The Real Reason Kim Still Hasn't Told Jimmy About Lalo On Better Call Saul
"Better Call Saul," the Saul Goodman-focused spin-off to "Breaking Bad," is now halfway through its sixth and final season. The latest chapter, Season 6, Episode 7 ("Plan and Execution"), sees Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) and Kim (Rhea Seehorn) complete their plan to soil Howard Hamlin's (Patrick Fabian) reputation — with the help of staged photos and some illicitly applied drugs — in order to finally close the Sandpiper deal.
In turn, this results in a large payout for Jimmy (and, by proxy, Kim). However, their plan goes awry with the late arrival of Lalo Salamanca (Tony Dalton). Lalo arrives at their apartment while Howard is confronting the pair for their grand scheme. With Howard in the way of whatever he is planning, Lalo shoots Howard, promptly killing him.
Fans were completely shocked by the final moments of the episode — after all, who would have thought that Howard and Lalo would even end up in the same room together? However, despite how shocked viewers must have been, Jimmy must have been even more shocked, as he didn't even know that Lalo was still alive. In fact, when he first sees Lalo, the first word out of Jimmy's mouth is, "How?"
Notably, Kim is not nearly as surprised by this revelation. Only a few episodes before, Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) reveals to Kim that his men have been following her because he believes it is possible that Lalo will again seek Jimmy's help. Here's the reason Kim chooses not to tell Jimmy about this startling discovery.
Kim didn't want Lalo to get in the way of the scam
In a recent interview with Variety, this episode's writer-director Tom Schnauz broke down a number of key moments throughout the midseason finale — including Lalo's shocking return. For context of the moment, Variety writer Ethan Shanfeld asked Schnauz to explain why Kim never told Jimmy that Lalo was still alive.
In response, Schnauz reminded us what Mike said to Kim when he told her the news: "The reason I'm telling you is that you're made of sterner stuff." Essentially, Mike was saying that Jimmy would not be able to handle the news as well as Kim. Schnauz continued, "When [Mike] told Jimmy the plans last time, [Jimmy] freaked out and hid out with Kim in a hotel. On some level, Kim wants to keep the scam going, and, if she admits the truth to Jimmy about Lalo, then they're going to close up shop because Jimmy is going to want to go into hiding and protect Kim. It's just better for Jimmy not to know so that he doesn't panic."
Of course, this now makes the situation even more wrought and complicated — not only will Kim face the guilt of being inadvertently responsible for Howard's death, she will also face the guilt of putting herself and Jimmy in more danger by not warning her husband about the possibility of Lalo's return.
Rhea Seehorn knows there are consequences for Kim
Following the premiere of "Plan and Execution," Rhea Seehorn spoke with Deadline in detail about Howard's fate and what that means for Jimmy and Kim. Deadline writer Dominic Patten asked Seehorn if she thinks that Jimmy and Kim understand that Howard's death is a direct consequence of their actions.
Seehorn answered that, while they may have been in denial that their actions — however well meaning they tell themselves they are — have negative impacts up until this point, Howard's death is definitely a shift. "This is the embodiment of what Kim and Jimmy have been pretending is not true this whole season — that there are no consequences to their actions," Seehorn said. "That they're not actually harming anyone, and now a person is dying at their feet, and I think that is a seismic shift that would happen in somebody when that goes down. It remains to be seen where Kim will go with that, what she will do with it. It's traumatic."
Seehorn then discussed the ways in which she has approached portraying Kim. Despite the fact that Kim is an incredibly smart person (just as Howard points out minutes before his death), she has still become wrapped up in a needlessly violent world. In fact, she is already partially responsible for terrible consequences. "I believe that she would understand this is not out of the blue, but it all happens so fast too," Seehorn said. "It's like how fast can you even process something like that. I think it's utter shock at first. Yeah. It's a lot."