I will absolutely never be normal about the fact that Jensen had to literally fight for Dean to die standing. Like, he had to FIGHT for it. The man wasn't allowed to have any say in the ending of the character he played for 15 years!!! He had to accept Dean dying. He had to accept the rusty rebar. "Take it or leave it" they told him. And he literally had to fight for Dean to at least die standing, head up high.
Rob: We got this question that we’ve been avoiding because it’s a lot of words. When Castiel is talking to Dean in a truck about being human, the line that was aired is a different line that the script reads.
Ben Edlund: Sure.
Rob: So the line that aired is, Castiel says “I used to belong to much better club and now I’m powerless, I’m hapless , I’m hopeless, I mean, why the hell not bury myself in women and in decadence, right? It’s the end, baby, that’s what decadence is for. Why not bang a few gongs before the lights go out. But then, that’s just how I roll.” But the script reads “But instead we become this. The only thing, I think, we have left, Dean and me, is each other. If Dean says it’s time to get out in the blaze of glory, win or loose, so be it. I’m in, but then, that’s just how I roll.” It’s just an interesting little difference.
Rich: Well somebody had to rewrite that, right?
Ben Edlund: Sure, I mean, like that was either a rewrite based on a note or something that- it’s possible that there was a shift in language that came from a pass through Kripke. To me that feels like a rewrite based on “ Ok, we know what the subtext is, bury it a little bit.”
Rob: Gotcha.
Ben Edlund: Because, you know, it’s more interesting to know that an then have language kind of be less to the core. I mean, maybe not, sometimes you really want to go to that core. But it didn’t seem necessary in that moment because look at the larger context. This guy is still hanging around. He’s going on a mission. And previously in the prior scene when he’s kind of like, when we used the word insouciant for the first and last time in Supernatural’s history. I believe, unless it gets quoted later in 15 seasons and I missed that. At that point he is totally ride or die with Dean. He’s basically “You say we a going on a suicide mission and there’s no hope or whatever” and Dean’s going “Yes, that’s what I’m saying” and he goes “Okay, let me go get the truck.” And so, in a sense, it was like- I would’ve done the same thing today. If that makes sense. Looking at the whole.
Rob: I like the idea of burying it more and not serving it on a platter. Letting people-
Ben Edlund: Mainly because all the other aspects of that story tell us that. Show us that, actually. That’s the whole thing. Show us, not tell us. I’ve heard that at some kind of seminar.
-Supernatural Then and Now podcast. BONUS CLIP: Ben Edlund Talks
that one post talking about how supernatural fans know each writer by name and have an opinion on them and it’s like well yeah. one was writing destiel explicitly in the last few seasons, one is on twitter in 2024 saying that he did perceive destiel throughout his time of writing, and the others thought it was appropriate for the night we met by lord huron to be playing while writing a scene between two brothers. like where do you even go with this.
misha collins, salute to supernatural (creation entertainment), new jersey, 2022 / spn 5x04 “the end” / stands (april 25th, 2022) / this post by @casgirl / misha collins (april 26th, 2022) / cemetry gates, the smiths / lament for icarus, herbert james draper / litany in which certain things are crossed out, richard siken / brokeback mountain dir. ang lee (2005) / nice dream, radiohead