Trivia / Supernatural S 15 E 20 Carry On

• Meaningful Release Date: Not so much for the show but for the song "Carry on Wayward Son" which was first released on the 19th of November 1976 exactly 44 years ago from the airing of Supernatural's final episode.
• Promoted Fangirl: The band Neoni are fans of the show and were glad that their cover of "Carry On My Wayward Son" was in the finale.
• Role Reprise: Christine Chatelain returns as Jenny for the first time in 14 years since Season 1's episode "Dead Man's Blood".
• Throw It In!: Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles were both given a lot of leeway for their dialogue in this episode, and it was Padalecki who decided to reference their outfits from the pilot episode.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The original scripted finale would have had scores of appearances of past characters (and, presumably, Castiel). The Covid-19 pandemic held off production for months and also forced a more muted finale minus almost any past character save for Bobby.
  • However, multiple actors who previously appeared on the show, including Samantha Ferris (Ellen Harvelle, who would be an obvious candidate to appear due to her popularity and the fact that the Roadhouse appears in the episode), have stated that they were not contacted about appearing in the finale even pre-Covid, throwing this claim into question.
  • In March 2021, a book on the show revealed that Dean would have met as many of those past characters in the Roadhouse where Kansas themselves would have appeared to perform "Wayward Son."
• Word of Saint Paul: Both lead actors have speculated on the Time Skip in the episode, with Padalecki allegedly saying in a Q&A that the period of time between episodes was five years. At a convention in November 2021, Ackles said he envisioned it as several years passing.
  Ackles: They mentioned that [Jared] talked about this, too. About how much time did it last between the God showdown and the barn scene. And I think, I always assumed it was several years had gone by, and so [Sam and Dean] had been living in, basically, their ideal setting for several years. They beat the Big Bad, they saved the world, they saved themselves, they were doing what they love, they were in a routine, it made sense, everything was- they found their sweet spot. And I think that played into Dean's acceptance, that he'd made it, he was okay, because he got where he needed to go. It was there, and he'd been living there for a while, that was-that was what he needed. And it was like, he kinda found it, so it easier for him to say the few things that he needed to say to his brother.
  Padalecki: I guess I have a dark sensibility because I was like "It was quick. They drove home from God and got killed."
  Ackles: They said you said it was like five years! [...] Between the God showdown and the barn scene, that we had been living in that routine for like five years, going on hunts-
  Padalecki: That's not enough years.