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Supernatural has given fans everything from demons and angels to Gods and even a killer teddy bear, but one episode has always been talked about in the fandom with laughter but also a whole lot of eye-rolls.
Yes, we are talking about "Bugs." Over the years, many fans labeled it as one of the weakest episodes of the long-running CW drama. And now, Jensen Ackles himself has finally addressed the question by giving out an answer.
When asked if "Bugs" was truly the worst episode of Supernatural, Ackles admitted with a laugh:
"Yes, I think it was."
That one short line confirmed what fans had suspected all along.
When Supernatural took on bees, spiders, and swarms of everything creepy
For a show with hunter brothers that fought iconic myths and folklores like Bloody Mary, Lucifer, and even God, the Winchester brothers' face-off with bugs should have been terrifying.
The story had all the right elements: A cursed housing development built on Native American land, deaths that were linked back to insects, and Sam and Dean trying to outlast a swarm of bees, spiders, and beetles until sunrise. On paper, it had the bones of a chilling story. But the reality of filming was nothing like that.
At a recent reunion conversation with Entertainment Weekly, Jensen Ackles admitted that the behind-the-scenes of the episode is what left the final product falling flat, saying:
"Yes, I think it was, because of what we went through and what it ended up being. Basically, the juice wasn't worth the squeeze..."
Jared Padalecki jumped in to remind everyone just how messy things were, revealing that he dealt with:
"Like 70,000 bees..."
The cast was supposed to film with actual bees, but the insects barely showed up on camera. Ackles explained:
"We were literally being stung by bees. And then they get to post [production], and the bees didn't show up on camera so they had to VFX the bees."
Playing around with all of that danger and disappointment pretty much sealed the fate of "Bugs" to be one of the strangest misfires in Supernatural history.
Bee stings, bad advice, and why fans still remember “Bugs”
The production stories around "Bugs" almost feel like an urban legend within the fandom. Padalecki recalled the absurd warnings they got from the so-called "bee expert." He told EW:
"We go meet the bee specialist and it's a dude with, like, mesh and a big pair of. surgical tweezers holding a bee saying, 'So we're going to sting you, but it can't give all of its venom. But we'll find out if you're allergic."
Things didn't stop there. The actors were told the bees wouldn't attack unless provoked. Padalecki said:
"They're like, 'Don't get rid of the bees, just guide them away. Gently guide them away..."
The problem? Their whole scene was about swatting bees. Padalecki added:
"It was the most absurd thing. I sat on one bee. I don't think I killed it, thank God..."
Ackles reminded him that if the bee stung him, then it died. Now, regardless of the chaos on set, Supernatural fans never really let "Bugs" fade away. Some look back on it with love, others laugh about the episode's special effects, but nearly everyone agrees that it is an unforgettable episode.
Even Padalecki admitted later that he personally thought one of the Leviathan episodes might have been worse, but Ackles has his choice all made up. Whether you love it, hate it, or just cringe-watch the episode, "Bugs" is part of the strange charm of Supernatural's 15-season run.
Supernatural had more than 300 episodes, and not every one could be a masterpiece. But "Bugs" stands out because it is remembered as much for the behind-the-scenes chaos as the story on screen. With Jensen Ackles openly saying:
"Yes, I think it was" the worst episode.
The fandom finally got the validation it had been joking about for years. In the end, the episode may not have worked, but it remains proof that even missteps can become legends in Supernatural's world.
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