On June 24, 2021, Jensen shared a link to Deadline's report about the prequel series. Apparently, his friend and "Supernatural" costar Padalecki was not aware that a prequel to their hit show was in the works. "Dude. Happy for you. Wish I heard about this some way other than Twitter," Padalecki wrote in a retweet of the story. "I'm excited to watch, but bummed that Sam Winchester had no involvement whatsoever." When asked by a fan if it was all a joke, as the duo are known for their banter on Twitter, Padalecki confirmed that it was not. "No. It's not. This is the first I've heard about it. I'm gutted," he tweeted in response.
Later the next day, Padalecki confirmed he'd resolved his issue with Jensen. "@JensenAckles and I had a great talk, as we do often, and things are good," he shared on June 25. "The show is early in the process with miles to go. We've travelled a lot of roads together, and sometimes those damn roads have bumps. Bumps don't stop us. Once brothers, always brothers." Jensen then retweeted Padalecki's note to show his support. "Love you @jarpad," he replied. "Miss these talks. I forgot how much face time we always used to get. And I miss that too. I know you're busy . . . as am I, but you're still my brother. I miss you, pal."
While Padalecki was seemingly blindsided, Misha Collins viewed it as an opportunity for more Castiel. "Seems like this show would benefit from a time-traveling angel-in-a-trenchcoat character. Just saying," the actor tweeted in reply to the Deadline article. After Padalecki and Jensen noted they were on good terms, Collins tweeted, "Love and miss you both."
Even "Supernatural" creator Eric Kripke had something to say about the original drama. "When @JensenAckles first told me this story, I loved it," Kripke wrote on Twitter. "He & @DanneelHarris & @rthompson1138 are the perfect people to make it. (The other perfect person is too busy Texas Rangering.) Thanks for carrying the torch, guys, go kick it in the ass. Proud of you. #SPN #SPNFamily"
At NYCC, Ackles promised fans "The Winchesters" would "do no harm" when it comes to respecting the 15 seasons of canon established in "Supernatural," promising they would not retcon anything that happened in the original series. He specifically stressed that fans would not have to worry about ever seeing Sam "fade" from an old Polaroid picture of the present-day Winchester brothers. In other words, Sam is very much still a part of the "Supernatural" universe, which means Padalecki is likely on the list of original characters who could make a return appearance on the show at some point.
