Mark Sheppard Filmed Fewer Episodes Of Supernatural Than You Might Think
"Supernatural" had an incredible run of 15 seasons, making it one of the longest-running fantasy television shows ever made (via DiscoverSD.com). Naturally, it has garnered a very dedicated fanbase over the years, and those viewers continue to show their support even after the end of "Supernatural." In fact, there's an official Supernatural convention that just held a recent event in April 2022, with stars like Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins attending.
While "Supernatural" centers around Ackles' Dean Winchester and Jared Padalecki's Sam Winchester, the series features a whole host of guest stars and recurring characters over the seasons, both in supporting and adversarial roles. One character who fits both ally and enemy depending on which season you watch is Mark Sheppard's demon Crowley. Whether friend or foe, Crowley often finds himself entwined in the lives of Sam and Dean, and he became something of a fan-favorite character over the years because of it.
However, when looking at the number of episodes featuring Crowley, it's almost amazing to see that the actor filmed fewer episodes of "Supernatural" than fans might think.
Mark Sheppard only appeared in 67 episodes of Supernatural
According to IMDb, Mark Sheppard appears as Crowley in a total of 67 "Supernatural" episodes, though three are labeled as "uncredited." Considering that the series ran for over 320 episodes and 15 seasons, this may be fewer episodes than fans would originally assume, but he is still the character with the fifth-most appearances, right behind Jim Beaver as Bobby Singer. Overall, Crowley is always more of a come-and-go character, even in storylines that prominently feature him as the antagonist, so it's not entirely surprising.
Crowley's final episode is the Season 12 finale "All Along the Watchtower," which sees the character have one final face turn and sacrifice his own life in order to trap Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino) in an alternate universe. Again, not exactly a surprising end for the character in a show that routinely kills off fan-favorite heroes and villains in equal measure. Still, Sheppard's Crowley is arguably the only character to vacillate between hero and villain so often, and in ways that endeared fans instead of annoying them. This is likely what made Crowley such a popular character in the first place.