Supernatural fans — well known for their unparalleled fan fiction output — have spent two years lobbying for a spinoff of the long-running show, starring popular character Jody Mills (Kim Rhodes), Claire Novak (Kathryn Newton), Alex Jones (Katherine Ramdeen), and Donna Hanscum (Briana Buckmaster). Today it looks like the CW is, at least partly, granting their wish.
Deadline reports that the finale of Supernatural’s thirteenth season will serve as a backdoor pilot for the show’s second spinoff series, Wayward Sisters. So far, Rhodes is the only actor committed to the show, and she’ll star. According to Deadline, the show will follow her as she trains a group of foster daughters to be a “supreme monster-fighting force.” The spinoff will be written and produced by Supernatural alums, including showrunners Andrew Dabb and Robert Singer, as well as producer / director Phil Sgriccia, and writer Robert Berens.
even the title is a shout-out to fans
The fan-pitched series was called Wayward Daughters, a reference to the fact that Kansas’ “Carry On Wayward Son” plays during each season finale, and would have starred four women who had memorable runs on Supernatural. Fans argued that Supernatural women rarely had very long life expectancies, and weren’t getting their due in the core series. The first spinoff, Bloodlines, was kicked off by a backdoor pilot at the end of season nine, and was criticized by fans because it didn’t include any beloved characters from the original show.
The fan campaign for Wayward Daughters has been ongoing for the last two years, and received endorsements from some of the original show’s cast. Neither the CW nor Warner Bros. have commented publicly on the show yet, but it seems obvious that fan enthusiasm was factored into the equation here, all the way down to the remarkably similar titles. Good for Supernatural fans, who literally wrote the book on modern fandom.