How Tom Welling's Role in The Winchesters Is a Callback to Supernatural

Get ready to meet the grandaddy of hunting.

In an upcoming episode of the Supernatural prequel The Winchesters, Tom Welling will make his debut as grandfather to Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles). The Smallville alum stars as Samuel Campbell, dad to Mary Winchester (Meg Donnelly) and the maternal grandfather of the monster-hunting brothers.

But how does Samuel play into the story of Mary and John (Drake Rodger)? According to the episode's logline, "the hunt heats up, and Mary and John find trails that lead back to their fathers." And hopefully, his storyline is a bit happier than it was in the original Supernatural series, in which Samuel, played by Mitch Pileggi, is killed by the Prince of Hell Azazel, then resurrected by the demon Crowley but ultimately killed again by Sam Winchester.

The rest of the episode deals with the remaining hunters, namely Carlos (Jojo Fleites), Millie (Bianca Kajlich), Latika (Nida Khurshid) and Ada (Demetria McKinney).

A Salute to Jared Padalecki's Supernatural Hair

"Carlos helps Mary investigate where the Akrida might be hiding, but they discover more than they bargained for," the logline reads. "Meanwhile, Millie steps in to help Latika, Ada and John decipher notes left behind, and they stumble upon a way to get some answers."

This isn't the first callback to the original that the prequel series has done, and it won't be the last: According to Donnelly herself, the season one finale is going to be jam-packed with special cameos.

"They're kind of keeping it as secret from us," she exclusively told E! News in November. "However, I did hear that it's gonna be really epic. Lots of fights, lots of drama, and a lot of guests, apparently."

Watch Welling's The Winchesters debut when his episode premieres Dec. 6 at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.

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