‘Breaking Bad’: What is the Kandy Welding Company?
Warning: this article contains spoilers for El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.
Fans have always rallied behind Breaking Bad’s Jesse Pinkman. Aaron Paul’s character tugged on the heartstrings of viewers as he followed Walter White into his spiral towards self-destruction. Now, with El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie out, Pinkman finally has an opportunity to leave his nightmarish life behind.
However, partway through the film, we’re introduced to the Kandy Welding Company, and most notably its owner, Neil. Neil is connected to the Neo-Nazi gang that locked up Jesse Pinkman — here’s how.
Kandy Welding Company appears
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie picks up shortly after Walter White rescues Jesse Pinkman from the meth lab created by Jack Welker and his gang of Neo-Nazis. Fans of Breaking Bad will remember that at the end of the show, White was seen dying on the floor of the lab as Pinkman rides away in Todd’s El Camino, screaming and crying.
When El Camino picks up, Pinkman is on the run. He eventually realizes he’s in dire need of cash, and decides to raid his now-dead captor’s home to pick up his old stash. While searching for the hidden money, Pinkman runs into two other men posing as police officers.
After a tense standoff, Pinkman realizes they’re not really cops — they’re just here for the hidden cash as well. Pinkman and the two men split the cash they find three ways. These two men are essentially Kandy Welding Company, though one man in particular, Neil, seems to be in charge.
Unfortunately, the cash Pinkman grabs is not enough for him to start fresh. Pinkman realizes he’s going to have to go get some extra funds from the Kandy Welding Company, and that’s when things get even hairier.
Who are they?
Viewers are first introduced to Kandy Welding Company’s name in El Camino, though they’ve come into contact with the company’s work in the past. While they went unnamed and unseen in Breaking Bad, Kandy Welding actually played a big part in Jesse Pinkman’s detainment at the hands of the Neo-Nazis.
Viewers might recall Pinkman being strapped to a rail set up on the meth lab’s ceiling. It allowed him to cook meth without being able to run away. El Camino reveals that Kandy Welding Company, run by Neil, is the same company that installed the fixture. During the installation, Neil was well aware that Jesse Pinkman was being held hostage and tortured by the Neo-Nazis.
In fact, Neil even participated in a cruel bet with Kenny, Jack Welker’s partner. Kenny suggested Pinkman would be able to break Neil’s welding work, and Neil bet the opposite. Kenny forced Pinkman to repeatedly run and slam himself against the restraints to test their strength.
‘El Camino’ almost had a very different ending
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie has received some mixed reviews. Some fans have called the movie unnecessary, while others are happy with the acting, quality of writing, and resolution to Pinkman’s story.
However, things were almost very different for Pinkman. Vince Gilligan told Entertainment Weekly that he almost had Pinkman get picked up by the cops after escaping.
“I even played with telling that story in a movie, and luckily smarter brains prevailed. The people that I love and trust, starting with my girlfriend Holly, said, ‘You cannot have Jesse Pinkman get busted at the end of this thing. You cannot go that route,’” Gilligan said.
