Supernatural has gone in some very bizarre directions over the years that take Sam and Dean out of the realm of angels and demons. Whether it's Sam and Dean being sent to an alternate universe where everybody knows them as Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles or a bunch of teenage girls making a musical about the in-universe books written about them by God, the show hasn't held back from getting super weird. The next episode of Supernatural will take the Winchester boys and Castiel somewhere they've never gone: into animation for the long-awaited Scooby-Doo crossover. Jensen Ackles, who plays Dean, had this to say about his animated alter ego:
I was like, 'Oh, wow, I'm a lot taller on the animated series.' It was great. 'Cause it's not just some cool, modern animation. It's, like, old-school Scooby-Doo animation. Sometimes, you think about how you would animate yourself, but then you see these professional artists, and it's like, 'Oh, that's what they think of me. That's their rendering of me.' That's really unique. It's almost like looking at yourself through somebody else's eyes, which is very cool.
Apparently, Jensen Ackles approved of how the animators took some liberties with his height for the Scooby-Doo special! Fans of Supernatural know well that Sam is a gigantic human being dubbed "Moose" by the dearly departed Crowley, and Jensen Ackles -- who tops six feet himself -- can look positively small next to his on-screen brother. The animation for the special episode will put the two Winchester boys closer to the same level.
Good for Jensen Ackles that the animators had a high opinion of his look! It undoubtedly wouldn't have felt too great if he discovered that the animators gave him a misshapen body and shrunk him down even shorter than he is in real life for the Scooby-Doo special. Obviously we can't say too much about the animation before the episode hits the airwaves, but early images give the impression that the animators did justice to Ackles' cheekbones. I'm not sure that I'll ever get my episode with flashbacks to the time Dean must have stumbled upon the Fountain of Youth, so I'll take this animated version of him.
Jared Padalecki was also pleased with the Sam animation for the Scooby-Doo special, according to TVLine. Padalecki said this:
I wish I looked like that. I was like, 'Alright. They did me some favors. I'll take it.'
Going by Jared Padalecki's comments, he also got some flattering additions for the Scooby-Doo episode, although it doesn't look like his height was changed. He doesn't look quite as unkempt with all that hair in animation, and it should be interesting to see which of his qualities got a boost. Misha Collins, who plays Castiel, was happy as well. The animation made him look taller and leaner, according to Collins. Who knows? Maybe the three leads' happiness with their animated doubles could lead to more animation in the future. I'm not sure at this point how Supernatural could swing another Scooby-Doo crossover, but is there really anything Supernatural can't do? Boundaries don't seem to exist for the long-running series anymore.
The Scooby-Doo crossover with Supernatural will air on Thursday, March 29 at 8 p.m. ET on The CW. For more viewing options for the coming months, be sure to take a peek at our midseason TV premiere guide and our summer TV premiere schedule. If streaming is more your style, we have a handy Netflix premiere guide as well .
