Breaking Bad is often regarded as one of the most critically-acclaimed TV shows of all time. The show ran for six years, with a total of five seasons, but AMC wasn't ready to let go of their crown jewel just yet. As a result, a prequel series called Better Call Saul began airing in 2015, starring Bob Odenkirk as the titular con artist/lawyer.
Better Call Saul is preparing to air its sixth and final season in 2022. As the show has progressed, it has gotten closer to the events of Breaking Bad, introducing some of its predecessor's most iconic characters along the way. These ten Breaking Bad characters have yet to appear in Better Call Saul, but may yet show up before the curtain finally falls.
10 Tortuga
Tortuga is mainly memorable among Breaking Bad fans as being portrayed by legendary action movie star Danny Trejo. He first appeared in Season 2 of Breaking Bad, in the episode "Negro y Azul." While he first comes across as a badass Mexican cartel member, he's soon revealed to be an informant for the DEA's Hank Schrader.
Unfortunately, Tortuga's time in Breaking Bad is cut short by the end of his debut episode. For being a DEA informant, Tortuga is killed by the Salamanca twins, and Hank later discovers his severed head hitching a ride on a tortoise. Given that Better Call Saul is a prequel, it's possible for Tortuga to make an ill-fated guest appearance.
9 Max Arciniega
Gus Fring's business partner only makes one appearance in Breaking Bad, in the Season 4 episode "Hermanos." However, the character is vital to the story of Gus Fring, being the co-founder of Gus's Los Pollos Hermanos company. Sadly, the character was killed by Hector Salamanca in a power move against a young Gus.
It would be interesting to see more of Gus and Max's partnership on-screen in the final season of Better Call Saul. Furthermore, fan speculation about the romantic nature of their relationship has been acknowledged by series creator Vince Gilligan. A new flashback starring Max could be an opportunity for this kind of inclusion.
8 Emilio Koyama
Emilio plays an important role in the pilot of Breaking Bad. He is Jesse Pinkman's partner in the meth business before the entrance of Walter White. However, Emilio ends up killed by Walter at the end of the episode, with Jesse forced to dispose of his body in a bathtub, a plan that goes... quite poorly.
While Emilio is the first character to die on-screen in Breaking Bad, his appearance in Better Call Saul may hold a lot of weight. In Saul Goodman's debut episode of Breaking Bad, Jesse mentions that Emilio had hired the lawyer to get him out of trouble. Perhaps viewers will finally get to see that happen in the prequel series.
7 Todd Alquist
Fans have a love/hate relationship with Jesse Plemons' character. Todd debuted in Season 5 of Breaking Bad, quickly becoming one of the show's most detestable villains, despite his polite demeanor. He was righteously killed by Jesse in Breaking Bad's final moments and made flashback appearances in the sequel film El Camino.
Todd could possibly appear in Better Call Saul due to his connections with Mike Ehrmantraut. In Season 5 of Breaking Bad, Todd is initially hired by Mike as part of a pest control crew to help cover up Walt and Jesse's meth organization. Perhaps Mike meets Todd years earlier during Better Call Saul, while still working for Gus Fring.
6 Uncle Jack
Speaking of Todd, the character was instrumental in introducing one of Breaking Bad's most ruthless villains: Jack Welker. Jack is the leader of a neo-Nazi criminal group hired by Walt to assassinate prison inmates who could testify against him. Eventually, he kills Walt's brother-in-law Hank and keeps Jesse as a prisoner.
It may be unlikely that Jack will appear in Better Call Saul, especially since he and Goodman never interacted in Breaking Bad. However, the appearance of such an evil character could certainly raise the stakes of the prequel series. It would be hard to imagine a more fearsome combo than Uncle Jack and Lalo Salamanca.
5 Marie Schrader
Marie is the wife of Hank Schrader and the sister-in-law of Walter White. She mainly had a supporting role in Breaking Bad, though she became very involved in conflict after Hank discovered that Walt was Heisenberg. Surprisingly, she almost made a cameo in Better Call Saul as one of the radiology technicians in the Season 2 finale.
Given that Hank has appeared in Better Call Saul already, it's possible that he and Marie could have another scene together. This may also tug at the heartstrings of fans who haven't seen the characters interact since their last phone call in "To'hajiilee." Also, it'd be worth it just to see Betsy Brandt don her iconic purple outfits once again.
4 Patrick Kuby
The comedian Bill Burr became a fan-favorite character in Breaking Bad as Patrick Kuby, one of Saul's primary henchmen. Alongside Huell, Kuby is part of Saul's "A-Team," so it's surprising that the character hasn't appeared in the prequel series yet. However, Burr had a shot of reappearing in Saul's fifth season that didn't pan out.
Due to scheduling conflicts, Burr wasn't able to reprise his role in the Season 5 episode "Dedicado A Max." Instead, Kuby was replaced with the return of Steven Ogg's Sobchak, who appeared in the first season of Better Call Saul. Hopefully, Burr isn't too busy fighting The Mandalorian to make a return to the Breaking Bad world.
3 Badger & Skinny Pete
These iconic Breaking Bad characters were mainstays of the show throughout all five of its seasons. They mainly served as comic relief, like the show's own Rosencrantz & Guildenstern. Still, they made a very emotional return in the Breaking Bad sequel movie El Camino, following Jesse's story after the show's finale.
Badger is even a client of Saul Goodman in the lawyer's debut episode of Breaking Bad. While it's unlikely that the characters have crossed paths with the lawyer before, their return would certainly be a welcomed surprise. At the very least, fans would love to hear them banter about Star Trek one last time.
2 Walter White
Since Better Call Saul began, series creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould have stressed that the show would change how viewers watch Breaking Bad. At some point, the prequel series has to connect to its parent show. What better way to do that than to re-introduce audiences to Bryan Cranton's Emmy-winning character?
The only thing potentially stopping Walter White's return would be the difficulty of keeping his return a secret. However, Gilligan proved it could be done with White's cameo in El Camino being successfully pulled off. It seems necessary for Walter to return to the show in some way, as a final send-off to the Breaking Bad franchise.
1 Jesse Pinkman
Of course, even more so than Walter White, it would be nice for fans to get one more opportunity to see Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman. This is probably more unlikely than Walt, given that Jesse got a proper send-off with El Camino. It may be that Jesse was meant to be seen for the last time driving to Alaska to start his new life.
However, if Better Call Saul is meant to intersect with the events of Breaking Bad, then the re-appearance of Walt basically means a re-appearance of Jesse. It'd be interesting to see Jesse and Saul interact outside what viewers know from Breaking Bad. Perhaps Jesse even has a run-in with Kim Wexler or Nacho.
Better Call Saul's final season is set to premiere April 18, 2022, on AMC.