The Showrunner Discloses He Knows How The Apple TV+ Show Will Conclude... At the Moment.
Vince Gilligan did not foresee that the Apple TV+ show would emerge as a cultural phenomenon. “The viewers have been incredible,” Gilligan says. “I did not foresee the show being as widely discussed as it is, and it makes me deliriously happy.”
Now that Season 1 of the popular series reaching its finale—and a second season officially in the works—Gilligan and his team opened up about the viewer reception and whether it will shape the future direction of Pluribus.
On the Incredible Viewer Reception
It would be easy to get distracted by the constant speculation and online debates about Pluribus. The creator is making a conscious effort to ignore the noise.
“The experience is akin to an endless supply of something incredibly sweet and being tickled to death,” he describes. “It's amazing, but I get wind of it through word of mouth, and that's by design. Never in my life Googled myself, nor do I ever plan to. It's quite the opposite. It's a rabbit hole I know I would fall into and then I'd be never leaving the house from the hardware store and I'd rarely emerge from my living room.”
In spite of Gilligan’s best intentions, there’s it's impossible to ignore the extremely enthusiastic response to the series. The best he and his team can do is to acknowledge it humbly and try not to let it influence the direction of the show.
“We make no attempt to adjust our writing,” says writer and executive producer Alison Tatlock. “The narrative we craft is not influenced by what people are saying.”
“Better to keep our focus on the work,” Gilligan concludes.
The Central Mystery: Does Vince Gilligan Know the Conclusion of Pluribus?
Considering the creative staff aren’t being guided by public opinion, does it imply they already know how Pluribus will finally conclude? In short yes… in a way.
“We have some compelling concepts about where the show might end up,” Gilligan says. “but we are always ready to discard a decent plan for a more brilliant plan. That has held us in well on Better Call Saul and on Breaking Bad even before that. We change course when we conceive of something superior and I imagine we will be doing that.”
Alternatively, if they hit a wall, director and writer Gordon Smith has a pretty funny idea to serve as a last resort.
“I keep pitching that everything takes place within a snow globe, and that we'll zoom out in the finale and that's where they've been all along,” Smith quips, “but no one is buying it.”
Then again, why mess with the legendary finales?
“I'd love for Carol to awaken next to Bob Newhart,” Gilligan says with a smile.
Pluribus is streaming now on the streaming service.