It may be moot whether someone who has been nominated for 23 Emmy Awards and has four statuettes on his mantle is considered “overdue.” Still, for Vince Gilligan, it’s surprisingly easy.
The legendary creator, showrunner and executive producer is best known for helming AMC’s groundbreaking crime drama Breaking Bad and its prequel spinoff Better Call Saul. He made a name for himself early in his career writing and producing FOX’s sci-fi classic “The X-Files.”
Gilligan’s Emmy win is noteworthy, but in some ways incomplete. He won back-to-back trophies in 2013 and 2014 as a producer on the split final season of “Breaking Bad.” We then added two more excellent short comedy/drama series in 2017 and 2020: Better Call Saul Employee Training: Los Pollos Hermanos Employee Training and Better Call Saul Employee Training: Kim Wexler’s Legal Ethics.
But the heart of Gilligan’s legacy, and the basis of his influence on modern television, lies in his writing and directing. However, he has never won in these categories despite multiple nominations. He won a DGA Award for directing the final film in the “Breaking Bad” series, “Felina,” and has collected five WGA statues from that series, as well as one from “Better Call Saul.”
Gilligan is nominated as a director for the Breaking Bad pilot, the season 4 episode “Face Off,” and the series finale “Felina.” He also won Best Director for Better Call Saul Season 3, episode 2, “Witness.” Writing-wise, his best works include “Felina” and the revered “X-Files” episode “Memento Mori,” often cited as one of the series’ strongest mythology arcs. Despite these efforts, his personal name was never called.
So we talk about this season’s “Pluribus,” his latest project and a major player in this year’s Emmy buzz.
This post-apocalyptic sci-fi drama reunites Gilligan and Rhea Seehorn and centers on novelist Carol Starka, who is determined to assimilate the few remaining immune populations after an alien virus transforms humanity into a peaceful hive mind.
“Pluribus” has been steadily gaining momentum since its debut in November. The series has already been nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a Critics Choice Award, with Seehorn winning both awards for Best Drama Actress.
Still, the Emmy race is rarely a simple one.
HBO Max’s “The Pit” is widely seen as the early frontrunner, but the Emmy voting structure means the winner of the split series could be determined once the envelope is opened. Unlike the Oscars, where the entire membership selects the winners, Emmy nominees and winners are determined by peer groups within each category, with the exception of 15 series categories.
Over the past decade, the director and drama series winner have tied the award six times, including “Shogun” (Frederick E.O. Toy), “Succession” (Mark Milod and Andriy Parekh), “The Crown” (Jessica Hobbs), “The Handmaid’s Tale” (Reed Morano) and “Game of Thrones” (Miguel Sapochnik). The writing has followed a similar pattern, but not always with the same title. In other words, a show doesn’t need to win Best Drama Series to claim writing or directing, and vice versa.
This dynamic could work in Gilligan’s favor.
If “Pluribus” maintains its path as a strong contender, a win for screenwriting or direction could signal broader support and strengthen its position in the top category. Conversely, even if “The Pit” is poised to win the drama series race again, there’s no guarantee it will sweep these fields.
Last year showed that there is no need for that. Despite “The Pit” and Apple’s “Severance” garnering much attention, the screenplay and director awards went instead to “Andor” (Dan Gilroy) and “Slow Horses” (Adam Randall).
But rest assured, the road to Gilligan starts with being nominated.
Variety confirmed that he plans to submit the pilot episode, “We Is Us,” which establishes the tone and thematic scope of the series. Fellow director Gordon Smith will also be involved in the third episode, “Grenade.” In recent years, the number of nominations in the Director (Drama) category has fluctuated between six and seven, leaving room for nominations.
The writing field may offer more opportunities, but there may be more potential for votes to be split. Seven episodes of “Pluribus” are in dispute.
Episode 101: “We Is Us” (Vince Gilligan) Episode 103: “Grenade” (Gordon Smith) Episode 104: “Please, Carol” (Alison Tatlock) Episode 105: “Got Milk” (Ariel Levine) Episode 106: “HDP” (Vera Blasi) Episode 107: “The Gap” (Jen Carroll) Episode 108 (Johnny) Gomez)
In the end, the question isn’t whether Gilligan is respected or not. It’s whether voters will finally align that perception with the very discipline that defines his artistry.
As the title “Pluribus” suggests, taken from “E pluribus unum” (Latin for “one out of many”), it may provide a fitting story. After decades of shaping television, Gilligan may finally be “the one.”
