Bob Odenkirk Dissects Jimmy McGill’s Growth — and ‘Tragic’ Ending — in ‘Better Call Saul’ Final Season

Bob Odenkirk never liked Saul Goodman — but Jimmy McGill has grown on him.

Ahead of the final season of “Better Call Saul,” the “Breaking Bad” vet opened up to Variety about wrapping up the character 13 years after it was introduced to the world. In short: his feelings are complicated.

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“I’m not running from the guy. I think sometimes people do that,” Odenkirk says, mentioning that his former co-star Bryan Cranston was ready to say goodbye to Walter White. “I think one of the reasons I’m not running away from him is the way he was scripted by Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould and all the writers. I got to do comedy on one page and four pages later, do the most earnest drama written. It was this great mix with unbelievable dynamics to it, so it’s a hard thing to imagine another part being that wide-ranging.”

Although Odenkirk never grew fond of Saul, things are different with Jimmy, especially after filming the upcoming sixth and final season.

“I did like Jimmy McGill, the character behind Saul Goodman. I still didn’t love the choices he made with his life energy,” he tells Variety. “He really let his resentments guide him and he let his feelings of hurt be the core driver of what he did. I just think that’s obviously a mistake. I can understand where people do it … but it isn’t gonna take you anywhere over a long period of time that’s good.”

Odenkirk remains tight-lipped about the final season, careful not to say too much. Still, he raves over Jimmy’s growth in the last episodes.

“Because he grew, that made it easier to play him over time. I think if you’d asked me in the third or fourth season, I would have said, ‘Yeah, I can’t wait to be past this guy,’” he says. “But he had this arcing in growth, especially toward the end. He does wriggle away to another place that’s, I think, a bit more mature, even if it is tragic.”

Part 1 of “Better Call Saul” Season 6 premieres on AMC Monday, April 18, at 9 p.m. ET.

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