Misha Collins

On the occasion of Supernatural's return with fresh episodes (Thursdays at 9 pm/ET, the CW), we grabbed a few minutes with Misha Collins to reflect a bit on his first season as Castiel and answer questions from TVGuide.com's readers. (A divine idea, no?) Here, following a bit of our own banter with Collins, is his take on purgatory plucking, questioning the Big Guy, old-school smiting and much more. (Also: Read my start-of-season Q&A with Misha.)

TVGuide.com: How was your first Supernatural convention experience this past weekend?

Misha Collins: It was good. I don't feel nearly as traumatized as I expected. I feel like a little bit of a whore, so that's a triumph in my book. I got some hand cramps from signing my name for too long, but that's an occupational hazard.

TVGuide.com: What twist in Castiel's storyline has surprised you the most so far?

Collins: That he's still alive. That's one. But also seeing the man whom Castiel possessed was both surprising and gratifying and really fun to play. We just finished shooting that episode, and that was cool. It was very different from what I was expecting.

TVGuide.com: What are the odds that you will be back next season?

Collins: Well, I've been told that I'm coming back, so the odds are good. I'd have to screw something up between now and the end of the month!

TVGuide.com: And now it's time for the TVGuide.com reader questions. Jenni asks, "Will Castiel ever talk to Dean about how exactly he was able to pluck him out of purgatory?"

Collins: Possibly — although Dean doesn't really seem to be that curious about it. He hasn't pried in that direction at all. I don't see why it should be a secret.

TVGuide.com: "Does Castiel know what happened to Sam and Dean's father after John helped them in the Season 2 finale? If so, will he tell them?" (jzchillin)

Collins: I don't think that Castiel does know what happened to their father. He's not omniscient by any stretch of the imagination. There's a lot of stuff that's cropped up this year on the show that has been news to Castiel, so there's no reason for me to believe that he knows what happened to Daddy-O.

TVGuide.com: "Is there anything that Castiel is afraid of?" (bklynkat23)

Collins: Scary movies?

TVGuide.com: "Are we going to see Castiel begin to doubt and/or question God's pronouncements, especially vis-à-vis Dean and Sam?" (kchez) First of all, that's an excellent use of "vis-à-vis.

Collins: Yes, it was excellent! I wish I could respond with matching stellar vocabulary, but.... "Yes" is the short answer to that question. Definitely.

TVGuide.com: JBird asks, "Will we find out more about the working relationship between Castiel and Anna?"

Collins: Yeah, we're going to see more of that and the dynamic between them.

TVGuide.com: "Will Castiel ever get to smite anyone old-school-style?" (derfel85)

Collins: What is old-school smiting? Is that, like, drawing and quartering or beheading...?

TVGuide.com: I'm thinking it's very brutal and non-sterile, perhaps employing a rusty mace.

Collins: We haven't done any smiting yet. But maybe we'll go in that brutal, medieval direction at some point.

TVGuide.com: "Will we get another Castiel/Alastair smackdown this season?" (Infamous_JR)

Collins: Yes.

TVGuide.com: "Jensen [Ackles] and Jared [Padalecki] are known for pulling pranks. Have they pulled any memorable ones on you yet?" (Shan79)

Collins: No, but we've had several instances where we've had laughing fits on set and it was really pissing off the crew, because we couldn't get the shot off.

TVGuide.com: "Do you think Castiel should fall, or he should stay an angel?" (ilda_winchester)

Collins: I think it would be more interesting if he fell.

TVGuide.com: "In the wake of [producer-director] Kim Manners' death, did the tone on set change for the long term, or did people realize that this is what he loved and continued to do their best to honor him?" (tidblgr)

Collins: I only did one episode with Kim, but it was amazing to see the effect he had on the crew. His leadership up in Vancouver very much affected the dynamic of how this crew operates. He lived in a hotel up here, and all the staff came to his memorial — the doorman, the housekeeper.... That's the kind of guy he was.

TVGuide.com: These last reader questions are not about Supernatural. For starters, "What are your inspirations for your poetry?" (writingpathways)

Collins: I guess haiku is an inspiration for me. Everyday, simple moments.

TVGuide.com: Salchan asks, "Can you really twist yourself up the way you did on Nip/Tuck, or was that partially CGI-tinkered?"

Collins: That was not CGI, but I cannot do it in an ongoing manner. Doing it once threw my back out for about 10 days. I played a yoga instructor who has an enormous [endowment] and can't stop [pleasuring himself orally]. So in the opening scene where they ask, "Tell us what you don't like about yourself," I got down on the floor and struck this pose.... But it hurt like hell.

TVGuide.com: And lastly, "In CSI , 24 and Seven Days, your accent was unbelievably believable. How did you manage that?" (T_T)

Collins: When I was in high school, I liked to pretend that I was a Russian foreign exchange student. I would do things like go into a pizza restaurant and tell them I'd never had pizza before, and they'd bring me into the kitchen and show me how to make an American pizza. It's really fun. People relate to you totally differently, and show you a side to themselves that you never see in your regular voice. So I guess the short answer is just "By f--king around."

TVGuide.com: Before you go, give us one more tease about what's coming up on Supernatural the remainder of this season.

Collins: We're definitely coming down to the wire on the apocalypse. There are some deaths in the future.

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