Pilot (Breaking Bad)

Walter "Walt" White is a high school chemistry teacher living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with his pregnant wife, Skyler, and their teenage son Walter Jr., who has cerebral palsy. Walt is heavily dissatisfied with his life, being forced to work a second job at a car wash in order to support himself and his family along with a lack of physical intimacy in his marriage.

During Walt's 50th birthday party, his brother-in-law Hank Schrader, a DEA agent, proudly shows the guests a news report detailing his latest drug bust, in which $700,000 of illegal drug money was confiscated. Walt appears curious and Hank offers to take him on a ride-along to a bust. Meanwhile, Skyler talks to her sister Marie Schrader, Hank's wife, about her pregnancy.

The next day, Walt collapses at the car wash and is taken to the hospital, where he is told that he has developed inoperable lung cancer and has, at best, two years to live. He decides to keep the news from his family. Returning to work, Walt lashes out at his boss Bogdan Wolynetz and storms out. He sits alone at home and ponders the news of his impending death.

Walt takes the offer to go on the ride-along with Hank and his partner Steven Gomez as they raid a meth lab. As DEA agents clear out the house, Walt observes Jesse Pinkman, a former student of his, fleeing the scene from a neighboring house. Later that night, Walt tracks down and blackmails Jesse into helping him produce crystal meth. After Walt steals chemistry supplies from the high school, he asks Jesse to purchase an RV to use as their meth lab.

The pair drive the RV into the desert and begin to cook. Due to Walt's expertise in chemistry, the batch of crystal meth they produce is unusually pure. Jesse, impressed, returns to the city and advertises the product to his distributor, Domingo "Krazy-8" Molina, but encounters Krazy-8's cousin, Emilio Koyama, who believes Jesse set him up during the drug bust. To prove his loyalty, Jesse rides with them to the RV, where they meet Walt. Emilio recognizes Walt from Hank's earlier bust which leads to the two being held at gunpoint. To save his life, Walt offers to show them how he makes meth. During the cook, Emilio tosses a lit cigarette out the window of the RV, causing a brush fire. Walt synthesizes phosphine gas with red phosphorus, causing an explosion, and flees the RV, trapping Emilio and Krazy-8 inside, the two asphyxiating from breathing in the toxic gas.

Hearing sirens, Walt attempts to flee but drives the RV into a ditch. He stumbles out and records a video message to his family{{efn|which is shown in medias res at the beginning of the episode}} before unsuccessfully trying to shoot himself. He then realizes that the sirens are not the police but are from fire trucks responding to the fire. Walt returns home, meeting his wife's troubled queries with new sexual vigor, making her ask "Walt, is that you?".

File:Vince Gilligan by Gage Skidmore 3.jpg

Breaking Bad was created by television writer Vince Gilligan, with the crux of the series being the protagonist's journey into an antagonist. Noting how television shows usually kept their main character in the same state to prolong the series, Gilligan said he wanted to make a show serving as a "fundamental drive" towards change.{{Cite web |last=Klosterman |first=Chuck |author-link=Chuck Klosterman |date=July 12, 2011 |title=Bad Decisions |url=http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6763000/bad-decisions |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114132010/http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6763000/bad-decisions |archive-date=November 14, 2013 |access-date=July 17, 2011 |website=Grantland}} He added that his goal with Walter White was to turn him "from Mr. Chips into Scarface."{{Cite news |last=Goodman |first=Tim |date=July 13, 2011 |title='Breaking Bad': Dark Side of the Dream |work=The Hollywood Reporter |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/breaking-bad-dark-side-dream-210786 |url-status=live |access-date=July 17, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021060843/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/breaking-bad-dark-side-dream-210786 |archive-date=October 21, 2013}}{{Cite news |last=Bowles |first=Scott |date=July 13, 2011 |title='Breaking Bad' shows man at his worst in Season 4 |work=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2011-07-12-breaking-bad-season-4_n.htm |url-status=live |access-date=July 26, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718011532/http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2011-07-12-breaking-bad-season-4_n.htm |archive-date=July 18, 2011}}{{Cite news |last=Ginsberg |first=Merle |date=July 16, 2011 |title='Breaking Bad' Star Bryan Cranston on Walter White: 'He's Well on His Way to Badass' (Q&A) |work=The Hollywood Reporter |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/breaking-bad-star-bryan-cranston-212262 |url-status=live |access-date=July 26, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720085936/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/breaking-bad-star-bryan-cranston-212262 |archive-date=July 20, 2011}} The concept of Walt as a meth dealer came to fruition when Gilligan was talking with fellow writer Thomas Schnauz, and they joked regarding their unemployment that the solution was to drive around cooking meth in an RV.{{Cite book |last=Callaghan |first=Dylan |title=Script Tease: Today's Hottest Screenwriters Bare All |publisher=Adams Media |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4405-4176-6 |pages=83–4}}

Gilligan cast Bryan Cranston for the role of Walter White based on having worked with him in "Drive", an episode of the sixth season of the science fiction television series The X-Files, where Gilligan worked as a writer. Cranston played an anti-Semite with a terminal illness who took Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) hostage. Gilligan said the character had to be simultaneously loathsome and sympathetic, and that only Cranston could play the part.{{Cite news |last=Segal |first=David |author-link=David Segal (reporter) |date=July 6, 2011 |title=The Dark Art of 'Breaking Bad' |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/magazine/the-dark-art-of-breaking-bad.html?pagewanted=4&_r=1 |access-date=July 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809032441/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/magazine/the-dark-art-of-breaking-bad.html?_r=2&pagewanted=4 |url-status=live |archive-date=August 9, 2013}}{{Cite news |last=Sepinwall |first=Alan |author-link=Alan Sepinwall |date=March 6, 2009 |title=Sepinwall on TV: Bryan Cranston talks 'Breaking Bad' season two |work=The Star-Ledger |url=http://www.nj.com/entertainment/tv/index.ssf/2009/03/sepinwall_on_tv_bryan_cranston.html |url-status=live |access-date=July 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111116005902/http://www.nj.com/entertainment/tv/index.ssf/2009/03/sepinwall_on_tv_bryan_cranston.html |archive-date=November 16, 2011}} AMC officials were wary of casting Cranston, due to him being mostly known for his comedic role as Hal on the sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, and offered the role to John Cusack and Matthew Broderick, who both turned it down.{{Cite news |last=Weingus |first=Leigh |date=July 16, 2012 |title='Breaking Bad': John Cusack, Matthew Broderick Turned Down Walter White Role |work=HuffPost |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/16/breaking-bad-john-cusack-matthew-broderick_n_1676856.html |url-status=live |access-date=September 28, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130605231714/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/16/breaking-bad-john-cusack-matthew-broderick_n_1676856.html |archive-date=June 5, 2013}} After seeing Cranston in the X-Files episode, the executives were convinced to cast him.{{Cite news |last=Rosenblum |first=Emma |date=March 13, 2009 |title=Bleak House |work=New York |url=http://nymag.com/arts/tv/features/55303/ |url-status=live |access-date=July 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207052959/http://nymag.com/arts/tv/features/55303/ |archive-date=February 7, 2012}} For his role, Cranston met frequently with a chemistry teacher to learn about the subject, gained fifteen pounds to reflect the character's personal decline, and had his hair dyed brown to mask his natural red highlights.{{Cite news |last=Moore |first=Frazier |author-link=Frazier Moore |date=January 19, 2008 |title=The chemistry of a moral dilemna [sic] |page=24 |work=The Boston Globe |publication-place=Boston |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70791524/the-chemistry-of-a-moral-dilemna/ |access-date=February 15, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415055819/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70791524/the-chemistry-of-a-moral-dilemna/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Hughes |first=Mike |date=January 20, 2008 |title=Good teacher goes bad in series |page=50 |work=The Times Herald |publication-place=Port Huron, Michigan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70887313/good-teacher-goes-bad-in-series/ |access-date=February 15, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415055821/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70887313/good-teacher-goes-bad-in-series/ |url-status=live }}

Various actors auditioned for the role of Jesse Pinkman, including Reid Scott, Colin Hanks, and Penn Badgley. However, the audition of Aaron Paul for the character, which he himself said was "awful", caught the attention of Gilligan and casting director Dawn Steinberg. When Sony Pictures Television refused to hire Paul on the basis that he did not look like a meth dealer, Gilligan told them that he would not make the show if Paul was not picked for the role.{{cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/breaking-bad-jesse-pinkman-actors-colin-hanks-penn-badgley/|title=Breaking Bad: Actors Who Were Considered To Play Jesse Pinkman|date=December 22, 2019|first=Kara|last=Hedash|website=Screen Rant|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210312135926/https://screenrant.com/breaking-bad-jesse-pinkman-actors-colin-hanks-penn-badgley/|archive-date=March 12, 2021|url-status=live|access-date=March 12, 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx9uHz9hgGA|title=Aaron Paul Felt Desperate in His Audition for 'Breaking Bad'|date=May 4, 2020|website=Off Camera|via=YouTube|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202161616/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx9uHz9hgGA|archive-date=February 2, 2021|url-status=live|access-date=March 12, 2021}} For the role of Hank Schrader, Gilligan spoke with an actual DEA agent to learn more information on the character.{{Cite web |title=Dean Norris on the Breaking Bad Premiere, Hank's Machismo, and Bryan Cranston's Overachiever E-mails |url=http://www.vulture.com/2013/08/breaking-bad-dean-norris-interview.html |last=Schilling |first=Mary Kaye |date=August 11, 2013 |website=Vulture |publisher=New York Media |location=New York City |access-date=March 12, 2021 |archive-date=June 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614194928/http://www.vulture.com/2013/08/breaking-bad-dean-norris-interview.html |url-status=live }} Dean Norris, who had a history of being typecast as law enforcement and military-type characters, stated that, "I guess you have a certain look, it's kind of an authoritative law enforcement-type look, and that look is certainly the first thing that people cast you with before you get a chance to do some acting."{{Cite web |title=Breaking Bad "Blood Money" Review "Hello, Carol." |url=https://www.npr.org/2013/07/19/203326959/dean-norris-on-playing-good-in-breaking-bad |last=Gross |first=Terry |date=July 19, 2013 |website=NPR |access-date=March 12, 2021 |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415055820/https://www.npr.org/2013/07/19/203326959/dean-norris-on-playing-good-in-breaking-bad |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title='Breaking Bad': Dean Norris Asked Vince Gilligan To Kill Hank Off So He Could Do A Comedy Pilot |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/breaking-bad-dean-norris-hank_n_2615390.html |date=February 4, 2013 |website=Huffington Post |access-date=March 12, 2021 |archive-date=June 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627025105/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/breaking-bad-dean-norris-hank_n_2615390.html |url-status=live }}

The script was originally set in Riverside, California, but at the suggestion of Sony, which was producing the pilot, Albuquerque was chosen for production due to the favorable financial conditions offered by the state of New Mexico.{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Lane |date=May 12, 2013 |title=In Conversation: Vince Gilligan on the End of Breaking Bad |url=http://www.vulture.com/2013/05/vince-gilligan-on-breaking-bad.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190905000205/https://www.vulture.com/2013/05/vince-gilligan-on-breaking-bad.html |archive-date=September 5, 2019 |access-date=June 10, 2013 |website=Vulture}}{{Cite web |date=August 23, 2007 |title=Series 'Breaking Bad' to Begin Production at Albuquerque Studios |url=http://www.abqstudios.com/news.aspx?ID=151 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014052137/http://abqstudios.com/news.aspx?ID=151 |archive-date=October 14, 2007 |access-date=August 23, 2007 |website=Albuquerque Studios}} Filming for the episode began on March 6, 2007, concluding after several weeks on March 21.{{Cite news |date=March 7, 2007 |title=TV Pilot Filmed In Duke City |page=17 |work=Albuquerque Journal |publication-place=Albuquerque, New Mexico |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70879300/tv-pilot-filmed-in-duke-city/ |access-date=February 15, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415055819/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70879300/tv-pilot-filmed-in-duke-city/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |date=March 8, 2007 |title=TV Pilot Will Be Shot in Duke City |page=20 |work=Albuquerque Journal |publication-place=Albuquerque, New Mexico |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70880455/tv-pilot-will-be-shot-in-duke-city/ |access-date=February 15, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415055822/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70880455/tv-pilot-will-be-shot-in-duke-city/ |url-status=live }}

Barry Garron from The Hollywood Reporter praised the premiere for its suspense,{{Cite news |last=Garron |first=Barry |date=January 16, 2008 |title=Breaking Bad |work=The Hollywood Reporter |publisher=Prometheus Global Media |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/breaking-bad-126179 |url-status=live |access-date=April 23, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190905001411/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/breaking-bad-126179 |archive-date=September 5, 2019}} and Jonathan Storm from The Philadelphia Inquirer found it unpredictable.{{Cite web |last=Storm |first=Jonathan |date=January 20, 2008 |title=Jonathan Storm: Entertaining drama of crystal-meth maker |url=http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/television/20080120_Jonathan_Storm__Entertaining_drama_of_crystal-meth_maker.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080124003857/http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/television/20080120_Jonathan_Storm__Entertaining_drama_of_crystal-meth_maker.html |archive-date=January 24, 2008 |access-date=April 23, 2013 |website=The Philadelphia Inquirer |publisher=Philadelphia Media Network}} Meanwhile, Robert Bianco of USA Today focused on Bryan Cranston's performance, which he said was "riveting and remarkable",{{Cite news |last=Bianco |first=Robert |date=January 17, 2008 |title='Breaking' is far from bad; it's fantastic |work=USA Today |publisher=Gannett Company |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/television/reviews/2008-01-17-breaking-bad_N.htm |url-status=live |access-date=April 23, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903231850/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/television/reviews/2008-01-17-breaking-bad_N.htm |archive-date=September 3, 2019}} and The A.V. Club journalist Donna Bowman wrote a positive review, giving the episode a grade rating of an "A−", and citing Cranston's "mesmerizing", "nihilistic", and "hulking yet impotent" performance along with lauding Vince Gilligan's screenplay.{{Cite web |last=Bowman |first=Donna |date=January 22, 2008 |title="Pilot" Breaking Bad |url=https://www.avclub.com/breaking-bad-pilot-1798203677 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110731022855/http://www.avclub.com/articles/pilot%2C17025/ |archive-date=July 31, 2011 |access-date=September 27, 2013 |website=The A.V. Club}} Furthermore, the Chicago Tribune television critic Maureen Ryan complimented Cranston's role, and noted the premiere as a "slam dunk" compared to the two following episodes.{{Cite news |last=Ryan |first=Maureen |author-link=Maureen Ryan |date=January 18, 2008 |title='Breaking Bad' – better TV through chemistry? |page=11 |work=Chicago Tribune |publication-place=Chicago |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70884329/breaking-bad-better-tv-through/ |access-date=February 15, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415055821/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70884329/breaking-bad-better-tv-through/ |url-status=live }} After the series concluded, The Ringer ranked "Pilot" 6th out of all 62 Breaking Bad episodes, where Alison Harman noted that "the addictive hook of the pilot helped power viewers through the couple of seasons it took for Breaking Bad to hit its stride".{{Cite web |last=Herman |first=Alison |date=September 30, 2019 |title=The Ringer's Definitive 'Breaking Bad' Episodes Ranking |url=https://www.theringer.com/tv/2019/9/30/20885880/breaking-bad-episodes-ranking |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030073808/https://www.theringer.com/tv/2019/9/30/20885880/breaking-bad-episodes-ranking |archive-date=October 30, 2020 |access-date=November 2, 2019 |website=The Ringer}}

In 2013, Gilligan recalled the viewership for the episode being below a million viewers due to a football game that aired at the same time.{{Cite web |last=Kevin Day |first=Patrick |date=October 1, 2013 |title=Late night: Colbert makes Vince Gilligan continue 'Breaking Bad' |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-xpm-2013-oct-01-la-et-st-late-night-colbert-makes-vince-gilligan-continue-breaking-bad-20131001-story.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111210500/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-xpm-2013-oct-01-la-et-st-late-night-colbert-makes-vince-gilligan-continue-breaking-bad-20131001-story.html |archive-date=November 11, 2020 |website=Los Angeles Times}} However, The Hollywood Reporter revealed later in the same year that the pilot had been watched by 1.41 million people instead.{{Cite web |last=O'Connell |first=Mikey |date=September 30, 2013 |title=TV Ratings: 'Breaking Bad' Finale Smashes Records With 10.3 Million Viewers |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tv-ratings-breaking-bad-finale-639093 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130930190548/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tv-ratings-breaking-bad-finale-639093 |archive-date=September 30, 2013 |access-date=February 15, 2021 |website=The Hollywood Reporter }}

Vulture ranked the episode 10th-best overall in the series.{{cite web |last1=Potts |first1=Kimberly |title=Every Episode of Breaking Bad, Ranked |url=https://www.vulture.com/article/breaking-bad-best-episodes-ranked.html |website=Vulture |date=10 October 2019 |access-date=January 9, 2022 |archive-date=December 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201212075102/https://www.vulture.com/article/breaking-bad-best-episodes-ranked.html |url-status=live }}

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Official website|http://www.amc.com/shows/breaking-bad/season-1/episode-01-pilot|"Pilot"}}{{Dead link|date=January 2022}} at the official Breaking Bad site
• {{IMDb episode|0959621}}

{{Breaking Bad episodes}}

{{WritersGuildofAmericaEpisodicDramaScreenplay 1995–2009}}

Category:2000s American television series premieres

Category:2008 American television episodes

Category:Breaking Bad season 1 episodes

Category:Television episodes directed by Vince Gilligan

Category:Television episodes written by Vince Gilligan