This female-led Supernatural spin-off had plenty of potential to expand the franchise and fans wanted the show, but the network was not willing to take a chance on it.
What Is It?
This intended Supernatural spin-off focuses on Sheriff Jody Mills who brings together a group of troubled young women who have been orphaned by supernatural monster attacks and tragedies. With Mills, they become a formidable set of hunters dealing with evil beings that threaten humanity.
Aired: January 18, 2018
Starring: Kim Rhodes, Briana Buckmaster, Kathryn Newton, Katherine Ramdeen, Clark Backo, Yadira Guevara-Prip
Credits: Robert Berens (Writer), Andrew Dabb (Writer)
Why Didn’t it Fly?
The back-door pilot for this show aired as an episode of Supernatural, kicking off the second half of its thirteenth season in January 2018. It was well-received by fans and actually provided a bit of a boost to the ratings. The network decided to pass on it, though, with president Mark Pedowitz claiming “we did not feel creatively that the show is where we wanted it to be”. They had already passed on the Bloodlines spin-off which had aired as an episode of the show’s ninth season, though that one was not nearly as well received.
Would It Have Worked as a Series?
Absolutely! This show had a strong cast that was headed by fan-favorite Kim Rhodes. It had plenty of potential to inject some life into the franchise, while also exploring the impacts of monsters and other supernatural beings on the humans who did not realize they existed. Plus, there are any of a number of characters from the parent series that could have crossed over to the new show. Fans were definitely engaged by the one episode and started an online petition to convince the network to go forward with the show after The CW decided to pass on the pilot. That eventually garnered over 85K signatures, but that was not enough to sway network execs. With the prequel series The Winchesters getting off to a good start in Fall 2022, perhaps fans could revive efforts to get the show made, and perhaps it could shift over to HBO Max which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. With as much support as this pilot had previously, a push from the fans could spark interest from The WB to continue to expand the franchise.
Where Can You Watch It?
“Wayward Sisters” was the tenth episode of Supernatural Season 13 and continues to be available with encore runs of that show. The parent series is currently available for streaming on Netflix and it is also airing in reruns in syndication. The thirteenth season of the show is also available on Blu-ray and DVD, so there are multiple ways to watch the pilot.
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