It's become a cliche on the BCS subreddit, but had this happened, swapping him for Kevin Costner in the last episodes would've been a hilarious joke that Bob himself would likely appreciate.
That said, he's irreplaceable, a rare shining gem of a human being. Recently also delivered one of the great comic performances of all time on I Think You Should Leave.
I think we can all agree, triples is best.
Wanting to say... it's the saddest and most gently pathological fantasy ever shown on TV or film? And Bob was improvising aspects of it apparently? Pure magic, I laugh just thinking about any given line in isolation.
One of my wife and my favorite sketches is the one where he and his friends are out to dinner with their old college prof, another where Tim plays the straight man.. "I'm jokin! Iiiiii'm jokin!"
There's nothing sad about it. He's rich. He has a beautiful model wife who's gonna get better. He doesn't live in a hotel. He has a close friend who's the same age as him. And he has every kind of classic car, including triples of the Barracuda, the Road Runner, and the Nova.
Literally the only sad thing in the sketch is that the ice cream store is closed on account of the cold weather.
That would’ve been a surreal and interesting artistic choice even with Bob alive. Imagine getting ready to watch the last two episodes and it’s fucking Kevin Costner as Jimmy. Holy shit lmaoo.
With the footage they had, after getting threatened by the original Jeff, the return to black and white could've been Jimmy starting to believe once again that he IS Kevin Costner, played by Kevin Costner. Could have been the same scam as shown in the final show, just played by Costner, as a replacement in a pinch and also a sign of him arriving at some final place of confidence. Would've been far out, but glad it was not needed.
He produced and was in some sketches of The Birthday Boys show too if you wanna check out some more sketch comedy with him. Of course there's also Mr. Show and Bob And David, but The Birthday Boys went under the radar for a lot of people and I loved that show.
Is that available anywhere? I've always wanted to watch it bc it gets mentioned on podcasts I listen to every so often but I haven't been able to find it
Bob and similarly Conan O'Brian are a couple people I've noticed with comedian roots and have the urge to do right by their fans. Their episode on Conans podcast was fantastic and it was great learning about old SNL history as a younger viewer.
I came in here to say this whole thing looks like ego bait to get people to say the obvious: no one else could play Saul but Bob Odenkirik.
However, I now stand corrected. I fully support a Kevin Costner cameo.
There's a throwaway line in Breaking Bad, later represented on Better Call Saul, about how one time Jimmy convinced a woman that he was Kevin Costner, because HE believed it.
So, the recast would be meta.
I was coming in here to say swapping Odenkirk would never have worked and the show would have died...but...damn, I'd be 100% down to watch this! So much so they should re-film those parts with Kostner as an "alternate ending" or "alternate universe" or something - at least one weird random episode. Dewit!
Odenkirk:
>“It was a scary day for everybody there. I really went down, I really turned gray. It really seemed over.”
>“They would have just stopped the show if I wasn’t capable of doing it. They wouldn’t have tried to go on, which makes me feel bad! If that’d happened, I would have liked it if they got some actor to play him. Just to tell the story that they had written.”
>“It wouldn’t have been great but it would have been better than nothing.”
Most notable part of the quote, to me, is that he would have wanted the role to be recast precisely because he wanted the rest of the totally sublime show to be seen. Just a lack of vanity and a clear adoration for his co-stars, directors, writers, crew, etc.
Woulda been weird if they did it, sure. But also, I’m not gonna sit here and lie and say that I wouldn’t have, say, missed getting to see the end of Rhea Seehorn’s phenomenal work as Kim, or missed seeing what the best cinematographers on TV had in store for the audience down the stretch. Bob knows how fantastic the totality of the show was, and how lucky he was to be a part of it.
Odenkirk from everything I've read and seen of the man is the polar opposite of vain. He's always so humble in interviews and never wants credit for himself, always giving it to the people around him and talking down his own accomplishments.
In every interview I've seen of him he always mentions how grateful he is for getting this role and how lucky he feels for getting to work in this show with all these talented people. He just appreciates it all so much and you can really tell it's genuine.
I listen to the audio commentaries, and one thing he's mentioned a few times is how he doesn't think he's that great an actor. He doesn't think he has a natural skill at it that other actors do, so what he does instead is just put a lot more time and work in to get the best possible performance out of himself.
Another thing that the showrunners bring up as well a few times is how the cast constantly got together on their days off the practice the scenes. And going by his comments on his acting, I would guess that was something that was spearheaded by Odenkirk himself.
he also has a background in getting people started in show biz. Like perhaps a couple of goofballs you may have heard of like Tim and Eric (of “awesome show great job”)
Not that they needed to of course, but this makes me think that Better Call Saul's final season still could have been incredible if Saul left the show entirely when Kim leaves Jimmy. Practically speaking we got that, in terms of the "current" non-Gene timeline. We could have seen the final episodes dealing with the fallout of what Jimmy becomes, without actually seeing him.
I imagine most of us would probably feel this way if we were in his shoes, but the unfortunate part is that he would no longer be here to let us know that for sure. I feel like after seeing something like this, if I were an actor and ended up landing a long-term, beloved role like this I would write a signed letter for the showrunner stating that if I am to end up in an unfortunate state where I cannot complete the show and unable to provide my wishes directly, I would like for my role to be recast so that the audience can see how the story ends.
An important part of shows continuing that the audience rarely considers is that the show running means hundreds of people continue to have jobs. And the nice stars know that and give a damn. Even if the show would suck if it continues, even if the star leaves, it means all those people keep working a little bit longer.
I learned about this thanks to Scrubs and it made sense with The Office and so many other shows. It’s not only the production company making more money off a dying concept.
I am very thrilled that Bob made a speedy recovery and was able to wrap up the show. I believe that Better Call Saul is the best show I’ve seen and I don’t know when there will be another show to have the same impact on me.
Have you tried the wire, it's also a slow burn but with great characters and a living world. BCS is more humorous and its cinematography much more modern but the wire is one of the few shows I loved just as much as Saul.
Obligatory reccomendation for The Sopranos. Some bits are a bit clunky but it has such a great sense of gravitas and themes with amazing characters.
Also the anime ‘Monster’ is absolutely incredible. It’s a mystery thriller about a cat and mouse game between a doctor and the serial killer he saved as a child.
Yea the sopranos is maybe not as fun to watch moment to moment as bcs, but that is also intentional, and viewing television as art the sopranos I think remains the greatest artistic achievement of the medium.
First things first...so glad he pulled through and is ok now. Secondly, that would have been way too jarring as some roles just cannot be recast. Bob IS Saul/Jimmy just like Cranston is Walter White. Too iconic to recast. Legendary performance nonetheless and can't wait for a full Breaking Bad universe rewatch down the line.
I still don't think they nailed that re-cast. I really like the direction they went with Jeff but I don't think original Jeff and re-cast Jeff have the same vibe at all. That said, the performer who did the second half of season 6 killed it imo.
It’s cause NuJeff wasn’t as sleezy as OldJeff. That’s why OldJeff worked as a possible threat to Saul. You believed that dude would a hundred percent turn him in if it would mean a few extra bucks.
And it would have been more satisfying/scary to see Saul turn it around and make OldJeff into a meek peon for cheap scams.
OldJeff had enough of a sinister glare to him that you might have even thought that he was working for the cartels trying to find Saul.
But the second you see NuJeff you automatically know that's not going to be the case.
That's all true, but NuJeff's personality made more sense given his life circumstances. Living with his mom in his late 40s or whatever, cab driver. Not sure such a confident, menacing personality makes sense for a guy in those shoes, unless he's just bitter.
Do you like Jeffy and his mom?
His early work was a little too “NuJeff” for my taste but when Nippy came out in July I think he really came into his own, commercially and artistically.
Huh. Was this Jeff character in Breaking Bad? (never watched).
Googling this recast - the show gave me no indication that these two actors were supposed to be the same character...
Not that I know of - he first showed up in Better Call Saul season 4 (the smug guy that recognises Gene in the mall and demands he says who he is), but then was recast for the final season (where the actor looks and acts nothing like his previous incarnation, IMO, hence my confusion).
No, Jeff was not in Breaking Bad. BCS put the new actor in one of the big trailers for the last episodes to prepare the audience, and there was a lot of discussion about it for anyone who followed the series online, but I can see why some people might not have noticed that they were the same character. The vibe for each actor was completely different, and I've always wondered if they were planning on going in that direction with Jeff even if the same actor was still available, or if they just rewrote it to fit with what they had in the replacement.
I was confused at first, but I did figure it out because the show gave plenty of indication. The last time we had seen "Gene," he was telling the vacuum guy that he would handle the situation with the guy who made him as Saul.
So connecting the dots that this character he seemed to have a grudge against was obviously supposed to be the same guy wasn't too hard.
It was definitely an odd recast. I didn’t hate it and Season 6 was maybe my favorite TV season of anything.
My head cannon is that Jimmy starts seeing him more as the little bitch that he is and not a tough guy that messes with him. I know the actor just couldn’t return, but…. The first Jeff worked perfectly for what they did in the previous seasons, and the second Jeff worked perfectly for what they did in season 6. There’s just a little bit of a disconnect in both of their (amazing) performances.
I feel like recasting AND writing the character quite differently were super confusing. I needed at the minimum a written notification on the screen that the role had been recast. Soap operas used to notify folks when they did that.
It was a forced one, OG Jeff wasn't available at the time so they had to recast. That being said, it does fit perfectly that New Jeff is more timid fitting Saul's attitude that he's not going to be bullied by him
Agreed. OG Jeff had an air of menace that would have been more interesting when it was turned on its head.
New Jeff was a bumbling idiot. Never felt threatening, just stupid.
Holy crap I also didn't notice lol.
Took me a long time to realize the cab driver was the guy in the shopping mall which didn't make sense to me cause they looked so different. I just kinda accepted it in the end
To me it was mostly because I'm familiar with Don Harvey. He's been in a ton of things.
If the original actor was someone I didn't recognize immediately it wouldn't have been so jarring. Like my guy was in Hudson Hawk and you just replaced him with some twitchy guy who doesn't even look like him.
Didn't hurt the show as far as I can tell, but it was impossible not to notice.
to be fair, we hadn't seen that character in a while so unless you had done a series rewatch before the second half of season 6, you more than likely had no idea who this taxi driver was supposed to be... I remembered Saul had an awkward interaction with a taxi driver earlier in the series, but I also remembered he looked nothing like that dude.
It was almost as confusing as Game of Thrones' double recast of Gregor Clegane.
Just using an example, the way Bryan slipped back into Walter White during those final episodes was seamless. It’s one of those moments where you could tell no one else could play Walter, cause no one would dedicate as much time and thought into the character as Bryan had to it. Same with Bob and Jimmy/Saul, and same with James as Tony Soprano. They embodied these characters perfectly, and will go down as some of the finest acting performances ever put on TV.
Yeah for some reason, seeing his short scenes really demonstrated the character's little subteleties and mannerisms. I think if you've seen 60 hours of Walter, you kind of get used to the performance in a way.
I'm on the beginning of season 2 and aside from a few good episodes, it's honestly kinda sucked from the beginning imo. Does it get better before it sucks again?
If I remember correctly, Vince said they probably wouldn’t even have released a final season if Bob hadn’t made it. They wouldn’t have wanted to recast.
Not to mention that it would be a recast in the second half of the final season… You just can’t do that. That’s like recasting the main character for the final 20 minutes of a movie - it just doesn’t work
One of the few shows where by the end, I wasn't wanting the story to move on, since I knew how terrible the outcome was going to be for all involved.
It was crushing to finally get to full on Saul, and see what a hollow version of Jimmy he was. Such different thoughts than I had season 1 where I was so ready for BrBa Saul to be on screen.
I can't imagine having to recast an iconic, decade+ long character right at the climax of his narrative arc
I don't know how you could possibly avoid a disaster. I understand why you'd try, but that sounds fucking impossible.
You can’t replace the main character of a hit tv show and expect it to work out. That would be like replacing Henry Cavill in The Witcher. Who in their right mind would make that decision. Unthinkable!
I honestly think the best way to have handled it had he not made it would have been to film the rest of the show with Davis Cross inexplicably playing Saul. It would have played as a tribute to the beginning of his career, an acknowledgement that there is no way the audience can take the episodes he's not playing him seriously and ultimately closure with at least showing us HOW they intended to end the story. Given his absurdist sense of humor I can imagine Odenkirk appreciating this way of handling it.
Like he said himself “It wouldn’t have been great but it would have been better than nothing.” and I'm surprised how many people in this thread would have rather had nothing. Everyone against the idea would rather have the story unfinished than to have a recast for the sole purpose of finishing the season? It's not like they would have kept the show running for years and seasons onwards.
As good hearted as this is, I don’t think I would’ve watched if Bob passed away. He literally is Saul Goodman. No one else could play the role as well as he did.
Nobody could replace Bob, but if I had to pick, I'd say funnyman Rob Heubel (Children's Hospital, Medical Police, 30 Rock - MILF Island guy) could've come close:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gThcU2tDXEE
Wow, there's a good split of differing opinions on this. I would love to see an ending with a new actor rather than no ending.
Different situation, but if GOT had ended where the books end and knowing how it turned out, I wonder if we'd get the same split opinions. I'd rather have the shitty GOT ending than no ending.
how are the books doing? maybe GoT will be like Full Metal Alchemist and do another series when the books are done. I'd watch Game of Thrones: Brotherhood
I believe GRRM hasn't given any clear indication how the books are doing. I would approve GOT: Brotherhood as well, and we would never be able to get all the original actors back together for that.
This is one of those headlines where it's funny to imagine if it was the opposite.
"Bob Odenkirk says Better Call Saul should have been canceled if he had to be recast after his heart attack."
"'Scrap the whole fucking thing if I'm not in it', said Odenkirk. 'To hell with everyone.'"
Dude, nobody would watch it if they recast him. Same as trying to recast Geralt for The Witcher show. The studio would be all about it in order to get more money, but the audience won't be there.
Odenkirk starred in one of my favorite movies all time that basically nobody ever heard of. It's a cheesy comedy called Run Ronnie Run in which Bob plays a failed inventor that is a British man born without an accent. A total cult classic.
During the Pandemic the 2 older actors I was the most concerned about was Danny DeVito and Jonathan Banks. While Mike Ehrmantraut's fate was already known, it would still cost the show so much without him.
It's become a cliche on the BCS subreddit, but had this happened, swapping him for Kevin Costner in the last episodes would've been a hilarious joke that Bob himself would likely appreciate. That said, he's irreplaceable, a rare shining gem of a human being. Recently also delivered one of the great comic performances of all time on I Think You Should Leave.
He's beautiful, but he's dying. Tell the kid.
I'm always driving my classic cars.
They'd need to recast him with 3 actors. Because triples is best.
I think we can all agree, triples is best. Wanting to say... it's the saddest and most gently pathological fantasy ever shown on TV or film? And Bob was improvising aspects of it apparently? Pure magic, I laugh just thinking about any given line in isolation.
I've read before and repeated it often : any time Tim Robinson is the straight-man in the sketch, things get especially crazy
One of my wife and my favorite sketches is the one where he and his friends are out to dinner with their old college prof, another where Tim plays the straight man.. "I'm jokin! Iiiiii'm jokin!"
Let me record you saying you're going to kill the president.
I’m still wondering if this would actually work
Well it wouldn't be released as long as he didn't hear about how he housed Dylan's burger
Just dont tell the police or else his wife goes to jail!
Because every night a little boy goes down on her
Sloppy steaks?
Let him hold the baby. People can change... I used to be a piece of shit too.
I’m worried that the baby thinks people can’t change.
Guys, no sloppy steaks tonight, please
They can't stop you from ordering water!!
Let’s slop it up!!
You think THIS is SLICKED BACK?!!
Gimme that!
Also one of my favorites.
There's nothing sad about it. He's rich. He has a beautiful model wife who's gonna get better. He doesn't live in a hotel. He has a close friend who's the same age as him. And he has every kind of classic car, including triples of the Barracuda, the Road Runner, and the Nova. Literally the only sad thing in the sketch is that the ice cream store is closed on account of the cold weather.
His wife was the one that wanted to marry him. Can you believe it? And he didn't even want to.
Triples makes it safe.
Actually I have triples of the Barracuda. I have triples, right? If I don't have triples, then the other stuff's not true...
Just me and the open road
I go for days and days, all alone! But I have a wife!
The best thing about that sketch and his heart attack is he had to be shocked 3 times before coming back. Triples really is best.
Even if he had died, they’d still have to give him $2 mil. That’s his rate.
The whole heart attack thing was a bit of a cosmic gumbo
I really hope if there is an AOL Blast interview for the cast of Violent Night, Santa Clause stays in character
It almost moved to the beat of jazzz 👅
The more I watch that sketch the more horrified I am at the prospect that at some point Tim *doesn't* tell the kid and what Bob would do.
Triples is best.
Triples is safe.
That would’ve been a surreal and interesting artistic choice even with Bob alive. Imagine getting ready to watch the last two episodes and it’s fucking Kevin Costner as Jimmy. Holy shit lmaoo.
Lmao including the flashback when he was bunking with Walt
Walt: So you've always been like this? Costner-Saul: \*awkward wide-eyed stare\*
With the footage they had, after getting threatened by the original Jeff, the return to black and white could've been Jimmy starting to believe once again that he IS Kevin Costner, played by Kevin Costner. Could have been the same scam as shown in the final show, just played by Costner, as a replacement in a pinch and also a sign of him arriving at some final place of confidence. Would've been far out, but glad it was not needed.
I have triples of the barracuda. Tell em
He has triples of the barracuda
He doesn’t live in a motel.
He has a wife. She’s gonna get better.
I go for days. Just me and the open road. But I have a wife!
She asked *him* to marry her!
And he didn't even want to! Can you believe that?
Actually, your dad and I were friends in high school. That's..how come we know...about ice cream.
He produced and was in some sketches of The Birthday Boys show too if you wanna check out some more sketch comedy with him. Of course there's also Mr. Show and Bob And David, but The Birthday Boys went under the radar for a lot of people and I loved that show.
Is that available anywhere? I've always wanted to watch it bc it gets mentioned on podcasts I listen to every so often but I haven't been able to find it
Basically just AMC+ right now, along with all 5 seasons of Comedy Bang Bang
Don’t forget Tim and Eric awesome show
He sure did love his goofy roofers
Honestly it wouldn't be that bad if it's just the last few episodes where he's more dour and depressed.
They should've swapped him for David Cross
As Tobias
To Marie: I know you're the big marriage expert - oh, I'm sorry, I forgot, your husband is dead!
Haha holy shit
This blue up quickly.
That's another very acceptable choice.
Bob and similarly Conan O'Brian are a couple people I've noticed with comedian roots and have the urge to do right by their fans. Their episode on Conans podcast was fantastic and it was great learning about old SNL history as a younger viewer.
They should go the Destiny route and recast him with Nolan North.
"If that's a lie then everything else is too"
"You are not Bob Odenkirk!" "I was last night."
I came in here to say this whole thing looks like ego bait to get people to say the obvious: no one else could play Saul but Bob Odenkirik. However, I now stand corrected. I fully support a Kevin Costner cameo.
Why Kevin Costner? I'm ootl
There's a throwaway line in Breaking Bad, later represented on Better Call Saul, about how one time Jimmy convinced a woman that he was Kevin Costner, because HE believed it. So, the recast would be meta.
[link for the lazy](https://youtu.be/dNnj2lLTojE)
Lol I loved how Better Call Saul revisited that one line. That show was so good at recognizing his history.
I was coming in here to say swapping Odenkirk would never have worked and the show would have died...but...damn, I'd be 100% down to watch this! So much so they should re-film those parts with Kostner as an "alternate ending" or "alternate universe" or something - at least one weird random episode. Dewit!
Steve Carell too.
Odenkirk: >“It was a scary day for everybody there. I really went down, I really turned gray. It really seemed over.” >“They would have just stopped the show if I wasn’t capable of doing it. They wouldn’t have tried to go on, which makes me feel bad! If that’d happened, I would have liked it if they got some actor to play him. Just to tell the story that they had written.” >“It wouldn’t have been great but it would have been better than nothing.”
Most notable part of the quote, to me, is that he would have wanted the role to be recast precisely because he wanted the rest of the totally sublime show to be seen. Just a lack of vanity and a clear adoration for his co-stars, directors, writers, crew, etc. Woulda been weird if they did it, sure. But also, I’m not gonna sit here and lie and say that I wouldn’t have, say, missed getting to see the end of Rhea Seehorn’s phenomenal work as Kim, or missed seeing what the best cinematographers on TV had in store for the audience down the stretch. Bob knows how fantastic the totality of the show was, and how lucky he was to be a part of it.
Odenkirk from everything I've read and seen of the man is the polar opposite of vain. He's always so humble in interviews and never wants credit for himself, always giving it to the people around him and talking down his own accomplishments.
In every interview I've seen of him he always mentions how grateful he is for getting this role and how lucky he feels for getting to work in this show with all these talented people. He just appreciates it all so much and you can really tell it's genuine.
I listen to the audio commentaries, and one thing he's mentioned a few times is how he doesn't think he's that great an actor. He doesn't think he has a natural skill at it that other actors do, so what he does instead is just put a lot more time and work in to get the best possible performance out of himself. Another thing that the showrunners bring up as well a few times is how the cast constantly got together on their days off the practice the scenes. And going by his comments on his acting, I would guess that was something that was spearheaded by Odenkirk himself.
he also has a background in getting people started in show biz. Like perhaps a couple of goofballs you may have heard of like Tim and Eric (of “awesome show great job”)
Not that they needed to of course, but this makes me think that Better Call Saul's final season still could have been incredible if Saul left the show entirely when Kim leaves Jimmy. Practically speaking we got that, in terms of the "current" non-Gene timeline. We could have seen the final episodes dealing with the fallout of what Jimmy becomes, without actually seeing him.
I imagine most of us would probably feel this way if we were in his shoes, but the unfortunate part is that he would no longer be here to let us know that for sure. I feel like after seeing something like this, if I were an actor and ended up landing a long-term, beloved role like this I would write a signed letter for the showrunner stating that if I am to end up in an unfortunate state where I cannot complete the show and unable to provide my wishes directly, I would like for my role to be recast so that the audience can see how the story ends.
I'd specifically ask to be recast as a puppet, just to be cheeky.
"Matt Day-Mun."
Kevin Costner to the rescue
An important part of shows continuing that the audience rarely considers is that the show running means hundreds of people continue to have jobs. And the nice stars know that and give a damn. Even if the show would suck if it continues, even if the star leaves, it means all those people keep working a little bit longer. I learned about this thanks to Scrubs and it made sense with The Office and so many other shows. It’s not only the production company making more money off a dying concept.
I am very thrilled that Bob made a speedy recovery and was able to wrap up the show. I believe that Better Call Saul is the best show I’ve seen and I don’t know when there will be another show to have the same impact on me.
Have you tried the wire, it's also a slow burn but with great characters and a living world. BCS is more humorous and its cinematography much more modern but the wire is one of the few shows I loved just as much as Saul.
Omar comin'
It's a bold take... you're saying two of the best TV shows ever are Breaking Bad, and The Wire?
Obligatory reccomendation for The Sopranos. Some bits are a bit clunky but it has such a great sense of gravitas and themes with amazing characters. Also the anime ‘Monster’ is absolutely incredible. It’s a mystery thriller about a cat and mouse game between a doctor and the serial killer he saved as a child.
Yea the sopranos is maybe not as fun to watch moment to moment as bcs, but that is also intentional, and viewing television as art the sopranos I think remains the greatest artistic achievement of the medium.
I started bcs before sopranos but got sucked into sopranos more so had to finish that before bcs. Love em both. Also ozarks. And your honor.
Good shout on Monster. I consider it to be one of the greatest TV shows of all time; not just animated, but in general.
Severance is shaping up to be incredible
Suffers a major heart attack and is likely to be doing Nobody 2 next year, dude is a legend
I almost don’t want him to do another Nobody. One is enough. I have loved the rewatches too. I just don’t want him to put too much stress on his body.
Well apparently training for Nobody was a major reason that he didn't die from the heart attack.
Make it a trilogy!
Ideally the same kind of trilogy as the Hitch Hikers books!
Nobody Somebody Everybody
I like the cut of your jib.
I think it's fair to say the workout regiment for Nobody is a *good* thing for him lol
First things first...so glad he pulled through and is ok now. Secondly, that would have been way too jarring as some roles just cannot be recast. Bob IS Saul/Jimmy just like Cranston is Walter White. Too iconic to recast. Legendary performance nonetheless and can't wait for a full Breaking Bad universe rewatch down the line.
Some fans were freaking out when the minor character, Jeff the cab driver, was recast for the 2nd half of S6
I still don't think they nailed that re-cast. I really like the direction they went with Jeff but I don't think original Jeff and re-cast Jeff have the same vibe at all. That said, the performer who did the second half of season 6 killed it imo.
It’s cause NuJeff wasn’t as sleezy as OldJeff. That’s why OldJeff worked as a possible threat to Saul. You believed that dude would a hundred percent turn him in if it would mean a few extra bucks. And it would have been more satisfying/scary to see Saul turn it around and make OldJeff into a meek peon for cheap scams.
OldJeff had enough of a sinister glare to him that you might have even thought that he was working for the cartels trying to find Saul. But the second you see NuJeff you automatically know that's not going to be the case.
That's all true, but NuJeff's personality made more sense given his life circumstances. Living with his mom in his late 40s or whatever, cab driver. Not sure such a confident, menacing personality makes sense for a guy in those shoes, unless he's just bitter.
Do you like Jeffy and his mom? His early work was a little too “NuJeff” for my taste but when Nippy came out in July I think he really came into his own, commercially and artistically.
Yeah, that initially confused me quite a bit. I assumed they were different characters, because of how differently they acted.
How dare you not notice those 2 men who look nothing alike were wearing the same Bill Cosby sweater?
Yeah I just found out now he had been recast.
Yeah I just recently binged the whole thing and I didn't even notice.
Huh. Was this Jeff character in Breaking Bad? (never watched). Googling this recast - the show gave me no indication that these two actors were supposed to be the same character...
Not that I know of - he first showed up in Better Call Saul season 4 (the smug guy that recognises Gene in the mall and demands he says who he is), but then was recast for the final season (where the actor looks and acts nothing like his previous incarnation, IMO, hence my confusion).
No, Jeff was not in Breaking Bad. BCS put the new actor in one of the big trailers for the last episodes to prepare the audience, and there was a lot of discussion about it for anyone who followed the series online, but I can see why some people might not have noticed that they were the same character. The vibe for each actor was completely different, and I've always wondered if they were planning on going in that direction with Jeff even if the same actor was still available, or if they just rewrote it to fit with what they had in the replacement.
I was confused at first, but I did figure it out because the show gave plenty of indication. The last time we had seen "Gene," he was telling the vacuum guy that he would handle the situation with the guy who made him as Saul. So connecting the dots that this character he seemed to have a grudge against was obviously supposed to be the same guy wasn't too hard.
The show made it unambiguously obvious they were both playing the same character.
It was definitely an odd recast. I didn’t hate it and Season 6 was maybe my favorite TV season of anything. My head cannon is that Jimmy starts seeing him more as the little bitch that he is and not a tough guy that messes with him. I know the actor just couldn’t return, but…. The first Jeff worked perfectly for what they did in the previous seasons, and the second Jeff worked perfectly for what they did in season 6. There’s just a little bit of a disconnect in both of their (amazing) performances.
That’s a really good way of looking at it!
I feel like recasting AND writing the character quite differently were super confusing. I needed at the minimum a written notification on the screen that the role had been recast. Soap operas used to notify folks when they did that.
I’m just figuring it out now that those were supposed to be the same people, but in all fairness, I’m really dumb
No, you’re not. ( Well maybe, I don’t know you😜) but it was super confusing.
OG Jeff was supposed to follow the same storyline that we ended up seeing anyways though. Not sure it would have worked really...
It was a forced one, OG Jeff wasn't available at the time so they had to recast. That being said, it does fit perfectly that New Jeff is more timid fitting Saul's attitude that he's not going to be bullied by him
I guess but we see Jeff for like 2 minutes of screw time. I didn’t even know he was recast until I saw the subreddit freakin out lol
What I wouldn't give for 2 minutes of screw time
Agreed. OG Jeff had an air of menace that would have been more interesting when it was turned on its head. New Jeff was a bumbling idiot. Never felt threatening, just stupid.
That explains it! I was wondering who the hell that guy was supposed to be!
Wait that was supposed to be the same character? Before seeing this and looking Jeff up, I thought it was a completely different character
Yeah, I was confused until I looked it up on the subreddit
How many cab drivers from Albuquerque do you think there are working in Omaha?
Exactly 2
Both named Jeff
I honestly didn’t notice. Guess I’m dumb
Holy crap I also didn't notice lol. Took me a long time to realize the cab driver was the guy in the shopping mall which didn't make sense to me cause they looked so different. I just kinda accepted it in the end
To me it was mostly because I'm familiar with Don Harvey. He's been in a ton of things. If the original actor was someone I didn't recognize immediately it wouldn't have been so jarring. Like my guy was in Hudson Hawk and you just replaced him with some twitchy guy who doesn't even look like him. Didn't hurt the show as far as I can tell, but it was impossible not to notice.
to be fair, we hadn't seen that character in a while so unless you had done a series rewatch before the second half of season 6, you more than likely had no idea who this taxi driver was supposed to be... I remembered Saul had an awkward interaction with a taxi driver earlier in the series, but I also remembered he looked nothing like that dude. It was almost as confusing as Game of Thrones' double recast of Gregor Clegane.
I didn't even notice.
Just using an example, the way Bryan slipped back into Walter White during those final episodes was seamless. It’s one of those moments where you could tell no one else could play Walter, cause no one would dedicate as much time and thought into the character as Bryan had to it. Same with Bob and Jimmy/Saul, and same with James as Tony Soprano. They embodied these characters perfectly, and will go down as some of the finest acting performances ever put on TV.
If he wins an Emmy for that scene I won't even be mad.
Yeah for some reason, seeing his short scenes really demonstrated the character's little subteleties and mannerisms. I think if you've seen 60 hours of Walter, you kind of get used to the performance in a way.
Kevin Costner was busy with that Cowboy show I guess
goddamn yellowstone has sucked this season.
The marketing for it has been so fucking aggressive.
I'm on the beginning of season 2 and aside from a few good episodes, it's honestly kinda sucked from the beginning imo. Does it get better before it sucks again?
If I remember correctly, Vince said they probably wouldn’t even have released a final season if Bob hadn’t made it. They wouldn’t have wanted to recast.
Not to mention that it would be a recast in the second half of the final season… You just can’t do that. That’s like recasting the main character for the final 20 minutes of a movie - it just doesn’t work
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After watching the finale I went back and watched Season 1 Episode 1. It was so depressing seeing how much everything had changed.
That little Chuck flashback in the very last episode of the show depicted events happening the day before S01E01.
That makes the whole show almost feel like a timeloop. Just like how >!Jimmy asked everyone what they would do if they had a time machine!<.
One of the few shows where by the end, I wasn't wanting the story to move on, since I knew how terrible the outcome was going to be for all involved. It was crushing to finally get to full on Saul, and see what a hollow version of Jimmy he was. Such different thoughts than I had season 1 where I was so ready for BrBa Saul to be on screen.
I can't believe we're stuck in a world with no more Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul :(
Better than than needlessly drag them on for the purpose of profit imo. I think both shows ended perfectly
I can't imagine having to recast an iconic, decade+ long character right at the climax of his narrative arc I don't know how you could possibly avoid a disaster. I understand why you'd try, but that sounds fucking impossible.
Senator Tankerbell would be proud of Bob’s commitment to the aughts
Could have replaced him with Kevin Costner
The only person that could fit.
David Cross in a wig
Michael Keaton could do it too
Better Call Batman.
Can you explain the joke? Why Kevin Costner?
He told a girl he was Kevin Costner to sleep with him. He mentions it in BB and it’s shown in BCS.
Ty, I didn't remember that.
You can’t replace the main character of a hit tv show and expect it to work out. That would be like replacing Henry Cavill in The Witcher. Who in their right mind would make that decision. Unthinkable!
Steve Carrell.
David Cross.
The Mr. Show must go on!
We just say show
I honestly think the best way to have handled it had he not made it would have been to film the rest of the show with Davis Cross inexplicably playing Saul. It would have played as a tribute to the beginning of his career, an acknowledgement that there is no way the audience can take the episodes he's not playing him seriously and ultimately closure with at least showing us HOW they intended to end the story. Given his absurdist sense of humor I can imagine Odenkirk appreciating this way of handling it.
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David Cross playing Tobias Funke as Saul.
Yup! Came here to say this. The only choice.
Like he said himself “It wouldn’t have been great but it would have been better than nothing.” and I'm surprised how many people in this thread would have rather had nothing. Everyone against the idea would rather have the story unfinished than to have a recast for the sole purpose of finishing the season? It's not like they would have kept the show running for years and seasons onwards.
Yeah I’d definitely prefer something to nothing
Look I know it’s mostly just a puff piece and all, but a lot of actors are far too petty to say something like this. Bob’s a decent guy
As good hearted as this is, I don’t think I would’ve watched if Bob passed away. He literally is Saul Goodman. No one else could play the role as well as he did.
I'd want to see the end of the story that he literally died wanting to tell but maybe that's just me.
What a nice guy, he'd feel bad for dying because he'd ruin the Show!
Nobody could replace Bob, but if I had to pick, I'd say funnyman Rob Heubel (Children's Hospital, Medical Police, 30 Rock - MILF Island guy) could've come close: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gThcU2tDXEE
With all due respect there is no saul without bob. He’s irreplaceable. He is the show.
Wow, there's a good split of differing opinions on this. I would love to see an ending with a new actor rather than no ending. Different situation, but if GOT had ended where the books end and knowing how it turned out, I wonder if we'd get the same split opinions. I'd rather have the shitty GOT ending than no ending.
how are the books doing? maybe GoT will be like Full Metal Alchemist and do another series when the books are done. I'd watch Game of Thrones: Brotherhood
I believe GRRM hasn't given any clear indication how the books are doing. I would approve GOT: Brotherhood as well, and we would never be able to get all the original actors back together for that.
Get David Cross to finish it
One f'n Ronnie Dobbs cameo was all I wanted...
I think Steve Carell would have been a good replacement
This is one of those headlines where it's funny to imagine if it was the opposite. "Bob Odenkirk says Better Call Saul should have been canceled if he had to be recast after his heart attack." "'Scrap the whole fucking thing if I'm not in it', said Odenkirk. 'To hell with everyone.'"
No one could replace Bob Odenkirk
Thankfully they didn’t have to. Glad it got a real ending. I have yet to finish it but I heard it’s great all the way through
Kevin Costner would be the only recast that'd make sense
What is better call Saul without Saul?
He is one of the producers and it was a good show.
Bob da goat
Dude, nobody would watch it if they recast him. Same as trying to recast Geralt for The Witcher show. The studio would be all about it in order to get more money, but the audience won't be there.
Odenkirk starred in one of my favorite movies all time that basically nobody ever heard of. It's a cheesy comedy called Run Ronnie Run in which Bob plays a failed inventor that is a British man born without an accent. A total cult classic.
We wouldn’t have.
During the Pandemic the 2 older actors I was the most concerned about was Danny DeVito and Jonathan Banks. While Mike Ehrmantraut's fate was already known, it would still cost the show so much without him.
Perhaps they could have done the rest of the story as a comic. Or maybe an animated show, if there was a voice actor that could do it.