’ proposal was accepted and he was scheduled for the entire fifth season. Castiel then remained a recurring character for at least another year – and many more years followed.
How impressive and unusual Collins’ question to Erik Kripke was is highlighted by Richard Speight Jr.: “No actor ever does that. That’s impressive. No one would call the showrunner and say: ‘Give me a contract.’ That’s incredible.”
Collins defined Castiel even during the casting: Another highlight of the podcast episode is Collins’ story about how he accidentally defined the character of Castiel forever during the casting.
Collins had prepared to play a demon during the casting. Then he was told that the character was an angel and that he should adjust his performance accordingly. The actor, however, did not expect that:
“That threw me off balance,” he recounts, “I thought, that’s basically the opposite. I was, standing in the spotlight, completely confused.”
Collins described his behavior in that situation as being like someone who didn’t know what was going on. And this confusion would henceforth define Castiel’s demeanor. “Somehow that led to a very bizarre interpretation of the character and somehow it worked.”
That in the world of television not everything goes as planned is also shown by the story of Sir Patrick Stewart and his iconic role as Captain Picard. The actor actually expected to be back home after half a year:
