Summary
- After the death of Walter White, many questions remain about the fate of Breaking Bad's other key characters, but Better Call Saul and El Camino provide some insight.
- Jesse Pinkman's post-Breaking Bad fate is detailed in El Camino, where he escapes the Brotherhood's compound and starts a new life in Alaska after paying for a disappearing service.
- Skyler White's future looks bleak even with Walt's death. She receives a plea deal from the government, but faces financial struggles, little professional experience, and the responsibility of caring for her daughter.
While the finale saw the death of Walter White, there are a lot of questions about what happened to Breaking Bad's other key characters after the end. The acclaimed show featured a rich cast of memorable characters in its portrayal of Albuquerque's drug underworld, but only a few made it out of the series alive. Of the survivors, much of their fate is left unknown and uncertain. However, the follow-up series Better Call Saul and the Netflix movie El Camino provide at least some idea of what happened to Breaking Bad's core characters after the events in the final episode "Felina."
One of the elements that made Breaking Bad a commercial and critical success was its strong cast. However, over the course of the series, many of those characters, including several fan favorites, meet grisly ends as Walter White's all-consuming quest to conquer the meth trade claimed many lives. Ultimately, this included his own as Walt is killed in the Breaking Bad finale following his final act of revenge and goodbyes to the people he was leaving behind. While Walt's story was wrapped up definitively, finding out what happened to Breaking Bad's remaining cast of characters requires looking beyond that final episode.
Related
The Best TV Shows Of All Time, Ranked
The best TV shows of all time will be debated forever, but there are clear contenders. These are the very best TV shows of all time, ranked.
Aaron Paul As Jesse Pinkman
Walter White's cooking partner has one of the most detailed post-Breaking Bad fates as the spinoff movie El Camino: A Breaking Bad Story, revealed what happened to Jesse Pinkman next. After escaping from the Brotherhood's compound, Jesse set up a plan to make authorities think he fled south. He then arranged to be "disappeared" by Robert Forster's character, Ed Galbraith, the same service that Saul Goodman used in Breaking Bad.
After killing a criminal named Neil over a share of Todd's money, Jesse was able to pay for the service and start a new life in Alaska. He left a letter for his former girlfriend's son, Brock, but otherwise didn't say goodbye to anyone. Ultimately, El Camino leaves Jesse with a little bit of the freedom and peace he never found during Breaking Bad. A throwaway line in Better Call Saul also reveals the authorities do suspect Jesse went south, suggesting he succeeded in going into hiding.
Anna Gunn As Skyler White
Given that Walt's criminal activity initially started to provide for his family, it is heartbreaking to see what happens to Skyler White in Breaking Bad. In the series finale, Skyler is shown living in a government safe house, working as a taxi dispatcher under her maiden name, and serving as the focus of a criminal investigation for knowing the truth about Walt's drug empire. Anna Gunn didn't return as Skyler for either El Camino or Better Call Saul, but in a phone conversation between Saul and his secretary, Francesca, in Better Call Saul Francesca mentions that Skyler received a plea deal from the government.
The news offers a slight glimmer of hope for her life after the events of the show, but the future does not look good for Skyler even with Walt finally dead. Even if she's legally in the clear, however, Skyler has no access to the money Walt intended to leave for her, little professional experience, and must care for her infant daughter Holly, suggesting plenty of struggles ahead, due in no small part to Walter White's selfishness. Though Walt is responsible for many deaths in Breaking Bad, the damage he caused Skyler is devastating.
RJ Mitte As Walt Jr.
Walter's son gets a muted send-off in the Breaking Bad series finale, with his father briefly glimpsing him but not having a conversation. Walt coerced Gretchen and Elliott Schwartz to put his remaining money in a trust for Walt Jr., but it's unknown if Junior ever received his money or if he would accept it, given his anger at his father at the end of the series. It is also revealed that Walt Jr. is once again going under the name "Flynn" at the end of the series, a hint of his continued disgust with his father. Actor RJ Mitte has suggested that Junior could join the DEA in an attempt to make up for his father's misdeeds, following in Hank's footsteps who was the father figure he deserved.
Betsy Brandt As Marie Schrader
Skyler's sister and Hank's widow, Marie makes a surprising appearance in the Better Call Saul series finale as part of Saul's interrogation. Marie blames Saul for contributing to her husband's death and acts as a reminder of the human damage Walter did with Saul's help. She also appears in the courtroom during Saul's climactic confession scene, joined by Steven Gomez's widow as well. Marie seems to be dedicated to finding justice for her husband in her post-Breaking Bad existence.
Bob Odenkirk As Saul Goodman
As the central character of the spin-off series Better Call Saul, Saul Goodman has the most developed future of any Breaking Bad character. While most of Better Call Saul takes place prior to Breaking Bad, the series does provide glimpses into Saul's post-series life under the assumed identity of Gene Takavic, a Cinnabon manager in Nebraska. However, just a few months after Breaking Bad's conclusion, Saul finds himself drawn into a life of petty crime again when he is recognized by an Albuquerque resident.
Saul is eventually apprehended by the police and charged with the crimes he committed while working for Walter. He initially negotiates a generous plea deal but reneges on it at the last minute to accept his responsibility for the damage Walter did. Saul is sentenced to 86 years in federal prison but is able to find a kind of atonement, returning to his original name of Jimmy McGill.
Laura Fraser As Lydia Rodarte-Quayle
Lydia plays a key role in Breaking Bad's later seasons as part of the Madrigal shell company who helps Walt export his meth to the Czech Republic. In the final episodes of Breaking Bad, Lydia attempts to double-cross Walt, but he instead strikes at her by slipping ricin into her coffee sweetener. El Camino confirms Lydia's poisoning as Jesse a radio report describing a woman who is critically ill after having been poisoned and is tied to White's crimes, presumably Lydia. While it's not confirmed that Lydia died from the poisoning, it seems highly likely given Walt's knowledge of chemicals. Even if Lydia survived, she would have woken up to a life behind bars.
Breaking Bad's Supporting Characters
Badger (Matt Jones) and Skinny Pete (Charles Parker): Jesse's best friends are last seen in Breaking Bad helping Walt threaten Gretchen and Elliott, then revealing to Walt that Jesse is still alive. They return in El Camino and help Jesse with his escape. Badger drives a car and hides it near the border to make it seem like Jesse went into Mexico. Meanwhile, Skinny Pete agrees to wait around for the cops and tell them Jesse's plan to go south. Given that the police believe Jesse went south as revealed in Better Call Saul, it appears Badger was not caught, but it is possible Skinny Pete was punished as an accessory to Jesse's escape.
Huell (Lavell Crawford): Saul Goodman's bodyguard, Huell, is an intimidating silent type, but he is rattled in his final appearance in Breaking Bad as Hank convinces him that Walt is out to kill him. Huell agrees to help the DEA, however, Hank informs him that he should stay in a dingy motel room until it is safe. Since Hank and Gomez were the only ones who knew about Huell and both men were killed, there was an ongoing joke from fans that he was still waiting in that motel room. However, Huell gets a happier ending as Better Call Saul reveals he moved back to New Orleans after the DEA couldn't prosecute him.
Patrick Kuby (Bill Burr): Huell's partner, Kuby gets one of the more mysterious endings after Breaking Bad. When Hank interrogates Huell, he falsely implies Kuby may have already been killed by Walt, attempting to scare Huell more. This could suggest Hank was unable to locate Kuby and that he might have gone on the run after Walt and Saul left. This is further backed up in Better Call Saul when Francesa reveals she doesn't know where he is.
Francesca (Tina Parker): Though she liked to keep out of Saul's more nefarious business dealings, his secretary Francesca clearly knew he was a criminal and even remained in contact with Saul after he went on the run. Better Call Saul reveals she became an apartment building manager and takes money from Saul to update him on events in Albuquerque.
Ted Beneke (Christoper Cousins): Ted is last seen having suffered an unfortunate fate in Breaking Bad. After Skyler risks her own exposure by helping him with his money issues, Huell and Kuby pay Ted a visit to convince him to take care of the matter. However, it leads to Ted accidentally breaking his neck and becoming paralyzed. Though he wakes from his coma, he is clearly afraid of Skyler and Walt, promising not to tell the police anything. Given that Skyler remains free, it appears he stuck to that promise even after Walt's death.
Brock (Ian Posada): Following the death of his mother Andrea, Brock is never seen again in the Breaking Bad universe. However, Jesse's letter to him at the end of El Camino suggests that he will learn the truth about his mother's death. It is unknown what he will do with that information.
Ed Galbraith (Robert Forster): Despite being introduced late in season 5 of Breaking Bad, Ed Galbraith became a recurring character in the universe, appearing in El Camino and Better Call Saul as well. After last being seen helping Walt maintain his life in hiding. Ed returns in El Camino to use his particular services to help Jesse disappear to Alaska. His final appearance, airing after the death of Robert Forster, was in Better Call Saul as Saul calls him to arrange another disappearance only to change his mind.
There Won't Be Any More Breaking Bad Stories After El Camino And Better Call Saul
Even finding out what happens to Jesse Pinkman after Breaking Bad, there still feels like more that can be explored with that character and many others within the Breaking Bad universe. However, the chances of seeing another series or movie about Jesse's life in Alaska or a story focusing on Better Call Saul's Kim Wexler seem unlikely. Vince Gilligan confirmed that the Breaking Bad timeline is done. While he expressed pride in the two spinoff stories, he insists he was pushing his luck, and it is time to end things.
As much as it is tempting to spend more time in this universe, it is easy to see where Gilligan is coming from. El Camino was a necessary follow-up after Jesse's final season story was lacking. Meanwhile, Better Call Saul ended up being a series that rivaled Breaking Bad with its own fascinating arc. However, not every question needs to be answered and not every character needs perfect closure, so what happens at the end of Breaking Bad can be a fitting enough conclusion for some of these characters.
