Breaking Bad Creator Making Sci-Fi Series, Details Revealed
Though the fandom for Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, or the Gilliverse, as some have taken to calling it, has only continued to grow in recent years, franchise creator and show-runner Vince Gilligan has doubled down on his claim that he has no plans to revisit the hit AMC franchise with his next outing. Of course, the visionary television writer’s upcoming project is set to share a few similarities with his last series, including a leading appearance from Kim Wexler actor Rhea Seehorn and an Albuquerque, New Mexico setting.
Vince Gilligan is following up the success of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul with a new sci-fi series starring Rhea Seehorn.
According to a recent profile with Variety, Gilligan has confirmed that the still-untitled upcoming series will have a science fiction element, stating, “I wouldn’t call this heavy science fiction, I would call it mild science fiction. But it does have a sci-fi element to it, at its core.”
This marks a massive departure from the mostly hyper-realistic look into the criminal underworld which was presented in Vince Gilligan’s previous work. Gilligan goes on to explain that the upcoming series is set in a world much the same as our own, but something occurs in the very first episode that threatens to upend humanity’s understanding of the space around them for many episodes to come. Whether this means an alien invasion, a cosmic singularity, or the discovery of a mysterious element like Wakandan vibranium remains to be seen, though Gilligan assures us the change will be massive and abrupt.
“I wouldn’t call this heavy science fiction, I would call it mild science fiction. But it does have a sci-fi element to it, at its core.”
Vince Gilligan on his new series
Fans shouldn’t be expecting Breaking Bad meets Star Trek either, as Vince Gilligan specifies the new series will contain no crime stories and no methamphetamine manufacturing. Additionally, Gilligan’s comments referring to the science fiction within the series as a mild element seem to confirm that Rhea Seehorn won’t be donning a mech suit and blasting off into space to broker trade agreements between warring alien factions.
Still, the Emmy Award-winning director would surely be remiss if not to scatter one or two Easter eggs regarding his AMC franchise at some point in the series, even if it’s a small nod to a niche group of super-fans.
Vince Gilligan And Alburquerque
The show’s setting taking place in Albuquerque, New Mexico alone could serve as something of a nod to Breaking Bad fans, as the city recently erected a bronze statue of series leads Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul. Vince Gilligan is said to have commissioned the statue himself as a gesture of thanks toward the welcoming city for supporting the work and production of the two series and a Netflix original film that encompasses the franchise.
Gilligan holds great love for the city and its people, given that he is choosing to begin the next leg of his artistic journey in the region once again.
Details regarding the upcoming series have been kept largely under wraps, with this news that the show will have a science fiction slant being just about the only news we’ve received since the series was first ordered. Vince Gilligan previously updated the progress of the Apple TV+ series’ writers’ room, stating the team had nearly finished breaking the first season before the WGA strike began back in May.
Now that the strike has concluded, Gilligan and his team are planning to get back to work and begin production as soon as possible.
