Vince Gilligan
Vince Gilligan
George Vincent "Vince" Gilligan, Jr. is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and a director of Breaking Bad and its spin-off Better Call Saul. He was a writer and producer for The X-Files and was the co-creator of its spin-off The Lone Gunmen...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionScreenwriter
Date of Birth10 February 1967
CityRichmond, VA
CountryUnited States of America
Having certain limits - not too many, but certain limits on an ability to tell a story - makes us work harder, me and my writers. Sometimes I watch a giant movie with a $250 million budget and I think they feel kind of bloated, and that if they'd been leaner and meaner they might've had better storytelling.
I love cable, but not because you can show boobies and say the F-word. I love it because you have more time to think. That's the blessing of it.
I think that for me, as far as audience expectations and how you manage your anxiety, it helps to keep things in perspective.
If you’re too rigid in your thinking you may miss some wonderful opportunities for storytelling.
If you look closely at 'Breaking Bad' and any given episode of 'The X Files,' you will realise the structure is exactly the same.
There are two ways of knowing if something ends badly: If you're honest with yourself, you just kind of know it. And then there's other people's reaction to it.
There's nothing more powerful to a showrunner than a truly invested writer.
The older I get, the more nervous and anxiety-ridden I get. I don't know how to fix that.
You don't make a movie by yourself; you certainly don't make a TV show by yourself. You invest people in their work. You make people feel comfortable in their jobs; you keep people talking.
'SpongeBob SquarePants' is a great show, and it centers on a character that is courageously nice. Why is SpongeBob interesting? It's because he has passion. He has a passion for chasing jellyfish.
The thing that intrigued me about 'Breaking Bad' from day one was the idea of taking a character and transforming him.
In all honesty, I've written movies that have been made, and the process has not been as satisfying as writing for television.
TV is where writers get to tell interesting stories. Because writers, for the most part, run television.
Endings are the hardest part. I find there's a great relief that at the end of every episode, every hour of TV you produce, while you want a proper and satisfying ending, it doesn't have to end The Story, in capital letters.