SMALLVILLE's Tom Welling Joins the SUPERNATURAL Prequel Series THE WINCHESTERS

Smallville star Tom Welling has joined CW’s upcoming Supernatural prequel series The Winchesters. The news was announced during the panel for the series at New York Comic Con, and it was revealed that Welling will play Samuel Campbell.

Campbell is the grandfather of Dean and Sam Winchester and the father of Mary Campbell (Meg Donnelly). He was originally played by Mitch Pileggi in Supernatural. Samuel taught Mary everything he knows. “Gruff and pragmatic, he’s a veteran Hunter who prefers actions over words—and it’s always his way or the highway. But when Samuel teams up with Mary and her friends to save the world, he won’t only have to defeat the most dangerous monster he’s ever faced—he’ll also have to mend his broken relationship with his daughter.”

Willing is perfect casting in the role, and he’ll make his first appearance as Samuel Campbell in episode seven. This will mark a reunion for Welling and series creator Jensen Ackles, who appeared in Smallville Season 4 as Jason Teague, Lana Lang's boyfriend.

The Winchesters is written and executive produced by Robbie Thompson, and he said: “When we were discussing casting the iconic character of Samuel Campbell, everyone felt it had to be someone who could step into the role and provide instant gravitas and history. Jensen and Danneel brought up the idea of Tom Welling and the second his name was mentioned we all knew he was the perfect person for the part. Tom is a fantastic actor and wonderful human, and we are so excited to be welcoming him to The Winchesters and the Supernatural Family.”

In the series, “Mary is 19 years old and has been fighting the forces of darkness since she was a child. After losing someone close to her, the hardened hunter considers quitting the family business — until her father’s disappearance and the arrival of newcomer John forces her to lead a new team. John has recently returned from Vietnam. Selfless and clear headed, he finds a new mission back home, where traces of his father’s past lead him to a secret organization and a whole new war as a hunter.”

The Winchesters will debut on Tuesday, October 11th at 8/7c on The CW.