Vince Gilligan's 'Pluribus' Is The Most High-Stakes Show of 2025
This time, the creator of “Breaking Bad" and “Better Call Saul" ventures well outside the Walter White universe.
"Pluribus" is the most high-stakes show of 2025.
The series marks Vince Gilligan's first new project in a decade. This time, the creator of "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul" ventures well outside the Walter White universe. While once again set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and starring Rhea Seehorn (Kim Wexler from "Saul"), "Pluribus" trades meth labs and criminal lawyers for science fiction and philosophical drama.
Rhea Seehorn, Vince Gilligan at the 2025 Writers Guild Awards Los Angeles held at The Beverly Hilton on February 15, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by JC Olivera/Variety via Getty Images)
According to The New York Times, "Pluribus" is "as big as modern TV gets," calling it a "high-budget, high-concept" character study that blends science fiction, philosophy and sociopolitical allegory.
The show follows Carol (Seehorn), a successful author and chronic malcontent who learns via a mysterious signal from outer space that an unexplained virus has made everyone on Earth happy - except her. As the world’s last miserable person, she must, per the synopsis, "save the world from happiness."
With Gilligan behind the camera, intrigue is guaranteed.
Here’s the official trailer:
The nine-episode first season debuts Nov. 7 on Apple TV+, with a second season already ordered.
"The twist on this one is that there is no twist," Gilligan told The Times. "The question soon becomes not whether the protagonist will fulfill some great desire — she can have anything she wants — but whether her misery, as an expression of her free will, is worth defending."
Rhea Seehorn earned two Emmy nominations for her performance in "Better Call Saul" and deserved a few more.
Vince Gilligan is one of television’s most accomplished creators. "Breaking Bad" is arguably the greatest television series of the past 20 years, rivaled only by "The Sopranos." Its acclaimed spinoffs "Better Call Saul" and "El Camino" also did the franchise justice.
Now, with the backing of Apple TV+, expectations for Gilligan's latest project are significant.