Supernatural is finally back. Tonight’s episode “Dead Man Don’t Wear Plaid” focuses extensively on Bobby Singer, the rough around the edges surrogate father to Sam and Dean Winchester. When zombies begin showing up, Sam and Dean show up to investigate but become suspicious when Bobby orders them to leave town. On closer examination, Sam and Dean discover that Bobby is keeping the zombie of his wife – and she doesn’t have a clue that she is dead. Before you say ‘ew’, these zombies are of the incorruptible variety – at first at least. What will be interesting to see is how Bobby reacts when this seemingly harmless zombie outbreak goes south. Fast.
I was able to talk with Jim Beaver, the man who breathes life into Bobby, about the characters dramatic arc this season. Jim’s book, “Life That’s Way”, an inspirational account of the loss of his wife and the essential truths he divined through that process, is finally being released into paperback on April 6th.
Bobby has been off the show for a while, is it tough for you to get back into the flow?
It probably seems longer to you guys than it does to me, because I’ve been working pretty steady on the show. The show took a hiatus, but we didn’t. We shot all the way through this period that we were off the air. I don’t think I’ve gone two weeks without being at work on the show.
Have you kept up with the story arc between the Bobby episodes?
I mainly watch the episodes as they air, which means I’m a little behind. For the last month or two they’ve been sending me the scripts for the episodes I wasn’t in, which is really helpful because sometimes I’d show up and not have any idea what happened in the previous couple of episodes. It’s nice to know what was going on while you were gone. Keeps me from asking too many stupid questions on the set.
What was your reaction when you found out Bobby would be wheelchair bound?
I had a mixed reaction to it. It kind of played out the way my reactions predicted. On one hand, I had a feeling it would be very interesting dramatically, it would bring some new colors to light in the character and his relationship to the boys. On the other hand, I was a little wary of where that was going and how much participation it would allow Bobby, and thus me, in the show and some of that played out as well. There are more scenes than I would have liked of Bobby sitting by the phone. On the other hand, there have been a lot more scenes of a strong dramatic nature that we probably wouldn’t have seen if Bobby hadn’t wound up in this wheelchair. All in all, I think it’s been good. I wouldn’t mind getting out the chair, but I’m sure there about 9 billion other people who wouldn’t mind getting out of their chairs either.
On that note, since it has worked so well, do you think it would benefit Bobby to stay in the wheelchair?
I think we have to be very respectful of the fact that it’s a real issue for millions of people. At the same time, it is a show called Supernatural where very unusual and in-real-life impossible things happen. I think the fans are justified in hoping Bobby might get out of the chair, whether he does or not remains to be scene. It’s an interesting situation. If this were C.S.I or Grey’s Anatomy, Bobby would be stuck forever; just the nature of this show allows for the possibility of something else to happen.
Do you know how many more episodes Bobby is in this season? Is he safe?
Yes I do. I wouldn’t want to give away any dramatic surprises. I know how many he is involved in, but I’m keeping it to myself. I don’t think anyone is going to be angry, unless they don’t like Bobby.
Your book, Life’s That Way, is coming out in paperback in April. How are you feeling about the continued success of the book?
It is in some way kind of like doing it all over again. I just saw the paperback edition for the first time, and it is very wondrous. It’s a new cover and it has critical responses on the jacket, and that is excited. I’m looking forward to the book getting a wider audience. It’s a little more affordable in this format.
The book has been hailed as transformative and healing, was that something you were expecting?
I’ve been so richly rewarded by it, so many people have written to me about their positive response and how much the book has meant to them. I was hoping for something like that, but I wasn’t prepared for the volume. So many people have written to me to tell me that they found it helpful in their own life, or that it had helped someone they knew. I really wanted that to happen, but I wasn’t sure it would. It’s been one of the biggest blessings of my life to find out that I did something that actually meant something to people.
It’s one thing to be on a TV show that people like and have them enjoy your character, it’s another thing to get letters from people that say you’ve changed their life in some positive way. I don’t want to overplay it, but I hope this expands the opportunity for people to have this experience.
Supernatural "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" airs at 9:00pm EST on TheCW (view two sneak peeks for the episode).
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Life's That Way is currently available for pre-order on Amazon
