The Showrunner Reveals He Has an Idea of How Pluribus Might Finish... For Now.
Vince Gilligan never anticipated that Pluribus would become a cultural phenomenon. “God bless the fans,” Gilligan says. “I did not foresee the show being as widely discussed as it is, and it makes me overjoyed.”
Now that Season 1 of the hit sci-fi show wrapping up—and a second season officially in the works—the writers' room recently discussed the fan response and whether it will impact the narrative path of Pluribus.
Regarding the Incredible Viewer Reception
It would be easy to get sidetracked by the rampant praise and online debates regarding Pluribus. He is making a conscious effort to ignore the noise.
“It's like being constantly eating something incredibly sweet and being laughing uncontrollably,” he explains. “It's the greatest thing, but I get wind of it from others, and that's by design. I have never looked myself up on the internet, nor do I ever intend to. It's not a lack of interest. It's a rabbit hole I know I would get lost in and then I'd be never leaving the house from Home Depot and I'd be stuck in my living room.”
Despite his concerted efforts, there’s no way to avoid the overwhelmingly positive response to the series. The only approach for the writers is to take it in stride and try not to let it dictate the story of the show.
“We make no attempt to change the plot,” says Alison Tatlock. “The narrative we craft is not influenced by online forums.”
“Better to keep our noses to the grindstone,” Gilligan concludes.
The Central Mystery: Will Vince Gilligan Have a Plan for the Conclusion of Pluribus?
Considering Gilligan and his team are not listening by audience theories, does it imply they have already decided how Pluribus will ultimately end? In short yes… in a way.
“We've developed some potential directions about the ultimate destination,” Gilligan reveals. “but we are always ready to discard a solid concept for a better idea. This approach has served us in excellent shape on Better Call Saul and on Breaking Bad even before that. We throw stuff out when we conceive of something superior and I imagine we will be doing that.”
Then again, if all else fails, executive producer Gordon Smith has a humorous idea to fall back on.
“My recurring proposal is that it's all in a snow globe, and that we'll pull back at the end and the characters are inside it,” he says humorously, “though the idea hasn't gained traction.”
Of course, one could always use the legendary finales?
“I want Carol to wake up in bed next to Bob Newhart,” Gilligan says with a smile.
Pluribus is streaming now on Apple TV+.
