“ | I say that I do the terrible things I do because I couldn't find who killed Sarah and Teddy. And once I did, I'd be free of this darkness and this rage... But I lied. The truth is, I... like... doing these things. And I don't want to stop. I'm bonded to you... and what you are. It's how you first found me. I don't know who I am if I'm not you. No consequences, no pain, no sorrow... I want that back. I want it back. I don't want to feel now what I didn't feel then. Where are you? Where are you...? Help me... Help me... | „ |
~ Nick praying to Lucifer |
Nick is the secondary antagonist of Season 14 of the CW series Supernatural.
He mostly acts as the vessel to Lucifer. He acts as Lucifer's temporary vessel in season 5 until Lucifer gains his true vessel Sam Winchester, and then returns as Lucifer's full time vessel from season 12 to 13.
He is played by Mark Pellegrino, who also mostly portrays Lucifer, one of Jackie Treehorn's Thugs in The Big Lebowski, Paul Bennett in Dexter, Jacob in Lost, Jeremy Baker in Revolution, and Jacob Seed in Far Cry 5.
History[]
Background[]
Nick had a wife and baby son, who were one day brutally murdered during a supposed robbery at their home. The incident left Nick deeply traumatised and full of grief.
Season 5[]
One night he was visited by Lucifer, who took the form of Nick's late wife in order to manipulate him into allowing him to be Lucifer's temporary vessel, and Lucifer put the blame of Nick's family on God. A broken Nick agreed to become Lucifer's vessel, and was subsequently possessed.
Due to not being Lucifer's true vessel, Nick began to burn up and scar overtime due to having to contain Lucifer's essence. After Lucifer's true vessel Sam Winchester consented to Lucifer to use him as a vessel, Lucifer left Nick's body on the floor.
Season 7[]
When Lucifer began appearing to Sam as hallucinations, he was in the form of Nick.
Season 11[]
When Dean and Sam went to see Lucifer in Hell in order to try and find out how to defeat The Darkness, Lucifer manifested into the form of Nick when interacting with them. After escaping Hell once again, Lucifer ended up possessing Castiel.
When Crowley went into Castiel's mind, Lucifer appeared to him in the form of Nick and fought with Crowley.
After Lucifer was ripped out of Castiel's vessel by the Darkness, he briefly appeared in the form of Nick.
Season 12[]
Crowley and his demons found Nick's body, and managed to repair it and began to tweak it to act as a prison for Lucifer. Crowley banished Lucifer into Nick's body in which he was trapped and became Crowley's slave, in revenge for Lucifer using Crowley as a slave before. Whilst imprisoned, Lucifer manipulated some demons to finding a way to break Crowley's spell, and successfully gained back his free will.
Season 13[]
Lucifer used Nick's body as his vessel for the entirety of the season. During a stand-off with Lucifer, Dean managed to stab him with an archangel blade, which killed Lucifer and left Nick's body on the ground and wounded.
Season 14[]
It is revealed that Nick survived the stabbing following Lucifer's death, and he resided in Sam and Dean's bunker for three weeks. Sam visits Nick in the Men of Letters bunker dungeon which has been turned into a makeshift bedroom for him. For the first time, Nick has woken up without screaming from a nightmare and his wound from the archangel blade is healing. Sam speculates that because the blade is designed to kill the archangel inside of the vessel, it didn't harm Nick. Nick recognizes how weird the situation is for Sam and admits that he's glad Lucifer is dead. Though Nick experiences some flashes of his possession by Lucifer, he doesn't know much about Michael or his plans aside from the fact that Michael wants to "do it right this time."
Nick is visited by Castiel as he flashbacks of several of the things Lucifer did while possessing him, including killing Mercury and supposedly killing Gabriel at the Elysian Fields Hotel. Nick is unable to understand why he would let Lucifer in and Castiel explains that it was because of the murder of Nick's family. Nick recalls Lucifer's psychological manipulation to get him to say "yes" and is horrified by it.
Later, Nick arrives in the bunker's main room, having researched the murder of his family and having discovered that the case is still unsolved despite there being a witness who subsequently recanted. Nick's behavior alarms Castiel, particularly when he snaps his fingers at Castiel in a Lucifer-like manner after being enraged. Castiel examines Nick and determines that while Lucifer is gone, he may have done more damage to Nick's psyche than they realized. Castiel admits to sympathizing with Nick, explaining his own history with his vessel Jimmy Novak. However, Nick sees Castiel as no better than Lucifer for what he did to Jimmy, leading Castiel to tell Nick that what happened to Jimmy and his family is the biggest regret of his long life.
In an attempt to solve the murders of his family and get revenge, Nick visits his old neighbor Arty Nielson who was the witness the night Nick's family died. Though Arty claims to know nothing, his nervous behavior causes Nick to suspect that someone got to Arty and he strangles him up against a wall, demanding answers. Nick subsequently beats Arty to death with a hammer, the same manner that his family was murdered in. After Arty's death, Nick stares at his blood splattered clothes in the mirror, lays down the bloody hammer and leaves in horror of his act.
Castiel tells the Winchesters that Nick left the bunker saying he had something personal to deal with and that he hasn't returned Castiel's phone calls since.
Nick tortures a priest for information and then murders him as Arty had gone to the priest in confession. However, the priest refused to break his vows and reveal anything to Nick. Nick later approaches the crime reporter that had covered the story of his family's murder and asks her about who the beat cop in his neighborhood was at the time of the murders. She identifies the cop as Frank Kellogg who has since moved to Montauk, New York and become a security guard.
After resisting the urge to murder a young woman, Nick tracks down Frank and brutally tortures him for information. Nick reveals to Frank that Arty told him that he had seen a cop leaving Nick's house on the night of the murders and was then threatened into silence by the police which Nick believes to be a cover-up to protect one of their own. Frank finally reveals to Nick that Sarah had called the precinct to report a prowler and when Frank went to check it out, he was greeted by a man named Abraxas. As Nick muses on the name, Frank tells him that the next thing he remembers is waking up in his patrol car covered in Sarah and Teddy's blood. Based on Frank's story and remembering that Lucifer knew Abraxas' name, Nick realizes that Abraxas is a demon that possessed Frank to commit the murders. Though Nick realizes that Frank himself is innocent, he also recognizes that Frank's hands were used to commit the murders even if he wasn't in control at the time and beats Frank to death with a hammer.
After his murder of Frank, Nick prays to Lucifer, having enjoyed giving into his darker urges and believing that it was what drew the archangel to him in the first place. In the Empty, a skeletal figure with glowing red eyes awakens in response to Nick's prayer, presumably Lucifer himself.
Nick captures a demon who had been working with Abraxas before Abraxas was captured by a hunter. Having been led to the demon by a previous demon he had killed, Nick holds her within a devil's trap and tortures the demon using an angel blade that Nick took from the bunker when he left. The demon offers to freely tell Nick what she knows about the hunter who is in Hibbing, Minnesota, having no reason to protect her, but Nick tortures the demon anyway, going so far as to take out her right eye with his angel blade. The demon identifies Mary Winchester as the hunter in question who she had witnessed trap Abraxas in a box. Once the demon tells him all she knows, Nick kills her.
Now knowing where to look, Nick travels to Hibbing where he stops at a grocery store for directions, unknowingly just missing Mary. Nick draws the clerk's suspicions, particularly with his aggressive questions, causing the clerk to lie to him and then call Sheriff Donna Hanscum to report the encounter once Nick is gone. That night, Nick is pulled over by Donna and handcuffed with Donna having discovered that he is driving a van reported stolen two weeks earlier in Missoula, Montana. Nick refuses to cooperate with Donna who uses a mobile fingerprint scanner to run Nick's fingerprints in an effort to learn his true identity. As Donna is distracted running his fingerprints, Nick picks the lock on his handcuffs. From Nick's fingerprints, Donna learns of his identity and his being wanted for a murder spree, but Nick is able to subdue Donna with a stun gun. Nick learns of Mary's location at Donna's cabin from emails on Donna's cell phone and leaves the sheriff unconscious but otherwise unharmed in the driver's seat of her patrol car.
At Donna's cabin, Nick kidnaps a surprised Mary and explains how he is looking for Abraxas who murdered his family the same way he murdered a Girl Scout troop that Tonya Baker, who Mary had rescued, belonged to. Mary tells Nick that she killed Abraxas, but he reveals that he knows she's lying as the demon that had escaped her witnessed Mary trapping Abraxas. Mary finally admits that she couldn't defeat Abraxas so she instead locked him in an Enochian Puzzle Box. Mary reluctantly agrees to lead Nick to her lock-up in Grand Rapids, Michigan where the puzzle box is stored, but forces Nick to search through the lockers himself without telling him which one contains the box. After finding it, Mary reminds Nick that Abraxas will need a vessel that can't be either of them, so Nick kidnaps the security guard at the facility, Jeff. With Mary uncooperative, Nick tries to figure out how to open the puzzle box on his own, finally resorting to drilling into it which releases Abraxas in his smoke form and forces the demon, stuck within a devil's trap, to take Jeff as his vessel.
After Abraxas takes possession of Jeff, Nick demands answers from the demon who doesn't realize who Nick is until Nick tells him that he is from Pike Creek, Delaware. Abraxas proves to be amused by Nick's questioning, the fact that Nick is no longer possessed by Lucifer and that Lucifer is dead. Abraxas, holding a grudge of his own for Mary's trapping him, offers Nick answers if he kills Mary slow and bloody. As Nick moves to do so, he is interrupted by the Winchesters who tracked Nick through his stolen van with Donna's help. Desperate to get answers, Nick uses his angel blade to break the devil's trap, releasing Abraxas who immediately slams everyone to the floor with telekinesis. Turning to a shocked Nick, Abraxas reveals that he murdered Nick's family on Lucifer's orders. Abraxas explains that Nick was chosen, but he's not special as "we threw a dart at the phone book" to choose who to target. Dean begins an exorcism that Abraxas stops, but Nick takes advantage of the distraction, shoves Abraxas to his knees from behind and stabs the demon in the chest with his angel blade, killing Abraxas and finally avenging his family.
With Abraxas dead, the Winchesters surround Nick who tries to strike at Mary with his angel blade. However, Donna shoots Nick in the leg, allowing Mary to knock him unconscious. In the aftermath, Nick is arrested for his murder spree by Donna. When confronted by Sam before Donna takes him away, Nick is unrepentant, believing that he did what he had to do to get revenge for his family and that Sam would've done the same thing. Nick tells Sam that Sam couldn't help him as he isn't broken, but Sam feels that Nick is wrong about that. Sam tells Nick that he doesn't feel sorry for Nick but for Nick's victims who will haunt Nick for the rest of his life and that Nick can burn.
Nick is taken to the hospital for his injuries and is told four different jurisdictions that want to prosecute him for his crime spree. Nick secretly works to free himself and after receiving taunts from an officer, he broke free and overpowered the latter before killing him. With the officer dead, Nick gathered his items and escaped the hospital.
Nick returns to his old house only to find it long abandoned, he is soon greeted by Sarah as a ghost, who he initially mistakes for Lucifer until realizing otherwise. Sarah explains that she is trapped on Earth as a ghost by unfinished business: her and Teddy's unsolved murders. Nick tells Sarah that it was Abraxas possessing Frank Kellogg and he got her revenge by killing the demon and the man, but Sarah tells him that her unfinished business isn't just Abraxas or Lucifer, its Nick himself.
Sarah explains that she was present the night that Nick became possessed and witnessed Nick say "yes." She recognizes that Nick has returned in search of Lucifer in the place where they became one with each other. Nick denies this as Sarah demands that Nick prove her wrong by rejecting Lucifer which will allow her to finally move on and find peace. However, Nick can't and departs to continue his search for Lucifer, leaving Sarah trapped in their house.
Nick aligned himself with demons and conspired to resurrect Lucifer. Nick is supplied with angelic grace and attacks the home of the Prophet Donatello Redfield. Injecting Donatello with the grace, he contacts the essence of Lucifer who is still awake in The Empty. Lucifer tells Nick to resurrect him, a sample of his blood is needed and Nick needs to get it from Lucifer's son Jack. Nick decides to have Donatello taken in the hopes of drawing Sam and Dean to him, as he knew that was the best way to get close to Jack. When the Winchesters find out that Donatello has been kidnapped by demons; and set out to rescue him. Nick allows himself to be captured and misleads the Winchesters into thinking he poisoned Donatello and won't give up the location. Nick is taken to the bunker where he is attacked by Sam, until Dean holds him off. Placed in the dungeon, he antagonizes the group enough to allow him to speak with Jack. Though reluctant, they let Jack speak with him. Nick taunts Jack and insults him for turning on his father, as he tells him that he felt Lucifer truly loved him and head-butts him when he gets in his face. Nick only did so to get a sample of Jack's blood and is scared when Jack uses his power to intimidate him, causing him to gives up the information.
He is taken by the Winchesters to the area and Dean goes off to rescue Donatello however, Nick breaks free and reveals to Sam that he orchestrated the whole thing because both him and the demons want Lucifer back. He further reveals how he intends to bring him back from the Empty. Nick smashes Sam over the head with a rock, disabling him, and flees to an abandoned house. There, he summons Lucifer, pleading to be possessed. However, since Jack's blood was needed this caused him to be affected by the ritual and determined his location. Jack appeared on the scene with Mary and Nick watches as Jack banishes Lucifer back to the Empty, upsetting Nick. However, this turns to fear as Jack then burns Nick alive from the inside, killing him.
Nick's corpse is later found by Sam who was shocked to see his state. Sam remarked to Dean that he had wanted Nick dead, but not in such a horrific manner. Sam covered Nick's corpse with a blanket, but his body was otherwise apparently abandoned in the empty house that Nick had died in.
Season 15[]
When God resurrects Lucifer from the Empty in order to retrieve his death book, he gives Lucifer the form of Nick when appearing to the Winchesters. This isn't a vessel, as Lucifer explodes into ash after being killed a second time.
Trivia[]
- He is one of the few major recurring antagonists in Supernatural not to have any supernatural type abilities, aside from being Lucifer's vessel.
- At one point, when Nick escapes police custody, he attacks a cop. Nick later claims to have killed the cop, stating he cut him up. However, Nick only beat the cop badly who was still clearly alive when Nick left.
- Though unconfirmed, Nick may have had a criminal record before his possession: when Sheriff Donna Hanscum runs Nick's fingerprints, they not only link Nick to his murders, but identify him by name. This would've only been possible if Nick already had a criminal record and thus his fingerprints were already in the system.
- It's shown during season 14 that no one knew of his death between seasons 5 and 12. To everyone that knew him, Nick simply disappeared. Nick explained his disappearance as needing to get away after the murders of his wife and son.
[]
Villains | ||
Cosmic Beings Angels Deities Chinese Demons Jeffrey's Demon |
Julia Wright |
Lisa Braeden |
Meg Masters |
Ruby |
Seven Deadly Sins |
Slick Leviathan Monsters Amazons Cursed Humans Phantom Shadow |
Peter Sweeney |
P.T. Sandover |
Sanford Ellicott |
Vance Collins |
Whitman Van Ness Michelle Walker | Nick | Ronnie Cartwright | Sue Ann Le Grange | Sylvia | Terrence Clegg | The Benders | The Harvester |