Eleven years ago, writer-producer Eric Kripke created Supernatural, a show that began as an adventure of two brothers as they explored urban legends and faced demons, all while driving around the country in their classic Impala. Supernatural, which stars Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, is a journey that still continues to this day, building a deep mythology and cultivating a devoted fan base that seems to grow with each new season.

For this Fall TV season, Kripke is back with a new project titled Timeless which he created with Shawn Ryan of The Shield fame. We caught up with Kripke at a party following the NBC press day of this year’s Television Critics Association Press Tour to discover why Supernatural fans will want to check out his new show:

“In a lot of ways, the themes are similar,” he said. “Ultimately, Timeless is [also] a show about whether there’s fate or free will. If you could go back and change history, should you? Or, is there a flow to the way history is supposed to go? What universe do we live in? Do we live in an ordered one, or do we live in a random and chaotic one where you could go back and change history, and what difference does it make? That’s an argument that the characters in Timeless have. Yes, you get to travel to these amazing periods in history and you get to meet these amazing characters, but you also get to really make deeper philosophical points. That’s something that I certainly loved to do in Supernatural, and we’re certainly doing that in Timeless.”

Fans can expect Supernatural Easter eggs throughout the premiere episode, including clever aliases and more direct shout-outs:

“For instance, Wyatt – the Delta Force guy [played by Matt Lanter] – his tragically dead wife’s name is Jessica, which was Sam’s girlfriend’s name. We just signed off on Lucy’s birth certificate, because it plays in Episode 102, and her birthday is January 24th. It got cut out for time, but the bar they go to in the Hindenburg where they meet [Kate] is called Harvelle’s. Anyone who’s a fan of mine can certainly get lots of Easter eggs from watching Timeless,” Kripke promised.

Might we see any familiar faces from Supernatural on Kripke’s new show? “I certainly hope so,” he says.

“I’m sure that there will always be members from the Erik Kripke repertoire showing up in Timeless. I think Jim Beaver is a certainty. I don’t have a part for him yet, but I’m 100% certain that Jim Beaver will be on this show. Look, my goal would be to get Jared and Jensen and Misha, but the challenge is Timeless is a Sony show and Supernatural is a Warner Bros. show, so it might not be as easy to have them move from studio to studio. That said, I would love it.”

Ultimately, Kripke’s hope is that fans love his new show. “It’s meant to be a big, fun, epic, swashbuckling action show, like an early Spielberg movie, and we hope people have as much fun watching it as we’re having making it,” he says.

Timeless will air Monday nights at 10 p.m. this Fall on NBC