'Breaking Bad' spinoff 'Better Call Saul' is a go

Bob Odenkirk as Saul Goodman in "Breaking Bad." (Ursula Coyote / AMC / February 9, 2011)

The “Breaking Bad” spinoff “Better Call Saul” is a go. AMC and Sony, the producers of “Breaking Bad,” announced a prequel Wednesday starring Bob Odenkirk as New Mexico’s sleaziest lawyer.

The fact that the show will be a prequel opens up a lot of possibilities: It could leave room, for example, to tell us how Saul Goodman first met Gustavo Fring. Giancarlo Esposito, who played Fring on the show, has told TheWrap he would be open to the idea of dropping in on a prequel. (He now stars on NBC’s “Revolution.”)

“Better Call Saul” is the working title, but come on: How can they do better? The series will find Odenkirk, co-creator of HBO’s groundbreaking “Mr. Show,” doing shady dealings before Walter White ever put a dollar in his pocket.

“AMC and Sony Pictures Television confirmed today that they have reached a licensing agreement for a spinoff of Vince Gilligan’s landmark AMC/SPT series "Breaking Bad,” they said in a statement. “As conceived, the new series is based on the show’s popular Saul Goodman character with the working title ‘Better Call Saul.’ Plans call for Saul to be a one-hour prequel that will focus on the evolution of the popular Saul Goodman character before he ever became Walter White’s lawyer.”

“Breaking Bad” creator Vince Gilligan has said in the past that he plans to be involved in the spinoff at first, and then hand off to “Breaking Bad” writer Peter Gould, who created Saul.

Gilligan previously told TheWrap he and Gould weren’t sure if the prequel would be a half-hour comedy with dramatic elements or an hourlong drama with comedic ones. Apparently they’ve landed on the latter.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/chi-breaking-bad-spinoff-20130911,0,7453968.story?utm_campaign=linkbox_override&utm_source=chicagotribune&utm_content=url

I have faith in Gilligan. My first thought is that a little Saul goes a long way... he's great comic relief when you need it but not sure I could watch him for an hour.

I was thinking after the last episode that the better spinoff might be Todd & Lydia's romance through the criminal underworld. Think about it... they could travel to exotic locations, perpetrate imaginative crimes and then DO IT.

A prequel?!?! That means Saul could still die. NO!!!!!!!!!!!!

i think they ought to leave well enough alone

I was somewhat interested in the idea... but a prequel idk how i feel about that yet.

They could even show us how Mike came to be such a bad ass.

Could be promising.

muirdo said:

They could even show us how Mike came to be such a bad ass.

Could be promising.