First there was Talking Dead, the talk show all about everyone’s favorite Zombie-apocalypse series The Walking Dead. Then came Talking Bad, which did the same for AMC’s epic drama Breaking Bad. Now, AMC has confirmed that Chris Hardwick will host a Talking Saul show to follow the season 2 premiere of Breaking Bad spinoff Better Call Saul.
Before you get too excited, Talking Saul won’t air after every episode of the show. It will only be featured after the premiere (this Monday, February 15 at 11 p.m.) and the finale. And it won’t be a full hour like we’ve come to know and love with Talking Dead, but rather just 30 minutes, as was the case with Talking Bad.
That said, the new show will follow the same format as the others, featuring cast members from the show, producers, and celebrity fans discussing the episode and story development, along with viewer interaction from social media, telephone, and the live studio audience.
Joel Stillerman, President of Original Programming and Development at AMC, says the “Talking” franchise began as a “way to serve the fans by harnessing and providing a focal point for discussion around our original programming.” Given that after the first successful season of Better Call Saul has acquired a loyal legion of devoted fans, the network felt it was time to launch the format for the show.
Not surprisingly, both show lead Bob Odenkirk (Saul) and creator Vince Gilligan will sit on the couch for the premiere episode, alongside co-writer and co-showrunner Peter Gould.
Chances are that if the show goes well, it may be upgraded to every episode of next season. Talking Dead airs in the hour following The Walking Dead every Sunday, and has done so since the show’s second season in 2011. The concept continued when Talking Bad launched in 2013.
A special episode of Talking Dead also aired following the finale of Walking Dead spin-off series Fear the Walking Dead last October — AMC clearly loves its franchises. Hardwick noted at the time that the show could be picked up for every episode of the new season.
Here’s hoping that’s the case for Talking Saul so fans and cast members alike can pick apart and debate every aspect of Jimmy McGill’s transformation into Saul Goodman.
