"I'm just rather grateful that it's indoors so that the pigeons won't crap on our heads," quipped Bryan Cranston.
The Breaking Bad team was honored on Friday by the city of Albuquerque (New Mexico), where the show took place. The city unveiled bronze statues of the lead characters at the Albuquerque Convention Center. The statues show Walt holding his signature Heisenberg hat at his side, standing next to Jesse. The 500-pound statues were created by sculptor Trevor Grove and donated by Sony Pictures Television, which produced the critically acclaimed AMC series, reported Deadline.
In attendance were Breaking Bad stars Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, and Dean Norris, as well as series creator Vince Gilligan. Better Call Saul stars Rhea Seehorn, Michael Mando, and Patrick Fabian, co-creator Peter Gould, and Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller were also present at the event.
More than a decade ago, Grove had created fan art in the form of a tiny wax sculpture of Walter, and it was brought to Gilligan's attention. "It was so amazing that it just got me to thinking: What if Trevor could sculpt a life-sized version of Walter White in bronze, a medium new to him, and what if he could toss in Jesse Pinkman to boot, and then we donate to the two statues to the city of Albuquerque as a thank-you for your hospitality?" said Gilligan.
"In all seriousness, some folks are going to say, 'Wow, just what our city needed.' I get that. But let me tell you what I see when I look at these two works of art: I see two of the finest actors America has ever produced. I see them in character as two larger-than-life tragic figures, cautionary tales, world-famous ones at that," the creator added.
The Breaking Bad prequel, Better Call Saul, has undoubtedly caught everyone's eye in the city because of its production and tourism. The mayor's office estimates that the franchise has made $385 million in economic impact on New Mexico.
"I've missed you all so much," Paul told the crowd. The actor elaborated how the show and the experience had "saved" his career at a point when he had been struggling professionally so much that he had to ask his parents for money to pay his rent, per Entertainment Weekly. "I auditioned for Breaking Bad, and it completely changed my life," he said. "So thank you so much, thank you to Albuquerque—my God, we were here for seven years on and off. It was such a huge part of my life; it still is."
His co-star, Cranston came up with plenty of jokes. "I'm really grateful," he said. "Trevor Grove is a phenomenal artist. I mean, he really got the likeness. We were praying that we wouldn't look like Cristiano Ronaldo. That was our big hope. Have you seen that one? Google that." He conitnued, "There's no preparation for saying you're getting a statue. I'm just rather grateful that it's indoors so that the pigeons won't crap on our heads."
Cranston and Paul are all set to return to their Emmy-winning roles. As it was reported earlier, the original Breaking Bad stars will be back to reprise their roles as Walter White and Jesse Pinkman in next week's episode of Better Call Saul. The series has almost reached its final destination and the next episode is titled 'Breaking Bad'. Gilligan made a special announcement, saying, "Spoiler alert, everybody. You're hearing it first; no one else knows this yet. This coming Monday night, if you happen to be watching the AMC network—and thanks to them as well—you might just see these two on the next Better Call Saul."
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