Better Call Saulco-creator Peter Gould reveals what the show would have done if Bob Odenkirk did not recover from his heart attack.Odenkirk suffered a massive heart attack on setduring a break from filming the eighth episode of season 6. Fortunately, Odenkirk survived and made a full recovery. Filming later resumed with the actor, andBetter Call Saul’s ending, and the entire final season, went on to receive extensive acclaim, with much of the praise directed at Odenkirk’s phenomenal performance.
In Alan Sepinwall’s bookSaul Goodman v. Jimmy McGill: The Complete Companion To Better Call Saul(viaRolling Stone), Gould was asked if he and his creative team ever discussed what they would do if Odenkirk was unable to return to the show, or if he could only return in a limited way. Gould shared that he and his teamwould have droppedBetter Call Saulif Odenkirk could not return. While Odenkirk recovered, the focus was on shooting scenes without him, which primarily involved Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) and Gustavo Fring (Giancarlo Esposito). Read Gould’s comments below:
Not really. Most of our conversations were, “What can we keep shooting right now?” And we got very lucky, because at that point in the season, suddenly you had a lot of material with Mike and with Gus, and we had some little pickups to do for previous episodes. So we were only down for three or four days, and then the crew was back to work and shooting.
But look, if he hadn’t been himself… [long pause] It didn’t really bear thinking about, but I will say, I think we would’ve just dropped the show. I think Sony would’ve had to take a terrible financial loss, because it would be an utterly incomplete story. And they were shooting the scene that comes immediately after Lalo has shot Howard. There’s no rewriting to get around that. That’s about all I can say. We were ready to dump the whole thing. I mean, I wasn’t thinking about that. It’s too complicated. It was too big to really kind of think it through. But I’m sure somebody deep in the bowels of Sony had to start doing some calculations about what kind of loss they’d have to take, and thank God it didn’t happen.
What This Means For Better Call Saul
The Show Couldn’t Go On Without Bob Odenkirk
Gould recognized that without Odenkirk, there was noBetter Call Saul. He played the titular character, was the face of the show, and as important asBetter Call Saul’s other characterswere, it was ultimately the story of Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill. It would have been bothdisingenuous and logistically impractical to finish making the show without Odenkirk. No amount of rewriting, recasting, or technology could do justice to the character the way that Odenkirk had done since he was first introduced inBreaking Badseason 2.
Breaking Bad Timeline: When The Shows & Movie All Take Place
The Breaking Bad franchise consists of two shows and a movie. Here’s a breakdown of the timeline for all, including Better Call Saul and El Camino.
Better Call Saulbeing a prequel not only for Saul, but for all ofBreaking Badensured there was still plenty to film without the protagonist, especially where Mike and Gus were concerned. While this was what Gould and his team focused on, they wereprepared to drop the show entirely and leave it unfinished if Odenkirk was unable to recover and return. Odenkirk’s successful recovery and his return to filming ensured that this was not the end result.
Our Take On Peter Gould’s Comments
Without Bob Odenkirk, Canceling Season 6 Would’ve Been The Right Call
Gould’s comments speak volumes about the integrity that he and his team had, along with how much they valued Odenkirk.Better Call Saulending after season 5 would have been controversial, but it would have been the right decision. Jimmy’s full transformation into Saul,Jimmy’s relationship with Kim Wexler(Rhea Seehorn), Kim’s fate, and other storylines would have been left unresolved. This never became the reality, though, asOdenkirk returned and delivered arguably the best performance in his entire careerasBetter Call Saulconcluded on a deeply satisfying note.
Source: Saul Goodman v. Jimmy McGill: The Complete Companion To Better Call Saul (viaRolling Stone)
