Many TV shows overstay their welcome, lumbering on for season after season like a zombie, a shell of its former self. But not Breaking Bad! The riveting AMC drama ran for just five seasons, then went out on a high note, concluding with a very satisfying ending. Like The Wire, The Sopranos and Mad Men, it's a perennial pick for one of the best dramas of all time.
In the series, mild-mannered high school science teacher Walter White, played by Bryan Cranston, discovers he has terminal lung cancer. Faced with limited funds and an existential crisis, he decides to start cooking up crystal meth with drop-out junkie Jesse Pinkman, played by Aaron Paul. They quickly become America's Top Meth Chefs, and Walter grows obsessed with power, transforming into the violent sociopath Heisenberg. Tread lightly.
In the final episode, Walter White schemes to deliver his meth fortune to his family while evading a national manhunt. Upon discovering that Jesse is held captive by the same Neo-Nazi gang that double-crossed him, he storms their hideout with a machine gun. At the end of the bloody battle, Walt collapses on the floor from a wound (or the insidious cancer), and lies motionless, with a slight smile. Meanwhile, Jeese speeds away in an El Camino, sobbing with joy.
The story continued through the critically acclaimed spinoff series, Better Call Saul. Each season opens with a black-and-white 'flash-forward' to the events after Breaking Bad, but for the most part, it's a prequel. The drama shows how former scam artist Jimmy McGill, played by Bob Odenkirk, strives to become a respectable lawyer, then transforms into flamboyant criminal lawyer, Saul Goodman. The show features many Breaking Bad characters, like Mike Ehrmantraut, Gus Fring and Tuco Salamanca, but Jesse and Walt haven't popped up yet.
If you're hoping for some closure on Jesse Pinkman's story, great news! Vince Gilligan, the creator of Breaking Bad, is writing a sequel film that will "follow the escape of a kidnapped man and his quest for freedom." According to The Hollywood Reporter, Aaron Paul will reprise his Emmy-winning role, and the movie will premiere on Netflix first, then air on AMC. (The opposite of how the series originally aired.) Sources say Gilligan will executive produce and direct the project.
During an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, Bryan Cranston confirmed that the Jesse Pinkman movie is a thing. "It's a great story and there are a lot of people who felt that they wanted to see some kind of completion to some of these storylines that were left open," said the actor. "This idea, from what I'm told, gets into those — at least a couple of the character show were not completed, as far as their journey."
Cranston added that he would "absolutely" like to appear in the film, if asked, despite Walter White being dead. "I don't know if there's an appearance — flashbacks, flash forwards — but I'm excited about it because it's Breaking Bad and it was the greatest professional period of my life and I can't wait to see all those people again, even if I just come by to visit," he stated.
According to the Albuquerque Journal, production was scheduled to begin in New Mexico at the end of 2018, under the code name 'Greenbriar.' As of this writing, no official title or release date have been released. However, I think we can be pretty confident Jesse will say the word 'bitch' at some point.
