Everything We Know about the Breaking Bad Movie So Far

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The Breaking Bad universe is set to expand once more with a forthcoming two-hour sequel film. The project had been rumored to be in the works since last fall, but fairly little was known about it until Wednesday afternoon, when The Hollywood Reporter revealed that it would indeed be a sequel, starring Aaron Paul as his Emmy-winning character Jesse Pinkman. Now that production info is coming out more frequently and new details are likely right around the corner, we decided to dig into this project and break it all down for you right here.

The Basics

Back in November, THR broke the news that Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan was working on a two-hour movie set in the world of the hit AMC drama. The project had been floating around the industry with the placeholder title Greenbrier for some time, and Gilligan was set to write the script, executive produce and possibly direct. Other than that, almost nothing was known of the film. Now, THR has reported that the film is indeed a sequel, and will air first on Netflix and then on AMC in a reversal of the rollout of the original series. The film will be the first project to come out of Gilligan’s newly renewed deal with Sony Pictures Television, which keeps him at the studio for another three years at a reported value of just under $50 million. It’s unclear whether he intends to produce more Breaking Bad projects with the remainder of his contract, but fans are holding out hope. There’s gold in the streets, just waiting for someone to come and scoop it up.

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Timeline

An official timeline for the film is not yet known, but bits and pieces have come out about where the project might be at right now. In an interview on the Dan Patrick Show back in November, Walter White actor Bryan Cranston suggested that a script for the film was already finished, although he hadn’t seen it at the time of the interview. The New Mexico Film Office also confirmed that a project called Greenbrier was scheduled to shoot there from mid-November 2018 through early February 2019. If that schedule is to be believed—and keep in mind that film shoots are fickle things, and an early schedule might look nothing like the final result once all is said and done—it’s possible that the Breaking Bad sequel could have already finished shooting. If we assume the project will at least wrap production before the end of the spring, it’s likely we could be looking at a late-2019, early-2020 release date.

Production and Distribution

The film will be produced by Sony Pictures Television, and distributed on Netflix and AMC. Gilligan will write and direct the film, and serve as executive producer alongside his Breaking Bad collaborators Mark Johnson and Melissa Bernstein.

Cast and Plot

The film will reportedly revolve around Aaron Paul’s character Jesse Pinkman in the aftermath of his escape from Jack and the neo-Nazis in the Breaking Bad finale. Paul’s involvement has been speculated about for a while, as an early tagline for the sequel described it as following the escape of a kidnapped man and his subsequent quest for freedom. Jesse Pinkman was a career-making turn for Paul and earned the young actor three Emmy awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. He has since appeared in films like Need for Speed and A Long Way Down, and provided the voice for Todd Chavez in BoJack Horseman, on which he is also an executive producer.

No other cast members are confirmed at this time, although Bryan Cranston did say that he would be happy to reprise his role as Walter White if he were needed for any kind of flashback situation. There is also no word on whether Bob Odenkirk’s Saul Goodman (or Jimmy McGill, depending on who you ask) will make an appearance in the film, although it seems unlikely, as the silver-tongued lawyer was long in the wind by the end of the original series.

As for where this new film will take the character of Jesse Pinkman, we can only speculate. Here’s hoping it’s somewhere with lots of Funyuns and maybe even a few giant magnets to play with.

Check back here for all the latest updates on the Breaking Bad sequel film.