Rhea Seehorn Reveals What It's Like Directing Bob Odenkirk On Better Call Saul
Rhea Seehorn made her directorial debut in the "Better Call Saul" Season 6 episode "Hit and Run" after 53 episodes of acting as one of the series' principal characters, Kim Wexler. By this point in the season, Kim and Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk) find themselves in the midst of their plan to discredit Howard Hamlin (Patrick Fabian) by continually nudging Howard's colleague Cliff Maine (Ed Begley Jr.) to think that Howard has a drug problem and sees sex workers, who he treats poorly. The episode also marks the first time Kim and Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) meet face-to-face. They meet in a daunting scene that earmarks the episode as Mike warns Kim that Lalo Salamanca (Tony Dalton) survived the assassination attempt. Previously, Mike promised he would kill the cartel leader at the end of Season 5.
Seehorn recently told The Hollywood Reporter that her desire to direct stemmed from a short film she made with "Better Call Saul" assistant director Anna Ramey Borden; her experience directing led her to tell the series' producers, Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, that she would be interested in trying her hand at an episode of the series should they need someone. Seehorn said that she spent significant time shadowing directors on other shows, but even so, when she was offered an episode of the final "Better Call Saul" season, she felt nervous to take it on. Despite Seehorn's fears, she said the experience was made easier knowing she'd work with the series' highly skilled production team and cast — including Odenkirk himself.
"If you ever wanted to try guest directing, you would never be as supported as that, so you might as well take a free, very scary masterclass," Seehorn told THR.
Rhea Seehorn called Bob Odenkirk a comic genius
In the interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Rhea Seehorn said that both she and Bob Odenkirk knew exactly where to draw the comedic line when she directed him in the Season 6 episode "Hit and Run." This episode of "Better Call Saul" features a hilarious sequence in which Saul — as part of his and Kim's long-con to ruin Howard — dresses up as the HHM lawyer, steals his car, and purposefully drives by Kim's meeting with Cliff Maine with a sex worker named Wendy in tow. Seehorn called Odenkirk a comedic genius and said she didn't really need to tell him how to play scenes funny or dramatic; apparently, the man can do it all.
"I have done decades of comedy myself, [and] the two of us both knew that when you look that ridiculous, you don't need to add a lot to it. Don't put a hat on a hat on a hat on a hat rack," Seehorn said about how Odenkirk was acting while wearing the ridiculous fake-Howard costume.
As THR noted, Seehorn was the first "Better Call Saul" cast member to direct an episode of the "Breaking Bad" prequel. Seehorn also said that she feels she and Odenkirk get each other naturally because they're close friends and were able to use their own shorthand for making decisions about his scenes in the episode; she said making the sketch comedy industry veteran smirk with her own ideas is always a win, too.