Bronze statues of Breaking Bad characters Walter White and Jesse Pinkman will soon be unveiled in the New Mexico city of Albuquerque.
The statues, which were commissioned in 2019 by the show’s creator, Vince Gilligan, will commemorate the hit Netflix series about a terminally ill teacher who becomes a meth dealer in order to financially support his family.
According to the Albuquerque government [via The Guardian], Gilligan and Sony Pictures Television donated the sculptures in the hope it would attract “busloads of tourists” to the city, which served as the setting for the series, as well as Better Call Saul and the spin-off film El Camino.
“Over the course of 15 years, two TV shows and one movie, Albuquerque has been wonderful to us,” said Gilligan.
However, the decision to honour two fictional drug dealers has been criticised by some, given the city has a notorious history of drug trafficking and a high rate of overdose deaths.
“They’re erecting statues in honour of characters who were meth dealers, addicts, and murderers in a city known for rampant meth addiction and drug problems,” wrote one person on Twitter. “Wtf is going on in the world.”
Another user tweeted: Amazing performances on an amazing show and I’m sure both the production dollars spent and tourist money brought in have been significant but still amusing to see such beloved, um, meth makers, get this tribute.that although the show had “amazing performances”, it was “still amusing to see such beloved, um, meth makers, get this tribute”.
Made by sculptor Trevor Grove, the Breaking Bad statues will be revealed on July 29 at the Albuquerque Convention Centre. Mayor Tim Keller, Gilligan and series executive producer Peter Gould will all be present at the unveiling, as will Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul, who portrayed Walter and Jesse, respectively.
Earlier this year, Paul revealed that he’d chosen Cranston to be the godfather of his newborn son.
After joking that Cranston rejected the offer, he said: “No, he’s very excited, very honoured. I love that man to death. He’s one of my best friends in the world so it was a no-brainer.”
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