Bryan Cranston’s Breaking Bad appears to stand out in the world of television shows, because of its A-class script and prolific performance of actors. But, one thing that we certainly cannot overlook is the mind-blowing and realistic portrayal of injuries and death scenes in the show.
Take for example, the grisly death scene of Gus Fring, played by Giancarlo Esposito, in Breaking Bad, that stood out as one of the most unforgettable moments in television history. Shockingly, that very sequence appeared quite similar to the frightful scenes from AMC’s other hit show, The Walking Dead. Well, it was no coincidence, but merely a result of collaboration.
Gus Fring’s Death Turned into an Unforgettable Gore Moment
While Bryan Cranston became synonymous with Breaking Bad for his role as Walter White, another actor had a significant impact on the show and its fanbase. It’s none other than Giancarlo Esposito who played the iconic role of Gustavo ‘Gus’ Fring, who started as a friendly business associate with Cranston’s character but ended up being caught in a major cat-and-mouse game with him.
This sudden change of partnership and association eventually led to the gruesome death sequence of Gus Fring, which ended up being one of the most memorable scenes in the history of Breaking Bad. Leaving viewers stunned with the brutal death sequence in the season 4 finale, the show depicted a graphic and realistic portrayal of his injuries, that looked straight out of a The Walking Dead episode.
In Breaking Bad’s episode Face Off, audiences witnessed Walter White turning into an evil mastermind after locking horns with Gus Fring, who then planted a bomb on drug cartel Hector Salamanca’s wheelchair, which led to the demise of Giancarlo Espositoʼs character. In the episode, Hector gets paralyzed and pushes the button on his chair to call the nurse, thus activating the bomb.
Eventually, a truly chilling scene plays out where the bomb goes off and people witness Gus Fring walk out of the door with half of his face blown off. Now, realistically, most people who have half their heads blown off from a bomb blast barely find the strength to walk out a door before collapsing. But Gus walking out of the door looking like a zombie, appeared similar to scenes from The Walking Dead.
The Walking Dead Team Crafted the Gruesome Scenes in Breaking Bad
This very spine-chilling scene where Gus Fring’s half-melted face haunted people for days bore a striking resemblance to the gruesome scenes from AMC’s The Walking Dead. Be it the makeup, the special effects, or even the idea of it, everything somehow appeared to mirror Frank Darabont’s apocalyptic show.
According to Vince Gilligan’s interview with The New York Times, it was confirmed that the special effects team from The Walking Dead was brought in to assist Breaking Bad’s production team in crafting the shocking scene of Gus Fring’s death. Eventually, although the collaboration was praised, it resulted in a truly unforgettable and visceral experience for viewers.
“Indeed we did have great help from the prosthetic effects folks at ‘The Walking Dead,’ and I want to give a shout-out to Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger, and KNB EFX, those two gentlemen and their company, because their shop did that effect. And then that was augmented by the visual effects work of a guy named Bill Powloski and his crew, who digitally married a three-dimensional sculpture that KNB EFX created with the reality of the film scene. So you can actually see into and through Gus’s head in that final reveal. It’s a combination of great makeup and great visual effects. And it took months to do.”
Vince Gilligan informed that The Walking Dead‘s special effects team, led by Greg Nicotero, came in to create realistic and graphic depictions of gore and violence during Gus Fring’s demise. The team’s involvement in the death scene ensured that the moment would be etched in viewers’ minds forever. Eventually, this unexpected collaboration between two critically acclaimed shows resulted in an all the more believable and jarring scene.
Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead are available on Netflix.
