‘Better Call Saul’ Season 6 Filmed Kim and Jimmy’s Last Scene Together in a Unique Way
With only four episodes left, Better Call Saul Season 6 has answered one big question: Where was Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn) in Breaking Bad? Fans worried she would die, but the show had a different answer that explains her absence in Breaking Bad. That means the episode “Fun and Games” likely has Kim and Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk)’s last scene together.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for Better Call Saul Season 6 episode “Fun and Games.”]
“Fun and Games” director Michael Morris was a guest on the Better Call Saul Insider podcast on July 19, the day after the episode aired. Morris explained the creative way they filmed the final scene between Kim and Jimmy. Better Call Saul Season 6 airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on AMC.
‘Better Call Saul’ Season 6 didn’t stop for Kim and Jimmy to argue
After feeling responsible for Howard Hamlin (Patrick Fabian)’s death and covering it up, Kim resigned from the Bar. She also broke up with Jimmy. As Jimmy tried to convince Kim to stay, the camera followed them around their house.
“We kept each side as one unbroken dolly shot but very dynamic dolly shot,” Morris said on Better Call Saul Insider. “We managed to do that in each direction even through doorways.”
The hero on the crew who made this shot possible
Morris said he ruled out a handheld camera because it wouldn’t be consistent with the style of Better Call Saul. He credited dolly grip Eli Schneider especially with helping maneuver the camera on tracks around the apartment.
He was a hero on this day. What you see on screen which is edited in a way such as you wouldn’t necessarily know what was happening, but this was infinite adjustments Eli and the camera crew were making on that track, not to be in a sudden closeup on Bob where you wouldn’t want to use it, not to be too far away for it not to be emotional, to keep these spots, to follow the actors, not to move too soon, not to move too late. What it really helped us with was it kept the fluidity of the performances. They could ride with what was emotionally happening without ever knowing okay, now we can only take it up to this line because I’ve got to get to the kitchen.
Michael Morris, Better Call Saul Insider, 7/19/22
The reason ‘Better Call Saul’ Season 6 filmed Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn that way
Morris knew the scene spoke for itself, so he didn’t need to do any flashy camera moves. However, in rehearsing the scene with Seehorn and Odenkirk, he realized they wanted to be on the move.
“They ranged from the kitchen over to the bedroom and then over into the hallway and there were these moments,” Morris said. “So it was clear early on that this was something you don’t want to lock into one space which is a lot of times what we have to do to be able to cover the scene effectively. It was also clear you wanted to watch this thing unfold. If they were going to move from the kitchen into the bedroom you didn’t really want to say, ‘Okay, let’s just do the kitchen bit now. Then we’ll come back in an hour and a half and do the bedroom bit.’ Because everything was inspired by what came before it. They were really listening to each other in every way.”
