Just as Supernatural was gearing up for the last stretch of episodes in its 15th and final season, the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic temporarily suspended production in Vancouver.
As longtime star Jensen Ackles prepared for the end of the long-running CW series, the actor revealed how many episodes of the season had been filmed before the abrupt hiatus and how it may have been a blessing in disguise.
"Obviously it’s a horribly unfortunate situation we’re in, but the silver lining is that it gives us an opportunity to recharge," observed Ackles in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. "We had just finished Episode 18, we shot one day of Episode 19, and I was reading these two monster scripts thinking, ‘It’s like we’re at the end of a marathon and they want us to sprint for the last two miles.’ I feel like this almost gives us an opportunity to refocus and go into the last two episodes and hit them with everything we got."
The CW set the episode order for the final season at 20, leaving only the series finale completely unfilmed. While only 13 episodes of the season have aired, the producers confirmed that the global health crisis had impacted post-production work on the subsequent five episodes, resulting in their delay. The producers have since assured fans that the series finale will eventually be filmed once the pandemic has subsided.
Airing on The CW, the final season of Supernatural stars Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, Misha Collins and Alexander Calvert.