It’s always fun when you get to play the title character in a Supernatural episode; however, it usually (read, never) ends well for that character … and such is the case for Asa Fox, played by Shaine Jones. Asa Fox is your typical hunter – saving people and killing things, just like Sam and Dean – but without all the drama … until Asa is (apparently) killed by one of the demons he’s hunting …
How were you cast as Asa Fox?
I was brought in for a director/producer casting session and auditioned with a couple of scenes from the episode. One of them was an intense action scene, and I was so in the moment hunting a ghost that I kicked over a chair. I left feeling like it would either help me get the role or work against me, making me look like a crazy actor. Fortunately, it worked in my favour and I got the part.
Tell us about your character.
A cool thing about Asa Fox is that after 12 seasons he is the first Canadian hunter on the show! He’s a badass, well-respected and likable guy within the hunter community. Without giving anything away, I go through numerous wardrobe changes and aging makeup. In fact, the wonderful wardrobe people told me that I had the most changes for any character in one episode. The makeup artists on that show are incredible; I wore a beard and a cool scar which is always fun as an actor and helped me get into playing a character over the span of 20 years.
Do you have any behind-the-scenes stories you can share?
In this episode, I worked with well-known director John Badham who is known for directing films such as Saturday Night Fever, War Games, Short Circuit, Stakeout, the list goes on. He shared so many interesting behind-the-scenes stories of actors and scenes he had shot over the years. As a lifelong fan of film, this was such a treat for me to hear these stories and learn from someone with so much experience. He told me a funny story about a make-out scene that I can’t mention, but let’s just say they aren’t easy for big celebrities either. Supernatural is such a fun set to be where they have created a bizarre world of make believe. Between takes, I saw a werewolf trying to get reception on his cellphone in the middle of the woods. Just another day at the Supernatural office. I just love this industry!
You were also in Supernatural back in 2012, tell us about that experience compared to your current episode.
The episode in 2012 I played a demon who got killed by Castiel, played by Misha Collins. They combined practical special effects along with postproduction special effects where they melt my face. I had a lot of fun on that episode and was thrilled for the opportunity to come back to a bigger role. Supernatural has some of the best fans out there and as a result, has been going for 12 seasons! To have the opportunity to come back as a new character and play with this cast and crew that has been together since the beginning is such a treat and rarely an option. I’d love to see Asa Fox return, you never knew, with Supernatural anything is possible.
Do you have any upcoming projects that you’d like to share?
I just finished shooting an episode of NBC’s new show “Timeless” playing a NASA computer engineer. I’m also currently in preproduction to direct a short horror film called “Blender” that I wrote with my writing partner. We are in the process of setting up a crowdfunding page to raise the rest of the needed financing for the project, so if there are any Supernatural fans reading this that would like to get involved and make this project happen, come check out our campaign over on Indiegogo.