This Aaron Paul’s canceled gem showcases his most underrated work after Breaking Bad

Aaron Paul was elevated to star status with Breaking Bad, delivering a performance that was rewarded with critical praise and three Primetime Emmy Awards. Yet what followed the finale of AMC's flagship series has been a long underestimated journey.

While most expected that Paul's career would transition into blockbuster films or similarly high-end television series, he proceeded on a more understated route. And that's where The Path comes along — a series that didn't get mainstream attention, but maybe has some of his richest and most multidimensional work to this point.

Despite being eclipsed by his Jesse Pinkman character in Breaking Bad, Aaron Paul's Eddie Lane in The Path offered a different peek into his skill. The series on Hulu ran for three seasons from 2016 to 2018 before being canceled. Despite its relatively low-key conclusion, the show has plenty to continue drawing viewers and critics alike in terms of its powerful themes and performances. Paul's commitment to his character, in particular, was notable.

Aaron Paul's The Path: A psychological drama too often overlooked

The Path is a television drama series based on a fictional spiritual movement called Meyerism that combines cult psychological, institutional religious, and personal identity crisis elements. It stars Aaron Paul as the lead character, Eddie Lane, who starts questioning his faith and the reality of the movement he was largely responsible for creating. This internal conflict becomes the show's emotional core, providing Paul the chance to explore vulnerability, inner distress, and moral depth far removed from his earlier work before this show.

Unlike Jesse Pinkman — a free-spirited, disheveled person with demons outside of him — Eddie Lane is subdued, introspective, and conflicted about spirituality. It was a singular opportunity for Paul to employ another set of acting chops — that of playing a man suspended between skepticism and faith, commitment and liberty. It required subtlety and restraint, which he demonstrated throughout the show.

Aaron Paul's career development following Breaking Bad

While Paul's career after Breaking Bad included roles in films like Need for Speed and voice work on BoJack Horseman, The Path stands out because of the richness of its stories and characters. Eddie Lane's role involved emotional complexity and psychological depth, which turned out to be one of the more mature and realistic acting roles in his career. He played a man torn not by crime or drugs, but by ideology, faith, and the pursuit of truth — a path that took its slow, measured course.

Further, the show on The Path depended far more on character development on the inside rather than on rapid plots, giving Paul space to develop with the character. Every season developed Eddie's personality with layers of complexity, be it battling leadership, dealing with family collapses, or struggling with guilt and ambiguity. In doing so, the show placed Aaron Paul at the forefront of a slow-burning psychological examination.

Why The Path remains underrated

One reason why The Path didn't do so well is that it didn't get adequate eyeballs. First airing on Hulu before the service was whole in original content terms, the show simply never blew up into mainstream cultural awareness. And the show's material — mystical sects and existential angst — weren't the showy hooks usually found in more traditional dramas. However, Paul thrived within this thematic limitation.

The pace and intellectual level of the show may not have been to all tastes, but those who watched it in earnest witnessed something exceptional in Paul — a step away from the adrenaline-driven theatre of Breaking Bad and into a human, more reflective space. His acting as Eddie Lane is a quiet foundation piece in his filmography, and it testifies to his range as an actor, as much as his willingness to play unusual parts.

The legacy of Eddie Lane

Even though The Path was canceled after three seasons, Eddie Lane continues to be a lasting character in the minds of fans of the show, who love character-driven storytelling. Aaron Paul's portrayal offered a rich exploration of identity collapse and renewal in a setting defined by manipulation and religion. It is not a showy performance, but for this very reason, it is compelling — it is realistic, tense, and implies savagery.

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In retrospect, The Path did not redefine Aaron Paul's career but opened it up. For those who are willing to see beyond his most famous role, the show offers a chance to see what happens to an actor when he comes out of the shadow of his signature performance and acts in a story defined by subtlety rather than spectacle.

Also read: “He could definitely meet his deathbed”: When Aaron Paul thought Jesse Pinkman was going to die in Breaking Bad

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