The 'Breaking Bad' Creator Reveals He Has an Idea of How The Apple TV+ Show Might Finish... For Now.
Vince Gilligan never anticipated that his new science-fiction series would turn into a cultural phenomenon. “The viewers have been incredible,” he remarks. “I did not foresee the show being as talked about as it is, and it makes me thrilled beyond words.”
Now that Season 1 of the hit sci-fi show reaching its finale—and Season 2 greenlit and underway—the writers' room opened up about the viewer reception and whether it will impact the future direction of Pluribus.
About the Incredible Viewer Reception
It would be easy to get sidetracked by the widespread acclaim and audience predictions about Pluribus. He is striving to steer clear of all that.
“It's like being constantly eating something incredibly sweet and being tickled to death,” he says. “It's wonderful, but I learn of it through word of mouth, and that's intentional. Never in my life searched for my own name online, nor do I ever want to. Not because I don't care. It's a bottomless pit I know I would get lost in and then I'd be never leaving the house from the hardware store and I'd be stuck in my living room.”
Despite Gilligan’s best intentions, there’s no escaping the extremely enthusiastic response to the series. The only approach for the writers is to take it in stride and try not to let it alter the course of the show.
“It is not our goal to adjust our writing,” says writer and executive producer Alison Tatlock. “Our storytelling is not changed by audience chatter.”
“It's wiser to keep our focus on the work,” Gilligan concludes.
A Pressing Query: Will the showrunner See the Finale of Pluribus?
So if Gilligan and his team aren't taking cues by public opinion, can we assume they already know how Pluribus will ultimately end? The answer is yes… with some caveats.
“We've developed some compelling concepts about how the story could conclude,” Gilligan reveals. “but we are always ready to abandon a decent plan for a better idea. This approach has served us in excellent shape on Better Call Saul and on Breaking Bad even before that. We throw stuff out when we conceive of something superior and I expect we'll continue doing that.”
On the other hand, if all else fails, executive producer Gordon Smith has a pretty funny idea to serve as a last resort.
“My recurring proposal is that it's all in a snow globe, and that we'll pull back at the end and that's where they've been all along,” he says humorously, “but nobody's taking me up on that.”
Of course, why mess with the iconic TV endings?
“I'd love for Carol to awaken beside Bob Newhart,” he jokes.
Pluribus is streaming now on Apple TV+.
