{"id":8287,"date":"2017-09-26T09:10:02","date_gmt":"2017-09-26T13:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/worldscreen.com\/"},"modified":"2017-10-04T17:53:41","modified_gmt":"2017-10-04T21:53:41","slug":"exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/","title":{"rendered":"Bob Odenkirk"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>In the second season of AMC\u2019s critically acclaimed Breaking Bad<\/em>, viewers were introduced to Saul Goodman, a fast-talking criminal lawyer enlisted by Walter White to help launder his meth empire earnings. The character, played by Bob Odenkirk in his first dramatic role, was so compelling that once Breaking Bad<\/em> ended its run, he was given his own spin-off show. Creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould have used Better Call Saul<\/em> as an origin story, telling the tale of Jimmy McGill, a former con man turned struggling attorney trying to do right by the brother he admires and the woman he loves.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> Congratulations on the Emmy nomination!
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> It\u2019s pretty exciting. The writing is the star, and it helps me so much, and then on top of it I am surrounded by astounding, powerful performers, like Jonathan Banks [who plays Mike Ehrmantraut] and the great Michael McKean, who played my brother, Chuck. Boy, I tell you, you get in a room with those people and you raise your game.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> When did you first start talking to Peter Gould and Vince Gilligan about the prospect of a show focused on Saul?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> Vince Gilligan came to me in the third season of Breaking Bad<\/em>, which was the second season that Saul appeared [in], and said, \u201cDo you think there\u2019s a show in that character? Because I do.\u201d And then I said, \u201cIf you do, then there probably is one!\u201d Vince is one of the great writers of our era. That was really my only response when Vince would bring it up, and he would bring it up once a year. Then, a few months after Breaking Bad<\/em> ended production, we got together to talk about it seriously. Peter Gould\u2014who wrote the first script that featured Saul Goodman and who writes the comedy and the gamesmanship of Saul really well\u2014Vince and I got together at the wonderful Chateau Marmont, a classic Hollywood location. We shot the shit about whether there was a TV show in this. They didn\u2019t know what it would be. They thought it could be a half-hour comedy. They thought it could be a one-hour procedural. In the end it became a lot more like Breaking Bad<\/em> than like either of those two ideas, but still not entirely like Breaking Bad<\/em>.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> Jimmy McGill is so different from Saul Goodman. How did you connect with that character after so many years of being Saul?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> He\u2019s striving to please his brother and to get the respect and appreciation of Kim, the girl he loves. I think most people have someone in their lives\u2014a parent or a sibling or a mentor\u2014whose respect they\u2019d love to have. Maybe they get it, but very often they don\u2019t, for a variety of reasons. I don\u2019t think that\u2019s too hard to relate to, even though I can\u2019t think of anyone in my life I feel that way about. But trying to find out who you are and where you fit in society is something I can relate to. It\u2019s rare to know what you should be, occupation-wise, and how you should behave so that the world around you says, Yes, you got it exactly right! Most people do go through a journey of finding that what they love doesn\u2019t necessarily marry with what their skills are or what the world tells them they should be, and over time they try to get them to fit together.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> How do you feel about getting closer and closer to being Saul Goodman again?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> I don\u2019t love Saul, I love Jimmy, so it kind of breaks my heart, to be honest with you. Jimmy has been trying to do the right thing over and over again, and he\u2019s not gaining any ground. Because that isn\u2019t working for him, he\u2019s going to decide to reject people, society and ethics, and he\u2019s going to be mercenary about himself and his life and just take. That\u2019s a shame. It makes me sad. Innocence is being lost, for sure. So I don\u2019t know what to tell you. That\u2019s the journey we\u2019re on. Tough beans for me!<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> Let\u2019s talk about your journey as an actor. You\u2019ve done so much comedy\u2014what was the biggest challenge in taking on more dramatic work?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> Well, I love that it was a challenge. And it was a challenge. I was thrilled at the idea of getting to do something fundamentally different from what I\u2019ve spent 30 years doing. I wasn\u2019t sure if it would work! I just knew that the only way to do it would be to completely give myself over to it and try to do it as honestly as I could and work hard at it. I do a lot of rehearsal. I guess the fear of failing on a world stage was pretty massive! On the other hand, I was risking something that I didn\u2019t even have, which was a presence as a dramatic actor and a reputation in that department. So I wasn\u2019t risking something that I\u2019d worked toward all my life. Breaking Bad<\/em> was loved around the world, so whatever we did was going to be watched and judged around the world. That\u2019s a pretty big gamble to take with yourself and your reputation. And we were just crazy enough to do it.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> How does your improv background inform the scripted work you\u2019re doing now? Has it helped your transition into drama?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> Without a doubt. I was initially drawn to sketch comedy because of Monty Python\u2019s Flying Circus<\/em>, which was my favorite show as a kid. In doing sketch comedy, you\u2019re going to be around a lot of improvisation, especially in Chicago. Most improvisation exercises were invented to be used for dramatic purposes. I\u2019ve gotten to know some of the people who helped bring improvisation to the masses, if you will, like Del Close and Keith Johnstone. Those guys sold it as something to get an actor to play the moment and to be in the moment and to listen and to be present. So doing a fair amount of improv and thinking about it is all for the good of helping you play some things dramatically. What\u2019s great about it is that it simplifies your job. Your job is to get to know the character, but at some point it\u2019s to let go of all that planning and be that person and be in the moment and react. If I\u2019m any good in drama, it\u2019s due in large part to the improvisational training that I\u2019ve had with Del Close and with The Second City in Chicago and numerous other places.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> Do you consult with Peter and Vince on your story arcs or character development?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> It\u2019s funny you ask that. I was just with Peter yesterday, and we sat down for about an hour and a half and talked about every aspect of the show\u2014production, story, all kinds of things. Sometimes, if there\u2019s something in the script that bumps me, I\u2019ll call him and say, Why am I saying this? Why am I doing that? But as far as the overall journey, I try to stay out of it. I speak to them literally as a fan of the show. I say, Here\u2019s what I think is going to happen, here\u2019s what I wish would happen. And I don\u2019t know how much that means to them. They listen! [Laughs<\/em>] They act like they care! Yesterday I told Peter a thought I had about the show. Our universe is becoming the Breaking Bad<\/em> universe. And you can feel it. That\u2019s both good and bad. It\u2019s good because it\u2019s super fun\u2014for a fan of Breaking Bad<\/em>, it just makes you happy. It\u2019s kind of bad, too, because we could lose the emphasis on this wonderful, unique story that they\u2019ve chosen to tell and that has connected with people\u2014the story of Jimmy and Kim. So we talked about that and ways in which we could upend the journey so that people got to enjoy the fact that we are going to become the universe of Breaking Bad<\/em>, but not in a way that feels like it\u2019s the point of our show, because it isn\u2019t. I think there are ways you could do that. But I\u2019ve got to leave it to Peter and Vince to choose what they do.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> Do you expect that there will be a post\u2013Breaking Bad<\/em> story to tell, of Gene managing the Cinnabon in Omaha?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> I do! That\u2019s something that I hope Peter and Vince do. And that\u2019s something that they\u2019ve told me they are also interested in. So I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s one episode or a season or what, but yes, there\u2019s a story to tell with Gene and the post\u2013Breaking Bad<\/em> world that he lives in.<\/p>\n

WS:<\/strong> Where would Saul be if he\u2019d never crossed paths with Walter White and Jesse Pinkman?
\nODENKIRK:<\/strong> He\u2019d be running his law offices in that mall, serving the homeboys and the gangsters, and he\u2019d be struggling but making some coin! I think he\u2019s good at that, and there\u2019s money to be made there. The whole interaction with Walter and Jesse was like putting all your money on one number that looks really good and then turns out to be a bust. He wouldn\u2019t have had that opportunity to bet it all, and he wouldn\u2019t have bet it all, and he\u2019d still be a sleazy lawyer making a half-decent living. And who knows, maybe running for office!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

World Screen speaks to Bob Odenkirk about Better Call Saul and the character Jimmy McGill, including his feelings about inching closer to being Saul Goodman again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":290,"featured_media":8340,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68],"tags":[561,962],"class_list":["post-8287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-interviews","tag-better-call-saul","tag-bob-odenkirk","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\nBob Odenkirk - TVDRAMA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bob Odenkirk - TVDRAMA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"World Screen speaks to Bob Odenkirk about Better Call Saul and the character Jimmy McGill, including his feelings about inching closer to being Saul Goodman again.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TVDRAMA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-09-26T13:10:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-10-04T21:53:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/9-Bob-Odenkirk.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"423\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mansha Daswani\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mansha Daswani\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/\",\"name\":\"Bob Odenkirk - TVDRAMA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2017-09-26T13:10:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-10-04T21:53:41+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#\/schema\/person\/83da304c8bad8bfdb3edd7eb47cfe5ad\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/exclusive-interview-bob-odenkirk-talks-better-call-saul\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Bob Odenkirk\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/\",\"name\":\"TVDRAMA\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#\/schema\/person\/83da304c8bad8bfdb3edd7eb47cfe5ad\",\"name\":\"Mansha Daswani\",\"description\":\"Mansha Daswani is the editor-in-chief and associate publisher of World Screen. 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