If you’ve been a fan of the extremely popular and critically acclaimed AMC series Breaking Bad, you’re more than familiar with the character of Saul Goodman. The witty and charmingly funny (and corrupt) lawyer played by Bob Odenkirk is getting his own stand-alone spin-off series, dealing with the life of Saul Goodman before he met up with the meth kingpin Walter White (played brilliantly in Breaking Bad by Bryan Cranston). AMC has decided to create the spin-off series in light of the success of the character and the original series.
While the pilot hasn’t even aired yet, a second season for Better Call Saul has already been green-lit, so we’ll be seeing plenty of the money-hungry Saul. Initially set for a November launch, the series has been pushed back to early 2015. Season 1 of Better Call Saul will contain 13 episodes, and the second season is set for an early 2016 release. That’s quite a long way ahead still, but it’s nice to see that AMC is confident in Bob Odenkirk’s ability to carry his own show. This take on the future of Better Call Saul highlights the fact that AMC is bleeding for some new powerhouse series, as Breaking Bad is now officially over, and Mad Men is in its final season. Speaking of which, Mad Men’s seventh and final season has been broken up into two parts, as was the case with Breaking Bad, so we’ll have to wait until 2015 to see more of Donald Draper.
Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan will of course be heavily involved with Better Call Saul, and will serve as the show’s co-runner and executive producer, as well as the director of some of the show’s episodes, such as the first episode. “Production on Better Call Saul is underway and we could not be more proud of nor more excited about the work to date. We join the fans in eager anticipation for this series and today we happily confirm that our initial Saul order is for two seasons and a total of 23 episodes” declared AMC’s president Charlie Collier. “When introducing any series, especially one with the DNA of Breaking Bad, there are countless factors to consider in making sure the show gets the launch it deserves. We have a strong history with Vince, Peter, Bob, the studio and so many involved with this production; we are enjoying the process on ‘Saul’ and all share a focus on making it a true television event. No half measures.” he explained.
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While Walter White or Jesse Pinkman won’t be making a return for the spin-off series (at least not officially), some old characters from Breaking Bad will in fact appear. Mike Ehrmantraut, played by Jonathan Banks will be one of the Breaking Bad stars to also star in the prequel series. For more, we’ll just have to wait for the beginning of 2015, when we’ll be able to sink our teeth into the goofy lawyer’s early days.