See the Breaking Bad statues of Walt and Jesse that were unveiled in Albuquerque

Breaking Bad took home a lot of statues at the Emmys over the years. Now it's time to turn its two main characters into statues.

On Friday, bronze likenesses of chemistry teacher-turned-meth-lord Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and his associate/former student Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) were unveiled at the Albuquerque Convention Center. As you can see, Walt, holding his Heisenberg pork pie hat at his side, stands intently next to Jesse. (Not immortalized: The fly.)

In attendance were Bad stars Cranston, Paul, and Dean Norris, as well as series creator Vince Gilligan, Better Call Saul stars Rhea Seehorn, Michael Mando, and Patrick Fabian, Saul co-creator Peter Gould, and Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller. The 500-pound statues were created by sculptor Trevor Grove and donated by Sony Pictures Television, which produced the AMC drama.

More than a decade ago, Grove had created fan art in the form of a tiny Walt wax sculpture, and it was brought to Gilligan's attention. "It was so amazing that it just got me to thinking: What if Trevor could sculpt a life-sized version of Walter White in bronze, a medium new to him, and what if he could toss in Jesse Pinkman to boot, and then we donate to the two statues to the city of Albuquerque as a thank-you for your hospitality?" says Gilligan.

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While the creator made a quip about statues of "fictional meth dealers" being given to the city, he noted: "In all seriousness, some folks are going to say, 'Wow, just what our city needed.' I get that. But let me tell you what I see when I look at these two works of art: I see two of the finest actors America has ever produced. I see them in character as two larger-than-life tragic figures, cautionary tales, world-famous ones at that."

There's no questioning that Breaking Bad and prequel Better Call Saul have made their mark on the city via production and tourism. The mayor's office estimates that the franchise has made $385 million in economic impact on New Mexico.

"I've missed you all so much," Paul told the crowd. Warning that he might get emotional, the actor raved that this show and experience had "saved" his career; he was struggling professionally so much that he had to ask his parents for money to pay his rent. "I auditioned for Breaking Bad, and it completely changed my life," he said. "So thank you so much, thank you to Albuquerque — my God, we were here for seven years on and off. It was such a huge part of my life; it still is."

His costar then came with plenty of jokes. "We're humbled by this," Cranston began. "We're delighted, slightly embarrassed to have statues of you. And when they first came to me and said we want to make two statues of you, and I thought, 'Wow, fantastic, Heisenberg and Walter White!'"

The actors seem pleased with their tributes. "I'm really grateful," he continued. "Trevor Grove is a phenomenal artist. I mean, he really got the likeness. We were praying that we wouldn't look like Cristiano Ronaldo. That was our big hope. Have you seen that one? Google that." He also quipped: "There's no preparation for saying you're getting a statue. I'm just rather grateful that it's indoors so that the pigeons won't crap on our heads."

Cranston and Paul's return to their Emmy-winning roles is imminent, as it was revealed earlier this year that the duo would appear sometime in the final season of Saul. The series is down to its final three episodes, and Monday's installment is titled... "Breaking Bad." And Gilligan made a special announcement, as you might have guessed: "Spoiler alert, everybody. You're hearing it first; no one else knows this yet. This coming Monday night, if you happen to be watching the AMC network — and thanks to them as well — you might just see these two on the next Better Call Saul."

"Maybe, maybe," joked Paul.

Better Call Saul airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on AMC.

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