The Winchesters is the anticipated CW prequel series which occurs before the events of their long-running hit series Supernatural. But there are definitely some big questions when it comes to the spin-off.
In The Winchesters, we follow John and Mary Winchester, Sam and Dean's parents, so it's taking us all the way back to when they first met, how they became demon hunters, and according to the CW "how they put it all on the line to not only save their love but the entire world". So there are lots of backstories to explore as we learn more about the Winchesters' history.
However, you might be wondering who's set to appear in the new series, and why Sam Winchester isn't involved in the upcoming prequel, but Jensen Ackles is narrating the episodes as his Supernatural character Dean.
Read on to find out answers to the burning questions about The Winchesters...
Why is Sam not in The Winchesters?
With Sam and Dean Winchester serving as the two protagonists of Supernatural, it might disappoint fans to learn that the former doesn't have any involvement with The Winchesters but there is an explanation for this.
Jared Padalecki, who plays Sam, has been serving as executive producer and star of The CW's Walker, so it seems that scheduling conflicts may have impacted his ability to reprise his role as the younger Winchester brother, as he was busy working on a different show for the network.
In addition to this, it appears Jared was not actually approached regarding the show as he wrote a tweet expressing his disappointment that he found out via Twitter, but has since added that he and Jensen Ackles had a talk and patched things up after discussing things.
Dude. Happy for you. Wish I heard about this some way other than Twitter. I’m excited to watch, but bummed that Sam Winchester had no involvement whatsoever. https://t.co/bAcEvFKM7pJune 25, 2021
Dean actor Jensen Ackles is serving as a producer for The Winchesters which may have influenced the decision to include the eldest Winchester brother in the series, where he'll be narrating John and Mary's lives.
Another reason why Sam may have been omitted from the series is that Dean was around for more of his parents' lives, as we saw Mary was murdered by Azazel when Sam was just a baby, in the first episode of Supernatural.
It's not yet known if Sam will be referenced at all, or if he might appear in a potential second season, but if Jared Padalecki decides to reprise his role we'll be sure to let you know.
Are any other Supernatural characters appearing in The Winchesters?
In an interview with EW, Jensen Ackles said he was keen to get some Supernatural co-stars involved if they were up for it, but right now we're not aware of any potential cameos for the first season of the prequel.
He told the site: "If there is any opportunity to bring anybody back from the mothership, we will absolutely do so. We have names that are on the table of like, 'How can we get to this [person in a way] that makes sense?'
"I think the fans will be cool if we bring an actor that played a certain famous character on the show to come and do something different. We were recycling guest stars by the dozens after season 8 because Vancouver's only so big and there are only so many people in the talent pool. I think if we do that with fan-favorite actors that played fan-favorite characters, I feel like we're safe there."
The Winchesters aires on Tuesday, October 11 at 8 pm ET/PT on The CW. The episode becomes available to stream on-demand on The CW app the next day. So far there's no word on a UK release.
