‘Supernatural’ writer Davy Perez talks Stuck in the Middle (With You)

supernatural writer davy perez talks stuck in the middle with you 2017 images

'Supernatural' writer Davy Perez talks Stuck in the Middle (With You) 2017 images

Supernatural episode, Stuck in the Middle (With You), was written by Davy Perez – I was able to ask him some burning questions regarding his episode. I also hear that he was in Vancouver on set this past week … hmm …

How much of the episode was ad lib? (I’ve heard that Cas’s smelling of the waitress was off the cuff, but that’s it.)

There were some great ad-lib moments early on, mostly the moment when the conversation ramps up and the guys start talking over each other in the diner. The actors we have all breath a lot of life into what’s on the page. Beyond that, there wasn’t a lot of ad lib on this one because of the way it was structured and certain things needed to track. But the non-verbal nuance and emotionality that our actors bring, that’s something you can’t ever write down and are always happy to see come to life.

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There is a lot of canon in this episode – how much maneuverability did you have with the script? (Like how much was concrete, this had to happen, and how much was flexible?)

To be honest, this started out as a strictly stand-alone episode. I swear… I’m not making that up! What had to happen was our boys get into a dire situation that looks like they really might not get themselves out of this time. I was also asked to keep the British Men of Letters storyline alive somehow. The part that was a real gift was when Andrew told me we needed to introduce the notion that Crowley was keeping Lucifer a secret. When I heard that… I was like, “Oh yeah, I’m gonna have him sing a jingle!” The rest of the canon in this episode was born out of finding the story and raising the stakes on the circumstances for each character. Having flashbacks gave me the idea to reach back six years and give us a fun look at a Crowley from a different time.

What was your favorite line in the episode?

It’s a tie between: “That’s the password. Extra Cheese.” & “Are you really still working for the Dukes of Haphazard?”

 Do you have a cheat sheet somewhere as to how the timeline actually went? (Inquiring minds want to know.)

Absolutely. It went all the way back to The Fall of Lucifer and included when the Princes were actually created. In order to make this story pitch air tight, I had to know it backwards, forwards, in order, and in whatever jumble jigsaw I was gonna tell it in. Reading the timeline in order was satisfying, but a bit dry at times, which meant that I was right in choosing to tell it out of sequence. The out of order nature informed scenes before and created a dramatic climax. It wasn’t just a gimmick; the story benefited from the timeline jumps. That’s what made it satisfying.

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It seems – to me – there is a continuity error. In one scene Mary says the demon arrives at 8:45, in another Dean says he arrives at 10:45. Was that on purpose? Maybe showing that Dean didn’t really listen?

My answer to this is: Who shot Nice Guy Eddie?

davy perez with dog supernatural

Do you read fanfiction? (I only ask because my best friend keeps on finding resemblances in the current episodes.)

I don’t. I read the wiki pages and on occasion take a look at fan boards to get a sense of what the audience has responded to in the past. But I stay away from the fan fiction because I don’t want to be over-influenced by other people’s work, or on the opposite end, shy away from an inspiration because someone may have found that muse too. I think it’s great to be a part of a show that has such a huge following and resonates so strongly with the fans. The fiction belongs to them, and I don’t want to do anything that would ever disrespect that. As a writer on a show that seeks to find fresh and interesting stories to tell, the best thing for me is to stay as far away as I can from the fan fiction and let it exist in peace.