Better Call Saul set an Emmy Awards record — but not in a good way.
The AMC drama has lost the most Emmys following its six-season run, coming in with zero wins after a total of 53 nominations. During the 2023 Emmys, which took place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Monday, January 15, the show was nominated five times but lost in all categories. The show also lost in two categories at the Creative Arts Emmys on January 7.
The show’s final season was up for Outstanding Drama Series, which it lost to Succession’s final season. Better Call Saul star Bob Odenkirk was up for the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series category after playing Saul Goodman for the final time but lost to Kieran Culkin, who played Roman Roy on Succession.
Similarly, Rhea Seehorn earned a nod for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Kim Wexler. She lost the category to Jennifer Coolidge, who won her second Emmy for playing Tanya McQuoid in The White Lotus.
Better Call Saul was also nominated twice in the Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series category. Writers Gordon Smith and Peter Gould were up for the episodes “Point and Shoot” and “Saul Gone,” respectively. Succession creator Jesse Armstrong, however, took home the award for the season 4 episode titled “Connor’s Wedding.”
None of the Better Call Saul stars have reacted to their record-breaking losses. Variety, however, has called the show “the most snubbed series of all time.”
Better Call Saul, a prequel spinoff of Breaking Bad, saw Odenkirk, 61, reprising his role of crooked lawyer Saul Goodman for six seasons from 2015 to 2022. (The actor played Saul Goodman for a total of 14 years.)
The series finale, which aired in August 2022, showed Saul admitting to his crimes and ending up in jail.
“It’s the person digging down into who they are and trying to come to terms with the world and what the world wants. The worst thing he did is he wanted approval from other people,” Odenkirk said of his character during an interview with Entertainment Weekly. “You’re always going to get in trouble if your main goal is to get other people to like you the way you want to be liked. You might win for a little while, but it will crack. And if that’s what you define yourself by, you’re going to be in a bad place eventually because you just can’t manipulate what other people think of you.”
