Tag Archives: Better Call Saul

Status update #8 on your favorite new and returning shows

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May is fast approaching, the month when the majority of network TV series reach their season finales, some with cliffhangers galore. We’re still waiting on many network executives to make final decisions on the fate of their shows, and today I’m back with the latest report concerning your favorite ones. Without further ado…

CBS, in typical fashion, is bringing back the majority of its programming next fall. In one fell swoop, The Eye renewed 11 series: dramas Blue Bloods, NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, Hawaii Five-0, Madam Secretary, Elementary, and Scorpion, comedies Mom and 2 Broke Girls, and reality shows Survivor and The Amazing Race. Elsewhere, the time has come to say goodbye to Person of Interest. The addicting crime procedural/serial hybrid from executive producers J.J. Abrams, Jonathan Nolan, and Greg Plageman debuts its fifth and final season on Tuesday, May 3. The EPs released a joint statement for fans, and you can read it after the break.

FOX, meanwhile, is placing lots of confidence in striving drama Gotham and reliably funny comedies Brooklyn Nine-Nine and The Last Man on Earth. The DC Comics-based series will return for a third season, and the Andy Samberg and Will Forte sitcoms have secured a fourth and third season, respectively.

ABC swiftly removed biblical drama Of Kings and Prophets from its primetime schedule after two wildly low-rated airings. The end.

FXX is primed to make history with a two-season pickup of veteran sitcom It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. Seasons 13 and 14 are currently in the works, and if FX’s sister network eventually greenlights a record-breaking 15th season, it will make It’s Always Sunny the longest-running live-action comedy series of all-time.

AMC, in the least surprising move, has announced that it wants more Better Call Saul. The Breaking Bad spinoff is officially coming back for a 10-episode third season in 2017. Elsewhere on the cable network, martial arts drama Into the Badlands secured a second season.

One dislikes ending on a sour note, but here goes: HBO has opted not to bring back Togetherness for a third season. Its second season, which currently has two episodes remaining, will be its last. The underrated drama from filmmaking brothers Jay and Mark Duplass puts marriage and friendship under a microscope and explores adult relationships with strong sense of finesse and intimate emotion. This one will be missed. Continue reading Status update #8 on your favorite new and returning shows →

10 premieres to look out for this month: ‘Better Call Saul,’ ‘American Crime Story,’ ‘Fuller House’ & more

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It may be a mild winter for east coasters, but that’s not stopping the incoming storm of highly anticipation programming from hitting the airwaves this month. There are a whopping five series premieres you cannot miss (including FX’s American Crime Story and Netflix’s Fuller House), plus the sophomore runs of AMC’s Better Call Saul and HBO’s Togetherness, among others. Jump after the break for the full rundown. Continue reading 10 premieres to look out for this month: ‘Better Call Saul,’ ‘American Crime Story,’ ‘Fuller House’ & more →

TV reminder: 4 premieres to look out for in February

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February is all about quality over quantity in terms of appealing premieres to look out for. The new month packs two specials, one highly anticipated series premiere, and the return of the show that popularized the art of binge-watching. It’s all after the break. Continue reading TV reminder: 4 premieres to look out for in February →

Saul Goodman meets Mike Ehrmantraut in ‘Better Call Saul’ pilot preview

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Better Call Saul is coming soon, and to celebrate its anticipated premiere, AMC aired an actual scene pulled directly from the pilot episode during Sunday night’s tragic midseason finale of The Walking Dead. In it, Bob Odenkirk’s Saul Goodman prototype Jimmy McGill meets a familiar face for the first time: it’s Jonathan Banks as Mike Ehrmantraut who’s reprising his character from Breaking Bad. As you’d probably guess, things don’t get off to such a great start for these two.

BCS premieres Feb. 8 at 10pm on AMC.

‘Better Call Saul’ behind the scenes

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Perhaps this will help you ride out the anticipation for Vince Gilligan’s next AMC project: it’s a behind the scenes look at Better Call Saul, the highly anticipated Breaking Bad prequel/spinoff starring Bob Odenkirk as sleazy lawyer Saul Goodman small-time lawyer Jimmy McGill. In the clip you’ll hear from Odenkirk, other cast members including Jonathan Banks (reprising Mike Ehrmantraut) and Michael McKean (he’s playing Jimmy’s brother Chuck McGill), as well as members of the show’s crew.

Better Call Saul premieres in February.

Catchy ‘Better Call Saul’ music video teases ‘Breaking Bad’ spinoff sensibilities

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Saul, Saul, you better call Saul / He’ll fight for your rights when your back’s to the wall / Stick it the man, justice for all / You better call Saul!

The hype machine for Breaking Bad prequel-spinoff hybrid Better Call Saul is officially up and running now that a music video for it is out. Country musician Junior Brown belts out a catchy tune written by Saul co-creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould and series composer Dave Porter. This sure is a unique way to market a new show, and I’ve got to say they pretty much nailed it. Over the course of the song, a couple of fine ladies wheel out televisions featuring Walter White’s lawyer played by Bob Odenkirk and viewers will catch a handful of glimpses from the upcoming series.

Better Call Saul debuts in February on AMC, and it has already been renewed for a second season set to bow later in 2016.

Mini teaser: AMC’s ‘Better Call Saul’

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Here’s your very first look at Bob Odenkirk as lawyer Jimmy McGill, the protagonist of Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould’s Breaking Bad spinoff/prequel series. As we already know, Better Call Saul takes place six years before the Saul meets Walter White; it will take time before McGill transforms into criminal lawyer “Saul Goodman” audiences have come to know and love. This is the teasiest of teasers clocking in at a mere 10 seconds, but the clip does just enough to remind viewers of Odenkirk’s magic plus we get premiere timeframe: February 2015. Let the countdown begin.

Update (8/24): Gilligan & Gould talk Saul in a new teaser embedded after the break. Continue reading Mini teaser: AMC’s ‘Better Call Saul’ →

More ‘Better Call Saul’ details emerge

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Breaking Bad‘s Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould showed up at this year’s TCAs to promote their next venture, spinoff Better Call Saul, and some interesting tidbits surfaced.

First off, the series is set in 2002; but like Breaking Bad, it will bounce around in time. “I think the best way to answer this is that you saw, from Breaking Bad, we like nonlinear storytelling,” shared Gilligan. “I would definitely point you in the direction of anything that is possible on Breaking Bad is possible on Better Call Saul. It’s fun for us to be as nonlinear as possible.” Also, when we meet Bob Odenkirk’s Saul Goodman in the pilot that won’t be his name; much like Walter White’s transformation into Heisenberg, viewers will witness Jimmy McGill’s transformation into Saul Goodman.

An official show description sheds some more light: “The series is set six years before Saul Goodman meets Walter White. When we meet him, the man who will become Saul Goodman is known as Jimmy McGill, a small-time lawyer searching for his destiny, and, more immediately, hustling to make ends meet. Working alongside, and, often, against Jimmy, is ‘fixer’ Mike Ehrmantraut, a beloved character introduced in Breaking Bad. The series will track Jimmy’s transformation into Saul Goodman, the man who puts ‘criminal’ in ‘Criminal lawyer.’”

Since the show will bounce around in time, there is a possibility for Breaking Bad favorites like WW to enter the fray. In fact, one Bad character in particular was discussed at the TCA panel: Giancarlo Esposito’s Gustavo Fring. On his potential to show up in Saul Gould said, “There’s always a chance, yeah…with Gus there is so much more to say about that character, and we certainly love Giancarlo. Having said that, we’re trying to make something that stands on its own that has an entertainment value that’s not just seeing a series of old favorites. It’s not the series equivalent of a clip show. So we try to balance these things out. But I agree there’s so much to be said about Gus — although in the series it always seemed to me that Saul didn’t know Gus directly. He knew a guy who knew a guy.”

Better Call Saul premieres on AMC in 2015. Eye two new images from the production above and after the break (below, that’s Odenkirk with Michael McKean who plays Saul’s brother Chuck in the series).

[Via Deadline; TVLine; EW] Continue reading More ‘Better Call Saul’ details emerge →

‘Breaking Bad’ spinoff ‘Better Call Saul’ coming in 2015, renewed for season 2, may incorporate ‘Bad’ favorites

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Better Call Saul is coming soon and here’s your first look at the Breaking Bad prequel series starring Bob Odenkirk as the scheming lawyer Saul Goodman. Standing to his right are executive producer Peter Gould (a former Bad exec producer and the inventor of the Saul character) and Bad mastermind Vince Gilligan (who will serve as co-showrunner on Saul alongside Gould and direct the series pilot).

Some new information has surfaced since AMC announced the highly anticipated Breaking Bad spinoff. First of all, the new series was originally intended to premiere this November, but the network decided that more time was needed to prep so now Saul Goodman won’t return to our screens until early 2015. Such news typically stings, but AMC is putting a damper on that by greenlighting a 13-episode second season before the first 10 episodes even launch! That’s right–Bad fans who intend to flock to Saul are already guaranteed a healthy serving of 23 episodes of Gilligan and Gould’s next drama.

Also, there’s this: Jonathan Banks aka Bad‘s dearly departed Mike Ehrmantraut is joining Odenkirk as a series regular! And that’s not all. Gould recently spilled to The New York Daily News that “perhaps some of [Better Call Saul] takes place before Breaking Bad, during Breaking Bad, and after Breaking Bad.” So what does this mean? “That gives us the ability to bring back characters that were killed on Breaking Bad.” Boom. All hail Walter White and his prodigal son Jesse Pinkman?

As exciting as that may sound–Bad favorites, dead or otherwise, returning to the small screen–Gould assures viewers that his new show “stands on it own, is its own story, and is a brand extension” and will not rely on flashy guest spots from Bad alumni. Still, leaving the door open for Mr. White and Jesse “Magnets, Bitch!” Pinkman to return for more mayhem is an exciting proposition to say the least.

AMC president Charlie Collier said the following surrounding the news of Better Call Saul‘s premiere date shift and early season 2 renewal: “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. 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.”

‘Breaking Bad’ spinoff series starring Saul Goodman is happening!

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For those of you who are experience great anxiety as we near the end of Breaking Bad, I have some very, very exciting news for you. After the AMC staple concludes, one of its most memorable characters will live on. That’s right, I’m talking about the one and only Saul Goodman. Walter White’s fast-talking lawyer and absolute scene-stealer is getting his very own spinoff series imagined by Breaking Bad mastermind Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, the man who invented the sly comic relief character.

Perhaps the aforementioned phrase “live on” isn’t so appropriate here. Goodman very well may die a bloody death before the series comes to a close and yet the spinoff will remain in tact. Are you connecting the dots here? The spinoff is a prequel series meaning it will take place before Goodman was even acquainted with The One Who Knocks. Tentatively titled Better Call Saul, the prequel spinoff “will focus on the evolution” of the well-connected lawyer. Bob Odenkirk, the comic who currently portrays Goodman, is expected to sign on to reprise the role.

The Goodman spinoff will be a one-hour drama despite its main character being as funny as Odenkirk can be. In an exchange with EW, Gould shares his early vision and tells Breaking Bad fans to expect–what else–the unexpected. “We’re using the kind of storytelling that we did on Breaking Bad but in a really new way. When people think of a Saul Goodman spin-off, they tend to think in terms of a laugh-a-minute comedy, and we’re going for something that has a very very unique tone. To play with a main character who has the unique morality that Saul Goodman does is going to be in its own way as much of an experiment as Breaking Bad was.”

When asked why give someone like Saul Goodman his own series, Gould was quick to answer: “He’s not a character I’ve seen before. So much of Breaking Bad is about playing out ideas of morality and how you live in the world, and this is a guy who has a philosophy which is internally consistent but is also kind of strange. In addition to the fact that he always amuses us and we’re always ready to see more, the guy is a problem solver. He solves problems in his own way. He’s just as innovative as Walt is, so that really gives us a lot of stories and a lot of places to go with him.”

AMC and Sony Pictures Television reached a licensing agreement to make the show, and in time a pilot and/or series order is fully expected to be greenlit. Stay tuned.

[Via Deadline; EW]