Peter Gould (‘Better Call Saul’ co-creator): ‘He did become a good enough person to share that cigarette with Kim’ [Exclusive Video Interview]

Matt Noble
·3 min read
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“I don’t think there’s really anything he can do to make up for the actions he’s taken,” declares “Better Call Saul” co-creator Peter Gould about Jimmy McGill. For our recent webchat he adds, “But he does become a better man. He does take responsibility for his actions. Which a lot of other character’s don’t ever do. That was something that was very important to us. But I don’t feel he redeemed himself. He did become a good enough person to share that cigarette with Kim Wexler. He did deserve that, and that’s pretty great.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.

“Better Call Saul” closed out its seven season run with one of the most ambitious and acclaimed final seasons in television history. The series tracked Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk) becoming the sleazy but charming lawyer Saul Goodman from “Breaking Bad.” The final season saw the two shows’ timelines collide and explored life after “Breaking Bad” through episodes that were predominantly black and white. Also important was resolving the relationship between Jimmy and Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn), whose romance and partnership had become the heart of the show.

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At the end of the series, Kim visits Jimmy in prison where they share a cigarette. The quiet scene harkened back to the first scene the couple shared in the pilot episode of the series. Gould explains, “We were hoping after 63 episodes, it was still one show. Alluding to things where you started, hopefully gives the feeling that the whole piece has a unity. That there was point to it. The scene doesn’t say, ‘nothing’s changed.’ It says, ‘this is something else.’ They are never going to be finished with each other. They are going to live their lives in relation to each other until the very end.”

Criminally “Better Call Saul” has never won an Emmy, and this year is their last chance to take home an Emmy win.

Gould wrote and directed the final episode of the series, titled ‘Saul Gone.’ In the episode, Saul/Jimmy confesses to his crimes in a powerhouse courtroom scene. The writer admits, “I don’t think there is a character in television who’s spoken more than Saul Goodman. Yet, the things he really feels are never the things that he says. The deepest level with him is always underneath the words. We learnt this amazing cast can convey so much with just a little bit of spin on the right words. As a showrunner, sometimes I was a little nervous if the point of the scene would be clear. Because no one is even alluding to what the scene is about. It’s all acting. My God, every time we did that the more we liked it. You really can’t go wrong with trusting the audience.”

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