Vince Gilligan Discloses He Knows How Pluribus Might Finish... For Now.

Vince Gilligan never anticipated that the Apple TV+ show would become a breakout success. “The viewers have been incredible,” Gilligan says. “I did not foresee the show being as passionately debated as it is, and it makes me overjoyed.”

With the first season of the hit program wrapping up—and the next chapter greenlit and underway—the creative team reflected on the viewer reception and whether it will impact the storyline of Pluribus.

On the Overwhelming Audience Reaction

Anyone might to get swayed by the widespread acclaim and fan theories surrounding Pluribus. Gilligan, however, is making a conscious effort to ignore the noise.

“It feels like force fed something incredibly sweet and being laughing uncontrollably,” he describes. “It's amazing, but I hear about it anecdotally, and that's intentional. Never in my life looked myself up on the internet, nor do I ever plan to. It's quite the opposite. It's a deep trap I know I would fall into and then I'd be pooping in a five gallon bucket from Home Depot and I'd rarely emerge from my living room.”

Despite his concerted efforts, there’s no escaping the extremely enthusiastic response to the series. The most practical strategy is to take it in stride and try not to let it alter the course of the show.

“It is not our goal to adjust our writing,” says writer and executive producer Alison Tatlock. “The plot we develop is not changed by audience chatter.”

“We prefer to keep our heads down and working,” he chimes in.

The Central Mystery: Will the showrunner Have a Plan for the Ending of Pluribus?

Considering the creative staff are not listening by fan response, does it imply they have already decided how Pluribus will reach its endpoint? The answer is yes… sort of.

“There are some interesting ideas about how the story could conclude,” Gilligan reveals. “however, we remain prepared to discard a decent plan for a better idea. That philosophy has guided us in well on Better Call Saul and on Breaking Bad even before that. We change course when we get a better idea and I imagine we will be doing that.”

On the other hand, if they hit a wall, executive producer Gordon Smith has a rather amusing idea to serve as a last resort.

“I constantly suggest that the entire story is inside a snow globe, and that we'll pull back at the end and the characters are inside it,” Smith jokes, “but no one is buying it.”

Alternatively, why not reference the legendary finales?

“My dream is Carol to wake up in bed next to Bob Newhart,” he jokes.

Pluribus is currently available on Apple TV.