Vince Gilligan’s Breaking Bad has been regarded as one of the greatest television series of all time. There is no better word to describe the series than perfect; ranging from excellently written characters to clever cinematography, performances of a lifetime, and engaging storytelling. It is safe to say that a lot of thought, effort, and hard work went into getting it the 97% rating it has on Rotten Tomatoes.
These beliefs about the Bryan Cranston series are commonly held, and it is as though the entire world knows just how good this show is. Despite this, there always comes a thread of doubt when one is making something, and Gilligan was no different.
Vince Gilligan Was Worried About Winning With Breaking Bad
The 2014 Primetime Emmy Awards were famously very good for Vince Gilligan’s Breaking Bad. The series was nominated in seven categories and ended up winning five of them, including Outstanding Drama Series, Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and even Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. While this was not surprising, it would seem that there was a lot of worry that the series would not win among those who actually created it.
During a conversation at the AMC party (via Time Magazine), Gilligan talked about how he was worried that the Bryan Cranston series would not win that year. Not because he was afraid the show wasn’t good enough, but because there were a lot of very strong contenders the same year. Shows like Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, House of Cards, and Mad Men had a great year and were also part of several of the major categories.
I didn’t think we would win.
However, it was another series that had him seriously concerned about whether their masterpiece would be able to beat theirs.
True Detective VS Breaking Bad
While talking about the Emmy Awards, Vince Gilligan revealed that there was one specific series that he was worried about losing to. True Detective had an especially good season the same year that Breaking Bad released its finale. This made the showrunner worried for one simple reason; his show was released more than a year ago but was still eligible for the award.
I thought it would be True Detective,
While this may seem like an inconsequential thing, he factored in how very few people remembered the ending and its effect compared to other shows that had been released the same year. Worried that this would affect the chances of the show winning the awards, Gilligan was cautious.
I felt like there was an awful lot of groundswell for True Detective, which was an excellent show and a worthy show, and I thought, ‘We’ve been off the air now for a year and a half.
In the end, however, it would seem that release dates did not matter, and the Bryan Cranston show ended up winning the awards.
Breaking Bad is available for streaming on Netflix.
