Breaking Bad creator hints at future of Pluribus as Apple TV sci-fi series breaks a new record
The streaming world continues to expand at an exponential rate, and while 2025 is the year we finally say goodbye to Netflix's Stranger Things as one of the biggest shows of all time, it's also a year that’s celebrated several major returns.
Alongside The Last of Us, Severance, and Black Mirror, there have been new additions like Adolescence, Alien: Earth, and Daredevil: Born Again.
Among the biggest releases, Vince Gilligan's Pluribus has generated plenty of hype over on Apple TV – not least because it's from the mind behind Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.
Starting out strong, the sci-fi series has already been heralded as the 'best' show of the year, earning high praise for Better Call Saul's Rhea Seehorn stepping up as MVP, Carol Sturka. Carol is a grouchy author who finds herself as one of only 13 people who aren't infected by PLUR1BUS virus that's turned the rest of the world into a giant hive mind.
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While we wait for Severance season 3, Pluribus is proving to be our latest TV addiction, but the question is, how long will it run for?
Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul ran for five seasons and six seasons, respectively, and according to Gilligan, Pluribus will likely land a more concise series order.
Although Pluribus has already been given the green light for a second season, Gilligan told Polygon how he envisions a three-season run: "If you held a gun to my head, I would say three seasons. At least I would hope for three seasons."
Saying he doesn't want Plkuribus to 'overstay' its welcome, Gilligan continued: "I want to leave the audience wanting a little bit more. Maybe not seasons more, but just at least a little bit more. In that regard, I think it's better and more fitting to end a little sooner, rather than later.”
Three seasons sounds like a pretty neat arc, but things could always change. In the same interview, he admitted that Breaking Bad was originally mapped out for three seasons before it got a new lease of life: "And then it turned out to be six, which was great. There turned out to be more story than I thought was possible. So maybe that'll be the case here. Maybe it won't be. I don't know."
Elsewhere, he promised Variety that he already has an ending in mind: "I think we have a pretty good idea of where it should end.
“One of the most important things I can do in the writers’ room is not be too precious about the ideas. If we come up with a better way to end this thing, we will."
Despite Pluribus having a hefty budget of $15 million per episode, it might already be paying for itself. There's no escaping Breaking Bad's near-perfect record, but over on Rotten Tomatoes, Pluribus surpassed this with an unheard-of 100% score from critics. Even the notoriously hard-to-please general public has awarded it an impressive 80%, showing that Pluribus is one to watch.
Then again, with Gilligan's catalogue of shows being remembered as some of the best to ever grace our screens, we were always pretty sure there was a bright future ahead.