Why Bob Odenkirk partly owes his Better Call Saul success to Bryan Cranston.
When Bob Odenkirk was offered the role of Saul Goodman in the Breaking Bad spin-off, Better Call Saul, he was on the fence. The original series was a massive hit, and stepping into a prequel felt like a huge gamble.
But Bryan Cranston, the talented actor who portrayed the iconic Walter White in Breaking Bad came to the rescue.
During an Off Camera interview (via Looper), Bob Odenkirk revealed Bryan Cranston’s advice. Bryan Cranston gave Bob some straightforward advice about what his daily routine should look like.
He emphasized that Bob should arrive on set fully prepared, spend his lunch breaks studying lines, and continue working throughout the day. Cranston even suggested that Bob should have dinner prepared on set to bring home, so he could focus on work in the evening before going to bed, only to repeat the whole process the next day.
But Cranston’s advice wasn’t just about the grind; it was also about embracing the role and the responsibilities that come with it.
In an interview with The Ringer, Bryan Cranston said that he shared his own experiences from Malcolm in the Middle and Breaking Bad, advising Bob, “It’s there for you. I suggest you embrace it,” referring to the responsibilities one has to take as an actor.
Even with all this golden advice, the first season was a tough grind for Bob. He was overwhelmed with complex dialogues and long shooting days.
“As it turns out, in that first season, I got hit with so much material and so much Saul Goodman chatter that I almost couldn’t do it. It was almost too much to even fit into a week. And at a certain point after about four or five weeks, I asked for extra time, and they did give it to me,” Bob explained.
But now that the show has ended, we can say that Better Call Saul did a pretty good job following up on the original series (some even think it’s better), and Bob Odenkirk has done a decent job following in Bryan Cranston’s footsteps, that even earned him an Emmy nomination this year.
