We knew he was main character since season 5, but this scene cemented Crowley's status as a fan favorite.

Summary:

We all fell in love with Mark Sheppard's Crowley with his very first "Hello, boys," but in fact, the actor's journey on The CW's classic was a bumpy one. The future King of Hell was introduced back in season 5 (the one many fans consider the true finale of the show), and remained for seven seasons until suddenly bidding adieu in the end of season 12.

In season 10, the creators finally acknowledged the importance of Crowley for the story, and Sheppard was promoted to a series regular. However, Crowley as a character peaked in season 8 — and one particular scene serves not only as proof of that, but also as an acting lesson from a true master.

If we were to choose, it's simple — we wouldn't, because there is the final episode of season 8, titled Sacrifice.

The title already implies a huge tragedy, and Supernatural didn't let us down on this one — Sam Winchester did, in fact, make a sacrifice in order to close the gates of Hell by finishing the trials and turning Crowley into a human.

The trial envisaged Sam forcing his blood on Crowley, whose demonic entity would turn into a human one because of that. Well, we all saw the effect; after trying to keep it all cool and hell-ish for a while, Crowley breaks down and delivers a heart-wrenching monologue about how he wants — and deserves — to be loved.

This was a beginning of one of the best arcs in the entire show that had Crowley explore his vulnerable part later in the series. However, the entire monologue was Emmy-worthy, as many fans still believe. Mark Sheppard then delivered some more heartbreaking performances in season 9, but the end of season 8 was definitely Crowley's peak.

Just two years after being promoted to a series regular, however, Sheppard abruptly exited Supernatural. Apparently, the actor didn't like the creative direction the writers were taking with his character, which is why Crowley had to sacrifice himself in the end of season 12, falling victim to Lucifer.

Sheppard felt let down by the writers, and his exit was not exactly a friendly goodbye, even though the actor continues to appear on Supernatural fan conventions to this day. Many fans share his frustration about Crowley's arc, believing that the writers basically ruined a very promising character.