Ellen Harvelle - Development

Development

Due to the father-son dynamics of the hunting world depicted in the series' first season with the Winchesters, the writers decided to explore a mother-daughter relationship, resulting in the introduction of Ellen and her daughter Jo. The name originated from the writers' decision to base her on the "tough yet emotionally-vulnerable" characters portrayed by actress Ellen Barkin. Ellen was meant to have a "true and honest platonic friendship" with John Winchester, and her backstory of her husband having been killed due to John's mistake was added to the storyline to explain why John never mentioned the Roadhouse to his sons. Ferris auditioned for the role, and feels that she was exactly what they had been looking for. She commented, "I have a certain kind of personality that works specifically with a role, and Ellen is just me on television. They were looking for a tough, strong, yet a little maternal actor, and I struck a chord." Series creator Eric Kripke agrees, feeling that Ferris "really brought the character to life", being "nuanced and complex and tough, yet beautiful and feminine".

The writers intended for the character to make only two guest appearances in the third season, which left Ferris "a bit surprised and " at Ellen's lack of involvement. However, her initial return was scrapped due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, and the actress declined a guest appearance in the finale because the lackluster offer "could cost money and work". The opportunity to return for the fifth season surprised her due to the large time span since her previous appearance. Though she expected her character to eventually die, a devastated Ferris was surprised at how quickly it occurred. However, after speaking to director Phil Sgriccia—he told her that Ellen was the "perfect fodder" for the "kick" that the series needed, and would "go out in a blaze of glory"—the actress came to realize that the character's death made sense. Ellen's last words to Dean—"Kick it in the ass."—was an improvised homage to the late Supernatural executive producer and director Kim Manners, who had died the year before and would often recite the phrase before filming a scene.