Character Study
A Vulture series about how our favorite TV characters evolved from script to screen.
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The character:Kim Wexler, reputable attorney, girlfriend of less reputable lawyer Jimmy McGill (a.k.a.
Saul Goodman), woman who gets a kick out of a good con job onBetter Call Saul.
Kim Wexler, her breakout role, has led to appearances inVeepandThe Act.
But Kim was a brand-new creation and they were not entirely sure how to build her.
She immediately has boundaries about work, Seehorn says, and I never forgot that.
I decided thats really a position of power.
Thats not a weak person.
I always say she would win at poker and I would lose, in a heartbeat, she says.
She doesnt like to be read.
She will tell you when she wants you to know what shes thinking.
But Seehorns performance encouraged them to push the character in a more complicated direction.
I thought,Shes clearly reluctant, Seehorn says about reading the scene at the time.
She keeps trying to get out of it.
And then, once she participates, she doesnt just participate she excels at it.
They are not the same person, but their internal engines run on similar fuel.
The Accident
The most consistent presence in the life of Kim Wexler is not Jimmy McGill.
Like so much about Kim, it was found through a mix of intention and happy accidents.
They decided on the ponytail for practical reasons.
She only let her hair down when she was around Jimmy and/or in the privacy of her own apartment.
I feel more vulnerable as Kim when she takes her hair down, Seehorn says.
Its the same as even being out of a suit.
I immediately feel it in my body when shes not in the suit.
Its a bit of armor for her, her whole look.
During the confrontation, the script states that Kim is truly unleashed, but offers nothing else.
The writers left it up to Seehorn and director Michelle MacLaren to decide how to play her eruption.
What does unhinged look like for somebody who has never let themselves break?
Seehorn recalls asking herself, as she and MacLaren discussed the scene prior to filming.
The fight to not fall apart, forever and always, is more interesting than completely just falling apart.
In general, people make a run at act sober, not drunk.
People attempt to hold themselves together in public, not fall apart.
Seehorn thought about all the baggage Kim would bring to that conversation.
As the scene progressed, she wanted Kim to get really vicious with Howard.
AsBetter Call Saulbarrels into its fifth season, Kims fate is the biggest unknown in the series.
Will she escape Jimmys orbit?
Or is she doomed to spiral even further?
Its an impending tragedy, Gilligan says.
Shes doing things that are flat-out illegal.
