Bob Odenkirk gives his thoughts on how the ‘Breaking Bad’ spinoff ‘Better Call Saul’ will compare to his current work on ‘Fargo’….
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
It’s not everyday an actor gets to pop from one Emmy award winning show straight to a new series that’s expected to rack up the award nominations next year, but that’s exactly what Bob Odenkirk managed to do going from ‘Breaking Bad’ to the FX series ‘Fargo’.
The characters he’s playing couldn’t be more different either, although both are given hints of Odenkirk’s comedic charm throughout the role. In ‘Breaking Bad’, he played unscrupulous lawyer Saul Goodman, who was a confidant and employee of Bryan Cranston’s Walter White, dubiously connecting him with the right people in the drug business and helping him with every facet of his multi-million dollar business.
In ‘Fargo’, Odenkirk shifts from a slippery as an eel attorney to a dimwitted police chief, thrown into the role after the real cop in town is murdered. As Bill Oswalt, Odenkirk gets to wear the boss pants, but it’s a job he’s woefully unready to fulfill and the missteps he takes while trying to run a police department is frustratingly hilarious.
Odenkirk won’t have to waste much time moving from Oswalt back to Saul Goodman, however, because ‘Fargo’ is currently slated as a 10-episode miniseries and then later this year he’ll shift back over to AMC when he stars in the upcoming ‘Breaking Bad’ spinoff, ‘Better Call Saul’.
While Odenkirk admits that he hasn’t read the scripts for the new series, he believes there will be a certain vibe for ‘Better Call Saul’ that echoes the same kind of feelings that emanated from ‘Breaking Bad’ as well. His impression of what will be on ‘Better Call Saul’ is a far cry from the work he’s currently doing on ‘Fargo’.
So far the best guesses for ‘Better Call Saul’ have been a series that will be a mix of comedy and drama, but from what Odenkirk is stating, the show may take a bit of a different turn all together.
“I haven’t read anything from Better Call Saul, so I don’t know anything except the vibe I’ve gotten. I guess I’d have to say the vibe I’ve gotten is that that show is going to be pretty intense and dark, so I think Fargo might be more overtly comic and lighter than Saul, but that’s just conjecture based on guesswork based on wishes on the wind,” Odenkirk said recently.
What Odenkirk does so well, just as he did for several seasons on ‘Breaking Bad’ is adding a touch of levity to these very serious roles. While Bill Oswalt may be the Barney Fife of Fargo, the subject matter on the series still revolves around murder and extortion and the body count is certainly only going to climb as the show moves forward.
When he shifts back into his full suits and slicked over hair as Saul Goodman, Odenkirk looks forward to adding a comedic element to that show as well.
“When things get dark around me in character, I find moments to play things to make things funny,” Odenkirk said. “It’s good; it’s something to play against. It’s really a great vibe to have around you and find these funny little moments, so I think I’ll be making it funny.”
Catch Odenkirk for the rest of the season on ‘Fargo’ airing Tuesday nights at 10pm ET on FX and then stay tuned for more details on his next series ‘Better Call Saul’, which will pick up production this summer with a date still to be announced for the debut on AMC.
