Any Supernatural fan can probably tell you that the show's behind-the-scenes antics were just as chaotic as the ones on camera. Series leads Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles are notorious for pulling pranks, both on each other and on co-star Misha Collins. Our favorite angel actor was often the target of pranks and has shared many of these stories when reuniting at Supernatural conventions. So you shouldn’t be surprised to hear about the time Collins got pied twice amid filming.
The pie-ings occurred during production on Season 9 Episode 17, “Mother’s Little Helper,” which Collins (who played Castiel) directed. Evidence of the event is actually present within the Season 9 bloopers, where you can see him getting hit in the face with a whipped cream pie. Collins recently shared the backstory by way of Cameo:
The way it works is that the director sits in another room, and watches what’s happening on the cameras on monitors. I was yelling through the wall, I was like, 'Alright, guys, try again because Jared kept messing up. Keep rolling. Try again. Try.' And Jared kept messing up. So finally I was like, 'Alright cut, cut, cut. Let’s take a break,' and I opened the door to walk into the set - it was the Men of Letters bunker - and Jared was standing right on the other side of the door with a pie in his hand. And he pied me in the face really hard.
Now, that certainly wasn't the first time Collins was ever pranked on set (though it may be the only time involving pie). Many of the gags and pranks can actually be seen in various bloopers, as the Supernatural cast is well-known for fooling around on set. Even the crew apparently partook in a prank or two.
During the horror-drama series' heyday on The CW, Ackles and Padalecki even engaged in a prank war with Arrow star Stephen Amell. Thankfully, Collins wasn’t a casualty in that skirmish. The pranks have since toned down, but they were apparently brought back when Ackles directed an episode of the Padelecki-led Walker.
I can’t tell you how many times I cried while watching Supernatural. (We don’t know even need to talk about Collins’ final scene.) So it's funny to hear about the BTS shenanigans, including how Collins' co-stars made him laugh during takes. His scene partners are well-known for their commitment to messing with him, so naturally, it's not surprising that a second pie situation happened. The Gotham Knights actor shares how the second pie-ing went down:
As we were walking to the lunch tent Jensen said, ‘Hey Mish.’ He was right behind me. He said, ‘Hey, Mish,’ and I said, ‘Yeah,’ and I turned around and Jensen pied me in the face. What kind of monsters are these people?
Collins famously enjoyed when Alex Calvert joined the series in Season 13 as it gave the duo a new target. Of course, he also helped prank the younger co-star, and yes, this can also be seen in the bloopers. Other actors have shared their prank stories, such as DJ Qualls, who revealed that someone (he named no names) put mayo on his door handle. Even Kim Rhodes and Briana Buckmaster teamed up to prank the boys. If you ask me, pranks were just the cast and crew's love language.
More recently, Padalecki and Collins reunited with Ackles for an episode of The Boys' fifth and final season. They also reunited with director Phil Sgriccia, who had them hilariously reprise their Supernatural characters for a blooper. Their actual reunion was a little more violent, though certainly not the first time these three got into a fight on camera.
I love that, even now, we're still hearing excellent BTS stories about the Supernatural set. While I love the show itself, what really makes me smile is the notion of Misha Collins and co. having such a fun time making it. You can see Collins -- without pie on his face -- by streaming all 15 seasons of the show with a Peacock subscription.
