Vince Gilligan Says Saul Goodman Walks Free After Better Call Saul — Thanks to a Trump Pardon

Vince Gilligan is out promoting his new series, Pluribus, and casually dropped a little hand grenade about Saul Goodman. Short version: he does not think Jimmy is still rotting in a cell.

'I think Trump pardoned him, I think he is out, that is what I think, kinda tracks, does not it?'

— Vince Gilligan, on The Rich Eisen Show

Wait, was not Saul locked up at the end of Better Call Saul?

Yep. The finale ties directly into the end of Breaking Bad and then carries Jimmy/Saul into his Omaha-era fallout. If you need the refresher, here is how it went down:

• After disappearing during Breaking Bad, Saul resurfaces as Gene in Omaha. He gets caught and hauled into federal court.
• He initially plays the old Saul angles and could have skated by blaming Walter White, arguing he was coerced. He even lines up a deal.
• In court, he flips the script and tells the truth. He says he was not just dragged along — he was an accomplice, and Walter would not have gotten as far without Saul’s legal hustle.
• He takes responsibility to protect Kim Wexler from further fallout and to drop the Saul mask for good. He reclaims his name: Jimmy McGill.
• The price tag: 86 years in federal prison.

So... is the pardon canon now?

Not officially. This is Gilligan’s own read on what happens after the finale. Does it track? In a real-world sense, sure — if you imagine the timeline marching forward and a future president stepping in years later. On-screen, the last we see, Jimmy is doing his time, baking bread, and sharing a quiet cigarette with Kim. It is a great ending precisely because it is final and ambiguous at the same time.

Is Gilligan done with the meth-makers-and-lawyers universe?

For now, that is the vibe. Pluribus is a different lane from the Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul world. Gilligan told The Hollywood Reporter he is weary of writing bad guys and does not love how some people proudly model themselves after TV antiheroes like Tony Soprano, Michael Corleone, and Walter White. He is clearly thinking hard about what kinds of characters and stories he puts out there next.

Where to watch Pluribus

Pluribus is streaming on Prime Video in the U.S.

Should Gilligan circle back to Walter White and Saul Goodman someday, or leave that world sealed with a perfect ending? I am curious where you land.