# Aaron Paul in 'Serious Talks' to Star in 'Breaking Bad' Spinoff. POSSIBLE 'BREAKING BAD' SPOILERS.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [March 1, 2014, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626 "2014-03-01T19:54:14Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/21 "2014-03-03T20:35:31Z")

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> [@typoink](#):
>
> While it would be logistically impossible, I’d be fascinated if Better Call Saul ran for a few seasons and eventually “caught up” with Breaking Bad – maybe a season or two showing what Saul was doing off camera during Breaking Bad and eventually showing what happened to him after.

That would be very cool if done right, but as you say it would be difficult if not impossible.

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**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/22 "2014-03-03T20:49:14Z")

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> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> Does anyone else feel uneasy about this whole project? I don’t want anyone - not even Vince - diddling around with the perfection of Breaking Bad.  
> mmm

It being a prequel is stupid. Odenkirk is middle-aged and he’s not going to look at all convincing playing 8ish years younger.

Have it take place a few years later in another part of the country when the heat has died down and he can go back to being Saul Goodman. Maybe even have that he served a small amount of prison time and is now clear.

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**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/23 "2014-03-03T21:03:05Z")

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> [@Push\_You\_Down](#):
>
> Have it take place a few years later in another part of the country when the heat has died down and he can go back to being Saul Goodman. Maybe even have that he served a small amount of prison time and is now clear.

The problem is that that takes him out of the Breaking Bad-verse - no Mike, no Badger, no Skinny Pete, no Huell and Kuby, etc. - and probably means he can’t be a lawyer. (Taking back his “real name” would also be an uncharacteristic gamble.) Saul is a great character on his own, but if you take away all that, you’re taking away a lot of what people liked about him and a lot of what gets people interested in the show. The idea of starting before Breaking Bad, catching up and then passing it at the end is a very interesting one. The only thing I can think of that’s even a little bit like it is Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. But the tight plotting of Breaking Bad would probably constrict the hell out of the Better Call Saul story.

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**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/24 "2014-03-03T21:18:48Z")

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> [@Push\_You\_Down](#):
>
> It being a prequel is stupid. Odenkirk is middle-aged and he’s not going to look at all convincing playing 8ish years younger.

That problem already existed with _Breaking Bad_, which was supposed to take place over 1 or 2 years (I forget exactly). Odenkirk and everyone else aged over the 6 years that it was on. This was especially evident with Walt Jr.  
Of course Odenkirk could age a lot more depending on how long his show is on.

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**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/25 "2014-03-03T21:22:25Z")

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The show starts on Walt’s 50th birthday and ends on his 52nd. It’s just one of those things you have to ignore with a work of fiction - like teenagers being played by actors who are in their 20s or pushing 30.

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**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/26 "2014-03-03T21:54:21Z")

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Exactly. We could ignore it in _BB_ and we can ignore it on _Better Call Saul_.

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**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\
**Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaron-paul-in-serious-talks-to-star-in-breaking-bad-spinoff-possible-breaking-bad-spoilers/682626/27 "2014-03-04T16:16:47Z")

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> [@Marley23](#):
>
> It’s not impossible their paths crossed at some point - Saul has plenty of clients and Badger’s case must have seemed run of the mill before the kidnapping. But Jesse’s involvement in whatever happens couldn’t be too memorable for Saul.

Agree. I can see Saul involved in all kinds of pre-BB hijinks. I can’t see Jessie a big part of any of them though.

Is it possible that the whole “show” is evolving away from Saul as the only primary character.

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