‘Breaking Bad’ Star Surprised ‘Better Call Saul’ Cameo Was Spoiled by Producers

If you told Aaron Paul that he’d be set for a cameo in the final season of , and that everybody would know publicly, he’d likely call you crazy. The Breaking Bad star is set to reprise Jesse Pinkman in a cameo for the spin-off’s final season, his first time returning to the role since the release of .

And while he had to stay quiet about the Netflix release, Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould spilled the beans about Saul right out of the gate. Paul shared his thoughts in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, confirming his shock at the situation.

“Shocked! I was heading to the [final season] premiere party of Better Call Saul, and they go, ‘There’s a flag on the play. Just so you know, Vince and Peter let everyone know that you and Bryan are going to be in the final season.;’ And I was like, ‘What?!’” Paul told the outlet. “So I didn’t see that coming. But to be honest, I’m happy to be able to finally talk about it and not be squirrelly. It’s nice to be able to be open about it. So I’m excited. I think fans of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul might have been expecting it. They’ve been seeing the Breaking Bad family slowly appear within the walls of Better Call Saul, so I think it would be odd if Walt and Jesse didn’t make an appearance.”

Paul hinted that the cameo itself is not your traditional route, even surprising him with its execution. “To be honest, I’m such a fan of Better Call Saul that I just didn’t initially see how they were going to do it,” Paul said. “But of course, leave it to Vince and Peter and the rest of the writers to come up with the perfect way. It’s fun. I think people are going to be excited.”

Better Call Saul might seem like a bittersweet pill to swallow for Paul, with THR probing is he had trouble watching the show knowing he used to be part of that group. “Not watching it, but I remember a lot of the Breaking Bad cast showed up to the season one premiere of Better Call Saul. And so much of the same crew is on Better Call Saul. So it was odd to see everyone come together and celebrate Bob’s [Odenkirk] new show,” he explained. “It was just such a family, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little jealous. We all had the time of our lives out in Albuquerque, shooting Breaking Bad. But it’s just so cool to see what they’ve accomplished with [Better Call Saul], and I feel so blessed to be a very small part of it.”

Better Call Saul‘s final season premieres Monday, April 18 on AMC and AMC+. Fans can expect a lot of overlap with items established in Breaking Bad. Still a small amount of time to catch up if you have nothing better to do.