They're baaaack. Two of my favorite characters from Breaking Bad are returning for Better Call Saul. It's about time, too, since I've been wondering when the DEA would start sniffing around the spinoff. Better Call Saul Season 5 has a two-night premiere February 23-24 with "Saul Goodman" finally making his official debut, much to Kim Wexler's horror. Now that Jimmy McGill is embracing life as a criminal lawyer, it's time for the DEA to step in.
Not that we know yet whether Breaking Bad's DEA agents Hank Schrader (Dean Norris) and Steven "Gomey" Gomez (Steven Michael Quezada) will be directly involved in Jimmy/Saul's storyline on Better Call Saul. They might be more connected to Lalo Salamanca, Gus Fring, Nacho Varga, etc. There are plenty of options for overlap.
During a Better Call Saul panel at TCA, which CinemaBlend's own Nick Venable attended, producers Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould talked about the arrival of two Breaking Bad characters in Better Call Saul Season 5 Episodes 3-4. That would mean they show up in the March 2 and March 9 hours, and will probably be teased in the preview that airs at the end of Monday, February 24's episode. Here's more from Peter Gould on that:
But those two, Episodes 3 and 4 — that’s true, they’re not all done — three and four are, I think, especially close to our hearts, I think it’s fair to say. Because we have some of our Breaking Bad family returning. Dean Norris as Hank Schrader comes back in Episodes 3 and 4. I hope I’m not spoiling. Is it spoilers if I tell you guys?
Too late now! Vince Gilligan joined the fun to confirm the other arrival:
VINCE GILLIGAN: They want spoilers. They want spoilers. And Steven Michael Quezada.PETER GOULD:And Steven Michael Quezada, absolutely. They are great. And working with Dean and Michael again was a highlight of the season.
Nice! Hank and Gomey will return for two episodes in Better Call Saul Season 5, and it will be so much fun to see them again -- albeit before their Breaking Bad journeys, which will be bittersweet knowing how things end.
Here's what Dean Norris said about his return in a statement (via AMC):
To be called by the genius Vince Gilligan to play a character that changed my life, and to get to work with the great Bob Odenkirk on a show I adore, what more could I ask? I was absolutely thrilled to revisit my old friend Hank Schrader. It was particularly fun to play the early Hank with swagger. Getting time on set again with my Breaking Bad family was a cherry on top. I hope the fans enjoy it as much as I did.
Dean Norris added that returning to the character of Hank was like riding a bike:
I didn’t have to do anything special to get back into this character. It was just putting the orange shirt on, and I’m there.
Hank and Gomez didn't get to be part of El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie, the sequel to the AMC show, but fans were wondering if/when they'd show up for the prequel Better Call Saul. Interestingly enough, Dean Norris just had a guest stint last night on NBC's Superstore, and now we know he'll be back for this show in just over a month.
Better Call Saul also just announced it would end with the upcoming Season 6, which was always the general plan. All good things must come to an end -- or, in this case, to the beginning of Breaking Bad. The storylines are starting to overlap now, and that means we'll somehow be saying goodbye to a couple of favorites. Michael Mando's Season 5 wrap post got me worried about Nacho and there are always concerns about Kim.
Whatever happens, Jimmy/Saul star Bob Odenkirk went on record to say Better Call Saul Season 5 is the best one they've done yet. The Stevia will be poured starting Sunday, February 23 at 10 p.m., with the second episode following the next night at the show's regular timeslot of Monday at 9 p.m. on AMC.
