Better Call Saul Star Bob Odenkirk Provides Update On Health, Thanks Fans In First Message Since Hospitalization

Better Call Saul star Bob Odenkirk has been a fixture on television going back to his days on Breaking Bad as beloved character Jimmy McGill/Saul Goodman, but he collapsed on set during production of Season 6 earlier this week. While friends showed support and some vague but encouraging comments were dropped over the following days, there was nothing from Odenkirk himself... until now, as the actor has shared not only an update on his health, but a message of gratitude.

The actor took to Twitter on July 30 with a quick but reassuring message for everybody who has been concerned about him ever since the news broke of his collapse. Bob Odenkirk wrote:

Hi. It's Bob. Thank you. To my family and friends who have surrounded me this week. And for the outpouring of love from everyone who expressed concern and care for me. It’s overwhelming. But I feel the love and it means so much. I had a small heart attack. But I'm going to be ok thanks to Rosa Estrada and the doctors who knew how to fix the blockage without surgery. Also, AMC and SONYs support and help throughout this has been next-level. I'm going to take a beat to recover but I'll be back soon.

Bob Odenkirk directed his thanks not only right at fans and all those concerned for him, but also his friends and family, some of whom expressed their support publicly as well as (presumably) privately. He also specifically named Rosa Estrada and was sure to mention the doctors, with the good news that the blockage causing his "small heart attack" could be fixed without surgery, which likely means a shorter recovery process than if he'd had to undergo a more invasive process.

That's not to say that Bob Odenkirk will be back on set for more Better Call Saul by Monday, but the important thing is that he takes as much time to recover as he needs to get back to as healthy as possible. All things considered, Odenkirk delivered some news that comes as a relief to fans.

Besides, with Better Call Saul already not planned to release until at some point in 2022, hopefully that means there's not any kind of rush to get him back to work since there's no fall premiere deadline to make. His message confirmed that network AMC and production studio Sony have supported him, so it seems that things are looking up as much as possible after the health scare.

The upcoming sixth season of Better Call Saul will also be the series' final season, meaning that it will run one season longer than Breaking Bad. Taking the time to produce the best final batch of episodes possible, with star Bob Odenkirk back at his best, can only be a good thing for the legacy of both the current show and the series that started the whole shared universe.

For now, if you're in the mood for a fix from that shared universe, you can find the full run of Breaking Bad, the first four seasons of Better Call Saul, and Aaron Paul's Jesse Pinkman one-off El Camino streaming on Netflix. And to find out what's on the way to the small screen sooner than Better Call Saul will be back for Season 6 next year, our 2021 fall TV premiere schedule can help you out.

Laura Hurley
Senior Content Producer

Laura turned a lifelong love of television into a valid reason to write and think about TV on a daily basis. She's not a doctor, lawyer, or detective, but watches a lot of them in primetime. CinemaBlend's resident expert and interviewer for One Chicago, the galaxy far, far away, and a variety of other primetime television. Will not time travel and can cite multiple TV shows to explain why. She does, however, want to believe that she can sneak references to The X-Files into daily conversation (and author bios).