‘Better Call Saul’: Bob Odenkirk Speaks About How the Show Turned Into a ‘Mystery’ About Kim
Although Better Call Saul initially focused on Jimmy McGill’s transformation into Saul Goodman, viewers became more interested in his wife, Kim Wexler, as she’s not in Breaking Bad. By the end of Season 5, the attorney suggested they ruin another lawyer; something viewers thought was out of character for Kim. Actor Bob Odenkirk spoke about how the show turned from Saul’s mystery to Kim, who’s become an enigma.
Jimmy McGill turns into Saul Goodman
Born James Morgan McGill in Illinois, he later moved to Albuquerque with his older brother Chuck (Michael McKean), after getting into serious legal trouble. To curb Slippin’ Jimmy’s con artist tendencies, Chuck insisted his younger brother work in the mailroom at his top law firm, Hamlin, Hamlin, and McGill.
The two-time divorcee met employee Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn) while working there, and the two developed a relationship. She went on to graduate from law school, with a loan from the company, and become a top associate at the firm, inspiring Jimmy to get a law degree as well.
However, Chuck refused to hire him, so he started his solo practice, taking whatever clients he could get. After Chuck secretly recorded Jimmy confessing to a crime, the younger brother broke into his house and destroyed the tape.
His actions resulted in a year suspension, so he made money by running a television ad production company, under the alias Saul Goodman, a play on “it’s all good, man,” and built up a criminal customer base by reselling prepaid cell phones.
After his reinstatement, the attorney realized he would only be Chuck’s younger brother, especially after his sibling’s death, so he obtained a DBA application to practice law under Saul Goodman.
Jimmy McGill seemingly turned Kim Wexler
When viewers are first introduced to the bright lawyer, she seems very serious about work but cares for Jimmy and entertained by his cons. Using the aliases Giselle and Viktor, the two have pulled off a few harmless scams, starting with tricking a financial investor into buying them an expensive tequila bottle.
Because they finished the bottle, the waiter gave them the cork, which Kim held on to throughout the series. Additionally, the two ran another con to fake support for Jimmy’s bodyguard from his Louisiana hometown when the prosecuting attorney refused to give him a deal.
They teamed up again so Kim could replace approved plans for a Mesa Verda branch without wasting time and money by repeating the approval process.
She then asked Jimmy to become Mr. Acker’s (Barry Corbin) lawyer, a homeowner involved in a land dispute with Mesa Verda, as she wanted to make her client and the tenant happy. However, Jimmy went too far and made Kim look like “a sucker,” so she contemplated breaking up with him. Instead, she proposed.
By the end of Season 5, Kim suggested they run one last epic con on Howard Hamlin to settle the Sandpiper case, even if it means ruining the HHM lawyer’s career in the process.
Bob Odenkirk speaks about the show turning into a mystery about Kim
In the virtual Deadline Contenders Television event, Bob Odenkirk spoke about the show “as a fan” watching. He explained that the series began centered around Saul Goodman and how Jimmy McGill turned into the lawyer viewers he met in Breaking Bad.
During Better Call Saul, Odenkirk noted that we’ve met his character and have “gotten to know many sides of him” as well as watched his evolution. He then pointed out that viewers watched him “commit” to the Saul Goodman persona as he changed his name and see the “stakes of that choice” through his interactions with the cartel.
Odenkirk continued and explained Jimmy is “more than well on his road” to completing the change into Saul. Therefore, viewers understand the initial mystery of the prequel series, although “there’s still a lot of fun to watch” when it comes to his character.
However, he noted the show has turned into a mystery about Kim as “we thought we knew her” but have noticed “glimpses of another side” that contradicts viewers’ original perception of the lawyer.
For example, the seemingly straight-laced lawyer only seemed interested in small and harmless cons. Therefore, her transformation by the end of Season 5 has viewers, and Odenkirk as a fan, questioning if they ever truly knew Kim.
