20 More TV Acting Performances That Are Totally Flawless
9. Bob Odenkirk - Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul
Bringing revered comedy veteran Bob Odenkirk into the gritty drama of Breaking Bad was, at the time, a seriously bold move. Considering Odenkirk's background in sketch and improv comedy, it's easy to see why there might have been some apprehension.
But adding such a viciously funny actor to the fold proved to be another Vince Gilligan masterstroke, as Odenkirk quickly got to grips with the show's tone, and as shady lawyer Saul Goodman injected some much-needed humour to the predominately dark drama around him.
This was great enough - proving detractors wrong that a comedian couldn't possibly gel with the epic scope of Walt White's downfall - but then Odenkirk pulled out the big guns, and in some of the show's more dramatic, joyless moments proved to be just as capable a "serious" actor as those around him.
His performance was so great, so natural, smarmy, complex and relentlessly entertaining, that he was given the keys to his own prequel series, and as of this writing has played Goodman for an extra five seasons, effortlessly switching between the tragedy of the lawyer's own self-destruction, and the optimistic humour that never leaves his side.