Supernatural’s Not-So-Sneaky Marvel References Will Turn MCU Fans Into a Famous Leonardo DiCaprio Meme

Crossover elements from pop culture often keep different fan bases wanting to have more. Subtle references sometimes act like a bridge between two entirely different on-screen worlds. What happens when a long-running supernatural drama wants to have fun with the popular superhero landscape?

Supernatural is an example of a series that combined dark storytelling with a lot of fun pop culture references smoothly. The series showed how hunting demons and Marvel’s superhero universe are in no way similar to each other, but the Winchester brothers somehow made a connection.

How Supernatural referenced Marvel’s superheroes

Supernatural wasn’t simply just a monster-hunting show. It ran for 15 seasons from 2005 to 2020 and featured Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as two brothers hunting down supernatural entities across the country. But beyond the demon-hunting drama, the show had a secret ingredient- its sense of humor and meta-references.

The Winchesters did their job in style. They hunted monsters while using Marvel heroes’ names as their cover identities. In season 9, episode Devil May Care, Dean introduces himself as “Agent Stark” and Sam calls himself “Agent Banner” while they are asking people for more information about demons.

This moment was enough to evoke the “Pointing DiCaprio” meme feeling among Marvel fans. The meme is from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, where Leonardo DiCaprio points at the TV screen after seeing himself.

However, the Marvel name-dropping in Supernatural was not just a meta-joke. It represented each of the brothers’ characters. “Stark” is chosen by Dean as it represents his arrogant yet charismatic and tech-savvy persona, just like Tony Stark, aka Iron Man.

On the other hand, Banner matches Sam’s more intellectual and reserved nature. It was almost as if the writers of the show somehow understood how to make Marvel fans sit up and pay attention. Moreover, Season 5 showed Bobby Singer, played by Jim Beaver, using many aliases, and one of them was Frank Castle, which is the name of Marvel’s Punisher. Apart from that, the show also referenced Loki.

These references were not mere fan service callbacks. They linked Supernatural to popular culture, as these subtle references came at a time when the Marvel Cinematic Universe was rising at its peak.

Will Supernatural return for another season?

The Supernatural saga might not be fully over yet. In 2023, during the Creation Honolulu Convention, Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles hinted at the future. Padalecki spoke about the future possibilities of the show saying (via Gayle YouTube),

I have some ideas, and I hope that now that the writers are back and the actors are back, we all get together.

Ackles suggested that there were discussions taking place within the cast and crew saying,

Stay tuned on that. There are some conversations regarding that conversation that are being had.

Season 15 shows the death of Dean Winchester during a vampire hunt and how his story concludes when he finds Bobby Singer in heaven and realizes his parents are there too. On the other hand, Sam gets his happy ending as he finally stops fighting and starts his family.

Moreover, after the end of the last season, both actors have had their hands full. Padalecki got busy with CW’s Walker series, and Ackles has voiced in DC’s animated projects and portrays Soldier Boy in The Boys. Still, their expressions of desire to come back to Winchester’s world hint that fans have not seen the finale of the demon-hunting siblings.

All seasons of Supernatural are available to stream on Prime Video.