There was plenty for Breaking Bad fans to like about El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie, but seeing Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and his protégé Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) together in a flashback was next-level fan service. The evolution of the characters’ reluctant partnership into a sincere — albeit often troubled — friendship was one of the most compelling storylines in all of Breaking Bad, and the movie sequel would not have been complete without the motel and diner sequence that brought them back together onscreen.
Now, thanks to this new behind-the-scenes clip from the El Camino limited edition steelbook, which hits shelves on Tuesday, Oct. 13, fans can see just how much the characters’ close-knit bond echoes the real-life friendship between Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul.
In interview footage from the set of the Netflix film, Cranston notes that although Breaking Bad had some very bleak moments, Jesse was often the brightest element of the show. “You looked for something good in someone, and to find it in this numbskull of a character who actually grows up before our eyes and becomes an adult parallels my experience with Aaron Paul,” Cranston says in the clip. “He was a puppy when I first met him. I’m really proud of him and happy for him to be able to do this [movie].”
Cranston goes on to talk about his respect for Paul. “You don’t often make fast friends in every job you do, but I knew when we first started working together, this was a special young man,” he says. “And he’s now a father, husband, on top of being a really terrific guy.”
Paul, for his part, says that his connection to Cranston was immediate. “Honestly, it was like the very beginning in the pilot. It was this instant thing,” he says in the footage.
The actor also says he owes much of his continued success to Cranston. “Since the show, Bryan and I have become so incredibly close. He’s absolutely my mentor, and I’m the actor I am today because of him,” Paul says.
In addition to this footage, the bonus features available on the El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie steelbook edition will include a super commentary with 46 members of the cast and crew, a behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of the film, “Snow Globe: A Breaking Bad Short,” a “Skinny Pete in the Box” teaser, an “On the Radio” teaser, a Rocker Salvage commercial, a Vamanos Pest commercial, “Enchanted” by Chloe x Halle, and visual effects design galleries.
Additional Blu-ray exclusives include an audio commentary with Paul and series creator Vince Gilligan, deleted and extended scenes, a gag reel, and scene studies with Gilligan.
The El Camino steelbook edition will be released on Tuesday, Oct. 13 in Blu-ray and DVD format.
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie is currently available to stream on Netflix.
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie steelbook edition