I was today years old when I found out Mike from Breaking Bad was written because this other character failed to show up to shoot 

Here is a fascinating and mind-boggling fact for all the Breaking Bad fans— The bold, fierce, mysterious, and problem-solving character who is sent by Saul Goodman in the show is created because actor Bob Odenkirk (who plays Saul in Better Call Saul) was busy shooting for How I Met Your Mother and could not appear for the shoot.

Yes, a whole other character was written to fill that role, and this is how we got Mike Ehrmantraut, in Season 2, Episode 13, who helps Jesse after Jane’s death and cleans up the scene.

Read on to dive deeper into this fascinating fact.

The Character Mike in Breaking Bad was created because Saul Goodman got busy with another shoot

Mike ended up as the most beloved and layered character in Breaking Bad. But the reality is that it was created to solve a scheduling problem with another actor originally written in the show. Vince Gilligan, the creator of the series creator needed a “fixer” type character, and since Odenkirk was unavailable, they invented Mike on the spot. Moreover, Jonathan Banks nailed the role so effectively that he ended up as a central figure in Breaking Bad and later in Better Call Saul, becoming an intricate part of the universe.

Mike is shown as a former Philadelphia police officer who becomes a private investigator, enforcer, and fixer for Gus Fring and, at times, Saul Goodman. He is efficient and calm in his work, and surprises with his ruthlessness when things go out of control. He had a tragic experience when he was a cop in Philadelphia, where corruption led to the death of his son. He struggles internally between what is right and what is necessary. He develops a cautious but respectful relationship with Walter White and a more paternal one with Jesse Pinkman, often acting as a moral counterpoint to Walt’s growing ruthlessness.

Though created on the spot as a result of a scheduling hiccup, he is indeed a well-written character whom viewers ultimately cling to till the end. Despite the criminal empire he becomes part of, his death in Breaking Bad seems like a loss, that too by Walter White. And for the first time, it felt like he did something he couldn't come out of.

Mike, though an intricate part of the drug business, is shown to be mature and experienced. Walter White shoots Mike in his car, and he accelerates, but then further hits a rock. When Walter goes to see him, he vanishes. Walter traces his blood spots and finds Mike sitting in front of the river, looking at the shining sun. When Walter tries to explain himself, his last dialogue is,

"Let me die in peace"

There is no anger, no haste, as he has accepted the truth that he is going to die.

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