Rhea takes challenges in ‘Better Call Saul’ seriously
NEW YORK: There’s good news and there’s bad news for “Better Call Saul’s” Rhea Seehorn.
The good news is that the hit AMC series, a prequel to “Breaking Bad,” kicks off its fifth season soon after being off the air for more than a year.
The bad news is that “Better Call Saul” — which will air its sixth and final season in 2021 — traces the evolution of well-intentioned attorney Jimmy Mcgill (Bob Odenkirk) into shady criminal lawyer Saul Goodman of “Breaking Bad.”
That development means that Seehorn, who plays Mcgill’s principled but increasingly conflicted girlfriend Kim Wexler, is growing closer to learning the fate of her character, who was not in “Breaking Bad.” Given that Mcgill/goodman is coming ever nearer to connecting with criminal mastermind Walter White and the lethal underworld at the core of “Breaking Bad,” speculation has been steadily rising among the show’s devotees that Kim may very well meet a bad end.
Of course, there’s always a chance that things may not turn out as bad as fans fear, and Kim may walk away (relatively) unscathed. But the universe of “Breaking Bad” is notoriously treacherous.
Whatever happens, Seehorn finds the anticipation thrilling.
“People are very concerned for Kim,” Seehorn said with a laugh as she picked through her breakfast at a Beverly Hills cafe. She said fans approaching her on the street and on social media are very worried about the character, and want to save her before it’s too late.
“They speak about her with me like she’s this mutual best friend we both have,” Seehorn said. “They’re so protective. Kim is often positioned as the moral centre in a world populated by unscrupulous lawyers, drug dealers and vicious wrongdoers. While she has demonstrated her determination to be an upstanding lawyer, her loyalty to Mcgill, with his questionable ethics and talent for scams, has at times put her unimpeachable reputation in jeopardy. This season, Kim’s values are on a collision course with Goodman’s darkening nature.
“Kim is a real complex character, but so are human beings, and that’s what (executive producers) Peter Tolan and Vince Gilligan and our brilliant writing staff are so adept at showing,” she said. “Her ability to compartmentalise has now become a flaw for her. It used to be a superpower, but now we see it’s going to become very dangerous.”
Seehorn said she has been given no clues on what awaits Kim. But while Seehorn — like the show’s fans — knows the truth about what Saul Goodman becomes, Kim is in the dark.
“They tell me nothing. All I ever have is the script in front of me,” Seehorn said. “The good news is, I don’t know where the series is going, but I’m enjoying it, and from the perspective of a fan, I really want to see how the great writers are going to put together this jigsaw puzzle.”
Kim was left shell-shocked at the conclusion of last season: She and Mcgill had cooked up an ellaborate plot to get his lawyer’s license reinstated. She was moved during a reinstatement hearing as Mcgill spoke of being traumatised by the suicide of his older brother, Chuck (Michael Mckean). But she was sent reeling at the end when she found out that his emotions weren’t real, and were instead part of a scheme on his part. She was further shocked after he told her that he planned to practice law under the name Saul Goodman.
“Kim felt that Jimmy deserved to practice law, that he was a good person,” she said. Kim’s past, and how that has shaped her, has been one of the intriguing mysteries propping up “Saul’s” central drama. “We’re going to look at who you are when you’re alone as opposed to how you are because of someone else,” Seehorn said. “It goes both ways. A lot of people think Jimmy affects Kim, but she also affects Jimmy. It’s reciprocal. And we’re going to see what it looks like when you keep the lid on for so long that you can’t stop it from shaking. I like exploring who she was before we met her, who she is and what she is becoming.”
“It will be a sad goodbye for me, for sure “she finally said. “This has been my favorite character that I’ve ever played, onscreen or stage. But I will also be excited to learn how this great mystery ends. I don’t know if there’s anyone better than our writers room to be trusting. It will be the perfect ending for her, whatever it is.”