‘Breaking Bad’ Spinoff, ‘Better Call Saul,’ Is Picked Up by AMC
Ursula Coyote/AMC, via Associated Press Bob Odenkirk plays the lawyer Saul Goodman on "Breaking Bad." The character will be the basis of a new series, "Better Call Saul."
The news for “Breaking Bad†fans isn’t all bleak, as their much-loved series draws to a close.
Saul Goodman will be back in his own series.
AMC and the Sony Pictures Television announced on Wednesday that “Better Call Saul†â€" the long-rumored spinoff of “Breaking Bad†â€" is going forward, with Bob Odenkirk set to star as Saul, the morally comprised lawyer who has represented the meth dealers Walter White and Jesse Pinkman.
The news behind the announcement is that AMC is the network that wound up with the show. Despite the iconic status achieved by “Breaking Bad,†the network did not jump to buy the spinoff; that hesitation allowed several other networks to express serious interest in picking it up.
The negotiations went down to the wire, according to one executive briefed on the details. AMC had an exclusive negotiating period, but no deal was in place by the time that ended. Out of consideration for the partnership over “Breaking Bad,†however, the period was extended and AMC and Sony concluded a deal.
The planned series, which does not yet have a date to go on the air, will be a prequel rather than a sequel â€" which, for rabid “Bad†fans, who continue to obsess over every possible outcome of the series, means the Saul character does not necessarily survive. The new show will cover the evolution of Saul into the colorful character “Bad†fans have come to love.
