Supernatural is quickly approaching the end of its 15th and final season (though it’s been delayed due to the coronavirus), and no, we’re not OK, but thanks for asking. The sci-fi series made history as The CW’s longest-running scripted original, premiering all the way back in September 2005. While we’re likely going to be mourning Supernatural‘s end for a while, fans can at least take comfort in the knowledge that the actors who play monster-hunting, demon-slaying brothers Sam and Dean Winchester are actually real-life BFFs. Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki’s friendship is perhaps even more epic than the series itself, and we’ve rounded up some of their sweetest quotes about each other to prove it.
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Jensen on Jared
- On how he considers Jared his BFFL: “We’re best friends, period. He’s my best friend for life. I don’t think it’s that remarkable, but it’s definitely special.”
- On why their casting was fortuitous: “We certainly couldn’t pick who we got cast next to, and sometimes, you can’t pick who becomes your friend, it just kind of happens. And we got very fortunate in the fact that we not only got picked to be coworkers, but whatever it is, the universe kind of picked us to be buddies as well, and I think that’s really given us a leg up on any issues that we would have run across being costars.”
- On how they never get tired of each other: “Nine months a year we’re stuck with each other literally 24 hours a day, seven days a week because we’re working on the show. Even doing stuff for ourselves in between isn’t possible. We’re constantly together. And even when we’re not actually working together during the nine months, or the other three months out of the year for that matter, we always find ourselves choosing to hang out and be together.”
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Jensen on Jared
- On how they support each other: “I was able to have that friendship Jared and I had established for so long and I was able to talk about it with him and that really helped. He didn’t even really need to say anything. I think a lot of people just need somebody to listen to or just need somebody to listen to them. We’ve established not only a good working relationship but a good friendship and also a good support system with each other.”
- On how they’ve come to feel like real brothers: “We have spent probably more time with each other than with any other human on the planet over the past 10 years. I’ve learned a lot from him, and he is a brother, on and off screen. We’ll forever have a friendship that is a lot different than most because of what we’ve gone through together.”
- On what he would do for Jared: “I would jump in front of a bullet for him any day and never think twice.”
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Jared on Jensen
- On what his relationship with Jensen means to him: “It’s really special. You know, he’s been around for births and deaths in my life and vice versa. Triumphs and losses . . . and he’s not the only one, obviously. It’s been he and I for the longest, but I’ve met a lot of people that have changed my life and remain pretty special to me.”
- On why they work so well together: “We’re really good buddies and that’s been probably the best thing about Supernatural. In the last three years of my life, I’ve spent more time with Jensen Ackles than with any other human being and vice versa. Luckily, we get along really well and we are very similar guys. We’re both from Texas, we both love our families, the same kind of music, and the Dallas Cowboys. It’s been a huge blessing to work with somebody who is easygoing on set and who I’m friends with.”
- On how their bond is just as strong off screen: “The best part about Jensen and my relationship is it’s gonna be that way when we’re on the show and not. I mean, unfortunately for him, he’s stuck with me for life now and that’s important.”
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Jared on Jensen
- On how they’ve grown up alongside each other: “I would be doing it a disservice to try to put into words what I’ve been through with Jensen. We’ve more than grown up together. We went from single 20-somethings to fathers, husbands, and it’s hard to quantify in a few short sentences exactly what all that encompasses.”
- On why he feels lucky to have Jensen: “I think Ackles and I found a really cool, unique situation where we truly enjoy each other and we enjoy each other’s families, and have each other’s backs, and after 14 years spending more time with each other than you spend with your wives, your kids, your brothers, your sisters, your mothers, your fathers, you kinda go one way or the other, and we went to the place where we got closer. So we’re just pretty lucky.”
- On why his relationship with Jensen is unique: “One of the great things that I’ve gotten from this show is such a great friend that knows me so well, but also somebody that I can work with on a level that I’ve never worked with anybody else in my life. So we understand that it’s pretty rare and may or may not ever happen again, but we’re proud of what we created and we’re proud of the people that helped us get here.”