It was from an interview he did at the rpg codex:
Question: So if you don't choose an origin, you can still get that character as an NPC?
Swen: Yeah, they're all in there. They'll become your companions then.
then in answer to a different question Swen gave this answer:
You select an avatar, and only the avatar gets his origin quest. The companions don't have their origin quests.
http://www.rpgcodex.net/content.php?id=10387
