The CW picks up ‘Supernatural’ spinoff ‘The Winchesters,’ new DC series ‘Gotham Knights’

Amid The CW’s recent string of series cancelations as the network gears up for new ownership, Bat-fans and Supernatural sleuths still have something to look forward to: brand-new spinoff series that not only survived the purge, but even have the go-ahead to get started on filming their first seasons.

Deadline reports that Supernatural spinoff The Winchesters and the DC Comics-inspired Gotham Knights have both been handed full series orders, even as The CW clears out a ton of prime-time real estate with this week’s cancellation of genre shows including 4400, Charmed, Naomi, and Roswell, New Mexico. The network also green lit Walker: Independence, making way for all three of the new shows to spring from pilot episode to a full first season — presumably suggesting high confidence in their potential to draw in viewers.

“Because of their pedigree, solid execution and the fact that this is half the number of pilots The CW has normally picked up over the past decade, all had been major contenders from the start,” Deadline notes, pointing out that all three series are based on solidly established pre-existing lore-verses: Batman, Supernatural, and Walker: Texas Ranger.

The Winchesters is set to follow the story of the previous generation that bequeathed their spirit-stalking ways to Supernatural’s Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles). The series already has summoned Meg Donnelly (High School Musical: The Musical: The Series) and Drake Rodger (The In Between) to play Mary and John Winchester (aka Sam and Dean’s parents), alongside Nida Khurshid (Station 19) and newcomer Jojo Fleites.

The Winchesters marks the first Supernatural spinoff to take flight since the 15-season series came to an end in 2020, and brings Ackles back to reprise his role of Dean in a narrative voiceover part that peers backward into his own past. Ackles is producing the series alongside his wife, Danneel Ackles, as well as Cursed and Supernatural producing veteran Robbie Thompson.

Gotham Knights, meanwhile, will follow the Bat-family’s exploits as they pick up the pieces in the aftermath of Bruce Wayne’s murder. Led by the late Caped Crusader’s adopted son, they’ll have to make some strange alliances with Gotham’s bad guys — descendants of the city’s most notorious villains have been framed for the murder, and have their own reasons for wanting to wipe the slate clean. Misha Collins, whom Supernatural fans know for his previous role as Castiel, is slated to play Harvey Dent alongside Fallon Smythe (Lost in the West) and Tyler DiChiara (Relish), with more acting leads yet to be announced.

Even though Batwoman was among The CW’s cancelation casualties, the show’s creative DNA lives on with Gotham Knights. The series will be written by Batwoman alumni Natalie Abrams, James Stoteraux, and Chad Fiveash, with Abrams serving as a co-producer. Berlanti Productions is producing the series in association with Warner Bros. Though it taps some of the same comics-based story lore as the upcoming Gotham Knights video game (out Oct. 22 from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment), there’s no direct relationship between the two projects.

While we wait to see the next adventure in the Supernatural universe, you can find plenty of ghost-hunting action in SYFY's SurrealEstate. The first season is streaming on the SYFY app, with a second season on the way.