Supernatural Star Jim Beaver Was Disappointed by Bobby’s Death — But He Still Appreciates One Surprising Upside
After a gut punch that could have derailed him, Jim Beaver surfaced with an unexpected silver lining — and a plan.
Supernatural hit a couple of big anniversaries last year: 20 years since the pilot and five since that very split-the-fandom series finale. One thing most fans actually agreed on in that last episode? Getting Jim Beaver back as Bobby in the afterlife. Now Beaver is looking back at Bobby’s death, what bummed him out at the time, and the part he still loves.
How he found out Bobby was a goner
Beaver told TV Insider that the news came straight from the top: co-showrunners Bob Singer and Sera Gamble. Fun bit of trivia: Bobby Singer is literally named after Bob Singer. They didn’t sugarcoat it either — he was dying, but he’d be back as a ghost.
'We’re going to kill you, but you’re coming back as a ghost.'
Beaver was honest about the mixed feelings. He’d been a core part of Sam and Dean’s lives, and even though the plan was to keep him around in some form, he figured that meant going from doing half a season to maybe one or two episodes tops. Hard not to be disappointed, especially when Bobby was taken out in one of the show’s less-loved seasons by a big bad that wasn’t exactly top-tier.
What actually happened next
To their credit, Singer and Gamble did exactly what they promised. Bobby died in the Season 7 midseason finale, then returned a few months later as a ghost. Beaver even got to play a version of Bobby from an alternate reality later on. And despite not being a series regular the whole way through, he’s one of the rare Supernatural actors who popped up at least once in all fifteen seasons — pretty wild considering his character died in Season 7. He also reunited with creator Eric Kripke on The Boys after his time on the mothership.
- Season 5: Bobby is killed and resurrected once (thanks, Castiel)
- Season 7 midseason: Bobby dies for real (the one that sticks)
- Months later: returns as a ghost
- Post-death tally: 19 more episodes credited, including an alt-universe Bobby
- 2023-2024 era: last TV appearance as Bobby in The Winchesters series finale
Why Bobby’s death still lands
Beaver singles out the episode that did it: 'Death’s Door,' a format-breaker that dives into Bobby’s memories while his mind shuts down. It also brought back Steven Williams as Rufus for a final run with his old hunting partner.
'My death episode, Death’s Door, was one of the best episodes of television I’ve ever been associated with.'
Supernatural loved a fake-out death — Dean racked up plenty long before Jensen Ackles played the final one, and Misha Collins could probably rank Castiel’s demises like a top 10 single-season kills list. By the end, dying didn’t always mean much. Bobby’s hits harder precisely because the show let it stick.
The last ride of Bobby Singer (for now)
Beaver did suit up as Bobby one more time in The Winchesters finale, the short-lived spinoff executive produced by Jensen Ackles. Unless the revival ideas Ackles and Jared Padalecki have floated ever happen, that might be Bobby’s last TV bow.
Where to watch
The Supernatural series finale — including that final Bobby moment — is streaming now with a Peacock subscription and an Amazon Prime subscription. All fifteen seasons are currently available on Peacock and/or Prime Video after the show left its longtime Netflix home in late 2025.