Supernatural is etched into the hearts of loyal fans who have dotingly followed the journey of the Winchester brothers to literally Hell and back across its fifteen seasons. Created by Eric Kripke, the series became one of the longest-running fantasy shows with fans loving the dynamic between the monster-hunting brothers.
As a result, it might surprise some fans to learn that the original pitch for the series was drastically different. On social media, Kripke shared his pitch document for the series from the time when he first presented it to the studio back in 2004. The document features some glaring differences from the final version and here is everything you need to know about the original pitch for Supernatural.
Eric Kripke Shared His Original 2004 Pitch For Supernatural
Eric Kripke created Supernatural out of his love for urban legends, but he originally planned for the show to be more of an anthology. After his initial pitch for a series about two reporters solving paranormal cases across America was rejected, Kripke retooled the idea to focus on two brothers.
In 2019, Kripke took to the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), to celebrate the show’s milestone 300th episode. At the same time, Kripke also shared his original pitch document for the series, and you can check it out below.
Kripke’s document described the series as a cross between The X-Files and Route 66, something that was reflected in the earlier seasons.
One of the most notable changes was the basic plot outline for the pilot episode. For instance, the pilot would have established the brothers’ father as a schizophrenic named Jack Harrison. The brothers themselves were called Sam and Dean Harrison. Moreover, the brothers would not have been seasoned hunters and would’ve driven around in a Mustang instead of the beloved Impala.
Eric Kripke Explained All the Changes to Supernatural From Pitch to Screen
Kripke’s original document revealed that the main characters were initially named Sam and Dean Harrison with Jack Harrison as their father. The last name of the brothers was a reference to actor Harrison Ford, whose Han Solo character inspired Dean’s personality.
During an interview, Kripke explained that Sam Harrison was a real person living in Kansas at the time, where his main characters hailed from. As a result, he had to change their name for legal reasons.
I was a few days away from production and had to come up with a new name in a hurry. “Winchester” just popped in my head.
Kripke made the above statement, explaining that he came up with the last name based on the Winchester Mystery House, and decided to keep it because of its Western connotations which worked well with the show’s aesthetics.
However, this name change presented another problem as Jack Winchester was also a real person living in Kansas at the time. Therefore, Kripke changed the father character’s name to John Winchester. Irrespective of the reasons, most fans will agree that the changes to the narrative and names benefitted the show in the long run.
Supernatural is streaming on Netflix.
