There are many aspects of Supernatural that are prominent from season 1 all the way to the finale, from family drama to significant character deaths to running jokes. One longstanding part of the show rife with pop culture references is the aliases of Sam and Dean, used on their fake IDs when they pose as everything from FBI to Homeland Security to Teddy Bear Doctors.

Often these aliases will be of various brilliant rock stars that Dean adores, but not exclusively. Their aliases range from musicians to meta nods from writers to pop culture legends and everything in between.

Updated on November 28th by Rhys McGinley:

The legacy of Supernatural is living on through The Winchesters as audiences go back in time and explore the story of John and Mary Winchester in their younger years as hunters with their crew. The hunts have always been one of the best parts of the Supernatural world, and one of the mainstays of it has been fake names/aliases, which Sam and Dean often had some fun with. Whether they be meta horror movie references or names from the catalog of bands used in the show, Sam and Dean have some great, often hilarious fake names.

Nigel Tufnel

Sam and Dean in Supernatural

Dean's incredible catalog of music is so often the main source from which Sam and Dean pull aliases in the show, but in "Asylum," Dean combines his love of music with his love of movies to produce the fake name Nigel Tufnel.

Nigel Tufnel is, of course, the lead guitarist of the fictional band Spinal Tap from the mockumentary of the same name. With its combination of music and hilarity, it is no surprise that Dean loves the movie enough to have Tufnel's name memorized and ready to use on the case.

James Hetfield

Dean introduces himself as Dr. James Hetfield

Dean's love of Metallica is established early in Supernatural. Alongside epic rockers of the past, Dean clearly has an admiration for the band who, somehow, saw even more mainstream success in 2022 thanks to Stranger Things. Dean's admiration for the band naturally leads to a love of its frontman, James Hetfield.

What makes this alias great is not just the brilliance of Metallica and Hetfield, but Dean calling himself "Doctor" James Hetfield and then using a Metallica song - "Some Kind of Monster" - to calm himself down on the flight. Oftentimes the boys pair together multiple band members to great effect. This solo effort from Dean was just as memorable, though.

Hicks & Ripley

Dean and Charlie posing as agents in Supernatural

The Alien franchise is one of the most famous on the planet, morphing horror with sci-fi in its initial effort before moving to more of a sci-fi/action effort in movies such as Aliens, the movie referenced by Charlie and Dean's aliases in "Pac-Man Fever."

With Dean as Cpl. Hicks and Charlie as the legendary Ellen Ripley, the two pose as federal agents and continue their legacy as one of the best duos in the entire series. The two are a joy to watch, and making such a terrific reference in their aliases only enhances their partnership in this episode while paying homage to an important franchise in the annals of horror and sci-fi history.

Greer & Ehart

Sam and Dean in Supernatural

The unofficial theme song for Supernatural is "Carry On My Wayward Son" by Kansas, an epic tune that is instantly recognizable to any Supernatural fan. The band who birthed the tune almost appeared in the divisive finale of the show, and while that only happens in alternate-world endings, two of its members did get mentions in the series.

In one of the show's best and most powerful episodes, "Don't Call Me Shurley," the boys use the names Greer and Ehart for their agent aliases. These are, of course, two members of the band Kansas; Billy Greer and Phil Ehart. The band was always going to be referenced like this in the show, and the writers chose a fantastic episode to make that happen.

Smith & Smith (No Relation)

Dean and Sam holding FBI badges in Supernatural

"Fan Fiction" is one of Supernatural's best and weirdest episodes, a fan-favorite that continued Supernatural's brilliant record with meta-episodes. It also has one of the boys' best aliases, playing on the fun brother dynamic of the two.

Posing as FBI agents, the boys introduce themselves as Agents Smith and Smith, "no relation." Not only is this funny on its own, given the irony, but it is a reference to Die Hard, where two FBI agents introduce themselves in a very similar tone as Agents Johnson and Johnson.

Hamill & Ford

Sam and Dean pose as wildlife rangers in Supernatural

"Dead In The Water" is one of the first cases the boys take following the death of Jess, and the boys being on the hunt for John and is a good early episode that sees one of many, many Star Wars references in the show.

Posing as the US Wildlife Service - showing the wide range of fraud the boys undertake in the early seasons compared to the post-Kripke-era - Sam and Dean introduce themselves as Agents Hamill and Ford. These are, of course, references to the iconic actors Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford, who played Luke Skywalker and Han Solo in the beloved franchise.

Jerry Wanek & Robert Singer

Sam and Dean pose as Homeland Security in Supernatural

The boys do not stick solely to pop culture references and a collection of Dean's most worshipped music artists regarding their aliases; frequently, there are meta-references for fans to enjoy, such as in "Phantom Traveler."

Bravely posing as Homeland Security, Sam and Dean take up the monikers of Robert Singer and Jerry Wanek. Robert Singer is a reference to the executive producer of the same name - with this being before Bobby's introduction - while Jerry Wanek worked as a production designer on the show.

Wedge Antilles

Sam reunited with Dean after he returns from hell in Supernatural

While it is always funny to hear a fun meta nod or a pop culture reference in Winchester's aliases, sometimes their aliases are used to showcase the relationship between the two, such as in "Lazarus Rising."

Attempting to hunt an AWOL Sam down, Dean looks for him under the alias of Wedge Antilles. Bobby inquires how Dean knows Sam will use the name of the iconic Star Wars pilot, and quite simply, Dean just knows Sam well enough to know that's the name he would use, which really sums up their relationship.

Landis & Dante

Sam and Dean pose as agents Landis and Dante in Supernatural

"Heart" is a fantastic early episode of Supernatural, seeing Sam form a romantic connection with the werewolf Madison and exploring werewolves in general, proving them to be one of the best monsters-of-the-week of the Kripke era.

In the episode, Dean introduces himself and Sam as Agents Landis and Dante, in reference to two famous film directors who made two famous werewolf movies. John Landis directed An American Werewolf In London while Joe Dante directed The Howling; the two are incredibly popular 80s films.

Lemmy Kilmister

Sam tracks and hunts down demon Dean in Supernatural

A lot of Sam and Dean committing fraud relies on their infinite charm and reliance on whoever they are lying to not questioning the names they choose or not recognizing the rock stars Dean adores.

Sometimes, fans cannot help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the running joke, like when the boys just straight up claim to be named Lemmy Kilmister, the late great lead singer of Motörhead. Dean uses the name Agent Kilmister, and in season 10, Sam uses the full name on a business card as he hunts down demon Dean in "Reichenbach." Motörhead's kick-ass music does not appear much in Supernatural, but one of their best songs is pointedly used after Chuck betrays the boys in "Moriah."

Spears & Aguilera

Sam and Dean get given the names agents Spears and Aguilera by Castiel in Supernatural

When Castiel firmly joins the Winchester family, living in the bunker and becoming a hunter, he takes a while to understand a lot of things Sam and Dean did, never fully grasping the names the pair chose as aliases.

As such, when he arrives at a crime scene before the boys, he tells the residing police officer on the case that their names are Agents Spears and Aguilera. Cas chose these names since they are the names of famous musicians Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, a hilarious mishap by the fallen angel.

Stark & Banner

Sam and Dean pose as Agents Stark and Banner in Supernatural

How Sam and Dean did not get arrested far more than they did is beyond fans' comprehension, especially when they walk up to military officers and claim to be Agents Stark and Banner.

This happens in season 9, which came out in 2014, smack bang in the middle of the hype surrounding the MCU, so the fact that they got away with posing as Tony Stark and Bruce Banner is ludicrous but hilarious.

Clint Eastwood & Walker

Dean Winchester during a shootoff against a Phoenix in Frontierland in Supernatural

Nowadays, since the end of Supernatural, Jared Padalecki has been starring in Walker. While The Simpsons is usually known for its future-predicting tendencies, back in "Frontierland," Supernatural seemed to do just that for Padalecki.

After returning to an old western town, Dean poses as Clint Eastwood, giving Sam the name Walker, and calling him a Texas Ranger. This is referencing Eastwood as a famous western actor - a genre Dean is seriously nerdy about - and the show Walker, Texas Ranger.

Plant & Page (& Bonham & Jones)

Sam mocks Dean for his casette tape collection and Dean says Driver Picks the music shotgun shuts his cakehole in Supernatural

When it comes to Dean's love of music and "the greatest hits of mullet rock," as Sam calls it, Led Zeppelin is the be-all-end-all. A favorite of not only Dean and his father, John, but show creator Eric Kripke, there are references aplenty to the rock legends.

The Winchesters use countless music aliases. From Metallica to AC/DC to Ted Nugent to Bon Jovi to so many more. Led Zeppelin, though, is one of their go-to's. The boys, along with Cas, rotate through the names Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and John Bonham, with the band being referenced numerous times in the show's fifteen seasons in various ways.

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