John Eric Winchester was the son of Henry and Millie Winchester, the husband of Mary Winchester, and the father of Dean and Sam Winchester and Adam Milligan. Seeking revenge after his wife was killed by the demon Azazel, John became a hunter and raised his two oldest sons to fight the supernatural. When Dean was 26 and Sam was about to get his law education started, John mysteriously disappeared, which caused his sons to go back into hunting in order to find him. Eventually they found John, who sought the Demon-killing Colt to kill Azazel, but the three were caught in a car crash after a brutal encounter with the demon. Soon after John made a deal with Azazel to bring back Dean from death and went to Hell for it, but eventually escaped when the devil's gate was opened and assisted Dean as a spirit to finally kill Azazel before moving on. Before becoming a hunter, John was a Vietnam War veteran (USMC) from Lawrence, Kansas. He worked as a mechanic and was eventually co-owner of a garage in Lawrence. John also served as a temporary vessel for the Archangel Michael, and a temporary vessel for the demon Azazel in the first true onscreen appearance.

Trivia

Actor Trivia 5

  • Despite being cast as John Winchester, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is only twelve years older than Jensen Ackles, and sixteen years older than Jared Padalecki.
  • Jeffrey Dean Morgan on Pilot Episode: "There was not a lot for me to do. I remember thinking "well, this'll be a job that I'll work a couple of days and go on to the next thing, because there's no way I'm gonna come back and be the father of Jared and Jensen," who were not infants at the time. It was just a flashback sequence, not a lot to it: "you get a little freaked out that your wife is killed." I remember there was one shot in particular, and I can not believe I remember this, but it was me sitting on the iconic "Supernatural" car, which started off being John's, and the camera pushes in and you see the determination in John's face, that he's going to exact his revenge on whatever this supernatural entity was, and I remember doing that and thinking "well, there we go... I'll never see these people again." ~VarietyVariety, 'Supernatural' at 200: The Road So Far, An Oral History
  • Supernatural Con Vegas 2015 (March 12-15, 2015) was the first time Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Samantha Smith (the actors who play John and Mary Winchester) had seen each other since the Pilot episode was filmed. (Jeff said the last time he saw Sam was when she was burning on the ceiling!) Jensen and Jared showed up early on Sunday March 15 to their panel, crashing Jeff's panel; then Jensen pulled Sam into the panel as well. First time all four actors had been together on stage, and with Jensen's prompting, posed as an awkward Winchester family photo.
  • Jeffrey Dean Morgan has expressed interest in returning to the series, indicating that John may return in the future. His one request? For Jensen to be the one to direct him.
  • Jensen, when asked, said that he would wish either Bobby or John could be brought back as a father figure for the boys. They haven't had an emotional home base for some time.Supernatural Con DC 2015

Character Trivia 30

  • In one version of the pilot script, Dean and Sam found John dead on the ceiling. Supernatural The Official Companion Season 1, p. 11
  • Eric Kripke originally had Dean and Sam being raised by their aunt and uncle, but to make things easier decided to have them be raised by their father who trained them to be hunters.
  • Having given the Impala to Dean, John drives a GMC Sierra Grande with the Kansas license plate CSG 8R3. (Salvation)
  • At one time, several of the cellphone numbers seen in the show were actually active. After a time Dean's message was changed to, "Dad? We really need to hear from you. Leave me a message, text me, check your jwinchester1246 email. Anything. We have new info." That email address worked too.
  • John's email address is jwinchester1246@gmail.com. Before Asylum aired, if you emailed it he would reply with co-ordinates for Rockford the town Asylum is set in):
    John Winchester to [your number]
    42, -89
    (Rockford
  • John is a veteran of the Vietnam war.
  • Because of his military life, it can be assumed that he used that same mindset to train his sons in the hunter lifestyle.
  • John Winchester was awarded four medals from his military career
    • USMC Expert Rifle Badge (Highest score of qualification for the USMC with his service rifle, which at the time was most likely an M16A1)
    • The Bronze Star (Acts of heroism, merit, or meritorious service in a combat zone)
    • The Purple Heart (Wounded in action)
    • Vietnam Service Medal. (Served for, or more than, 30 consecutive/60 non-consecutive days deployed during the Vietnam War)
  • John Winchester's age is officially unknown, but there are several references to when he was born. Overall, he was born sometime between 1946 and 1957.
    • A draft script of the Pilot places John's age at 30 when Mary dies (therefore early 50s at the start of the series).
    • John's email address, jwinchester1246@gmail.com, could be read to refer to his birthdate - December 1946. This fits with the use of Mary's date of death throughout the show (it is used as a lock combination, or referred to as 110283 or 1183). This would place John at age 60 in 2006.
    • John cannot plausibly have been born any later than 1957 (so as to have been 18, and in the Marines, in 1975). Considering the notes about Vietnam force reduction, the likelihood is high that he turned 18 before 1971 (in which case his birth year would be 1953 or earlier). This supported by the fact that he is clearly at least a few years old in As Time Goes By.
    • In an alternate reality experienced by Dean, John's gravestone indicates he was born in 1954. This would mean he was in his early 50s at his death.
  • To get through the front door in the housing development in Bugs, Sam claims that he and Dean are there because their father is getting on in years, and they are looking for a place for him.
  • According to Dean in Devil's Trap, the last time Bobby Singer had seen John, Bobby had threatened to shoot him for some offense.
  • John never visited Mary's grave site.
  • Even though his wife had many family members, John never had relations with them after her death.
  • Though John had a much younger son by another relationship, he never told Adam the truth about his family, instead preferring to do regular father-and-son activities. Dean believes the John saw this as a second chance to raise a child normally and not as a hunter as he had no choice with Dean and Sam but did with Adam.
  • John served as the basis for season 5's story with Michael, Lucifer and God. As Gabriel explains, Sam is reminiscent of Lucifer, as he rarely sees his father and disapproves of him, whereas Dean is loyal to a father he never sees, much like Michael.
  • Between In My Time of Dying and All Hell Breaks Loose - Part 1, John is in Hell for the whole season. As one year is usual time that takes place in a season, John spent approximately 105 years in Hell.
  • Had the Men of Letters survived into the present, John would have been ordained as one in the same manner as his father Henry.
  • John is the first character on the show to overcome possession.
  • John was originally going to buy a VW campervan until Dean persuaded him to buy the Impala instead, calling it "the car of a lifetime" and promising that it would still be "badass when it is 40".
  • John had met both his older sons before their births. He meets Dean for the first time in In the Beginning, and then meets Dean again along with Sam in The Song Remains the Same. John would have no recollection of this ever happening as his and Mary's memories were wiped by Michael. It is also debatable that John did not realise the Dean and Sam were in fact his and Mary's sons as he was not present in the room during Dean and Mary's heart to heart.
  • It is unknown as to when John moved to Lawrence, Kansas. He may have lived there before he was deployed to Vietnam, or simply moved there after returning from the conflict.
  • When Dean was born, John started putting $100 into a savings account for a college fund. He did this each month. When Sam was born, he started a college fund for him as well, $100 each month. When Mary died, he stopped. He ended up spending the money on ammo. (Salvation)
  • John was close friends with fellow hunters Pastor Jim Murphy and Caleb. They are referenced several times through the first season while also being mentioned in various flashbacks. In Something Wicked, John instructs Dean to call Pastor Jim in case of an emergency. Dean then states that after the Shtriga attacked Sam, John dropped them both off at Pastor Jim's. Jim Murphy and Caleb were both killed by Meg in Salvation, and John is noticeably hurt by their deaths.
  • John's idea of Thanksgiving was a bowl of chicken soup and passing out on the couch. Dark Side of the Moon
  • John owned a Playboy with Anna Nicole in it, and he kept it in his duffle. Dean found it and read it, cover to cover, multiple times. (There Will Be Blood)
  • John is the first known human to escape Hell, climbing out when Jake Talley opened the devil's gate on Azazel's orders in All Hell Breaks Loose: Part 2. The others are Dean when Castiel raises him, Sam when Castiel raises him without his soul from Lucifer's Cage, and Bobby when Sam helped him escape.
  • When Castiel is looking through the journal in Hunteri Heroici, he comments that John had beautiful handwriting.
  • Many characters on the show consider John as one of the greatest hunters in the world during his life, Meg even commending him. Dean worshiped his father and considers John as one of the best hunters to have ever lived, especially by his number of hunts and almost no creature having survived their encounter with John except the Shtriga and two vampires for certain.
  • Before his death he confirmed he knew the truth about Sam to Azazel, with Eric Kripke confirming he figured out what the whole picture was including the coming of the apocalypse and his sons' destinies to an extent.
  • John Winchester's blood type is AB (It is unknown whether he is AB+ or AB-, but statistically there's a higher chance of him being AB+ according to redcrossblood.org)

Episodes

  • 1.01 Pilot
  • 1.11 Scarecrow
  • 1.16 Shadow
  • 1.18 Something Wicked
  • 1.20 Dead Man's Blood
  • 1.21 Salvation
  • 1.22 Devil's Trap
  • 2.01 In My Time of Dying

Actors

  • Jeffrey Dean Morgan