It's an unusual path to take toward renewal, but The CW has pretty much confirmed that Supernatural will return for an eighth season by making the following announcement:

Sera Gamble is stepping down from the role of co-showrunner, a title she has held alongside Robert Singer for the past two years. She will be replaced by Jeremy Carver, a former producer who left to run Being Human for Syfy last year.

According to Deadline, Gamble will remain with the network and focus on development. Carver, meanwhile, has penned such Supernatural episodes as “In the Beginning,” “Mystery Spot” and “Changing Channels.”

No official word yet from The CW about a season eight pick-up, but hard to imagine it would take this step unless one was imminent.

As previewed above, Supernatural returns with a new episode on April 20.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.