The 'Breaking Bad' Creator Shares He Has a Plan for How His Sci-Fi Series Will End... Currently.
The creative mastermind did not foresee that his new science-fiction series would become a breakout success. “I am so grateful to the audience,” Gilligan says. “I did not foresee the show being as talked about as it is, and it makes me deliriously happy.”
As the debut season of the acclaimed series coming to an end—and Season 2 greenlit and underway—Gilligan and his team recently discussed the viewer reception and whether it will impact the storyline of Pluribus.
On the Overwhelming Fan Response
Anyone might to get sidetracked by the widespread acclaim and fan theories surrounding Pluribus. He is doing his best to ignore the noise.
“It's like being force fed hot fudge sundaes and being laughing uncontrollably,” he explains. “It's amazing, but I get wind of it anecdotally, and that's by design. I have never looked myself up on the internet, nor do I ever plan to. Not because I don't care. It's a bottomless pit I know I would fall into and then I'd be never leaving the house from the hardware store and I'd never leave my living room.”
Regardless of Gilligan’s best intentions, there’s no escaping the overwhelmingly positive response to the series. The only approach for the writers is to accept it graciously and try not to let it dictate the story of the show.
“It is not our goal to tailor anything,” says co-executive producer Alison Tatlock. “Our storytelling is not influenced by what people are saying.”
“It's wiser to keep our focus on the work,” Gilligan concludes.
The Central Mystery: Will the showrunner See the Finale of Pluribus?
So if Gilligan and his team aren’t being guided by fan response, does that mean they have already decided how Pluribus will ultimately end? Essentially yes… in a way.
“We have some compelling concepts about where the show might end up,” he states. “but we are always ready to abandon a good idea for a more brilliant plan. That has held us in excellent shape on Better Call Saul and on Breaking Bad even before that. We change course when we conceive of something superior and I imagine we will be doing that.”
Alternatively, if they hit a wall, Gordon Smith has a rather amusing idea to fall back on.
“I keep pitching that the entire story is inside a snow globe, and that we'll reveal the snow globe and that's where they've been all along,” he says humorously, “but nobody's taking me up on that.”
Then again, why not reference the iconic TV endings?
“I want Carol to open her eyes beside Bob Newhart,” Gilligan says with a smile.
Pluribus is streaming now on Apple TV+.
