What If Lalo Salamanca Hadn't Died In Better Call Saul & How It Would've Changed Breaking Bad

Lalo Salamanca’s death in the final season of Better Call Saul set the stage for several key plot points in Breaking Bad, but the story would’ve turned out very differently if he’d survived. When Saul Goodman first appeared in Breaking Bad season 2, episode 8, “Better Call Saul,” Walt and Jesse kidnapped him and took him out into the desert to force him to take Badger’s case. There, Saul offhandedly asked if Lalo sent them. At the time, this was a throwaway line suggesting Saul had many past enemies. But it paved the way for one of TV’s greatest villains.

When Saul got his own spinoff in Better Call Saul, the series gradually built toward the introduction of Lalo. The show eventually revealed that Lalo was a Salamanca who hired Saul as his lawyer (and, occasionally, as his bagman). Lalo’s feud with Gus Fring escalated into a series of assassination attempts. Ultimately, Gus managed to kill Lalo, putting a dent in the Salamancas’ enterprise and allowing him to corner the drug market. But what if Gus hadn’t killed Lalo? How would Breaking Bad have turned out if Lalo was still around when Heisenberg came on the scene?

Lalo’s Survival Would Have Meant Gus’ Death In Better Call Saul

If Gus Hadn’t Killed Lalo, Lalo Would’ve Killed Him

After Gus sent a goon squad to Lalo’s compound to assassinate him, there was no way to deescalate the conflict. Their feud was going to end one of two ways: either Gus was going to kill Lalo, or Lalo was going to kill Gus. As seen in Better Call Saul, Gus got the upper hand and shot Lalo dead in the underground lair where he was planning to build his industrial meth lab. This was the only way for Better Call Saul to resolve the conflict, because Gus was around in Breaking Bad and Lalo wasn’t.

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But Gus only narrowly managed to escape death. After sneaking out of his compound during the raid, Lalo returned to New Mexico and hid out in the sewers to obtain video evidence of Gus’ disloyalty to the cartel. Lalo was meticulous in his pursuit of Gus and only made one fatal mistake. If Gus’ aim was slightly off, he would’ve missed Lalo and Lalo would’ve killed him instead. This would’ve meant that Gus’ meth operation would’ve been over before it began, and he never would’ve hired Walt and Jesse to cook for him.

With Lalo Alive And Gus Gone, The Salamancas Would Reclaim Their Power

Gus Kept The Salamancas At Bay

Mark Margolis as Hector Salamanca and Tony Dalton as Lalo in Better Call Saul

If Gus was killed and Lalo survived, then the Salamancas would’ve been able to reclaim their power. Ever since Hector gunned down his partner Max in front of him, Gus was determined to bring down the Salamanca cartel and wipe out the entire family. By the time Breaking Bad begins, the Salamancas’ criminal empire is still operational, but it’s nowhere near as powerful as it once was, since Gus has dominated most of the market. Eventually, the only Salamanca left is Hector himself, who Gus kept alive to force him to watch the rest of his family die.

Lalo first appeared in Better Call Saul season 4, episode 8, “Coushatta.”

Walt used Gus’ rivalry with Hector against him, and convinced Hector to help him take out Gus with a bomb at his retirement home. But if Lalo had killed Gus, it would’ve gone the other way around. Gus’ massacre of the Salamancas would’ve been cut short, and it would’ve been Gus’ criminal empire that dwindled away while the Salamancas’ operation thrived. When Walt and Jesse started cooking meth, the Salamancas would have a much larger market share. Instead of relying on Gus for stable employment, they’d have to rely on the Salamancas.

Walter And Jesse Would’ve Had To Face Lalo After Confronting Tuco

Lalo Would’ve Come For Revenge

Tuco Salamanca’s first appearance in Breaking Bad Season 1, Episode 6 “Crazy Handful Of Nothing”

If Lalo was still alive in Breaking Bad, then Walt and Jesse’s interactions with the Salamancas would’ve gone very differently. At the end of Breaking Bad season 1, Walt and Jesse struck a distribution deal with Tuco, but it was short-lived. At the beginning of season 2, Tuco kidnapped Walt and Jesse and took them to his desert hideout. In season 2, episode 2, “Grilled,” while Tuco was planning to take Walt and Jesse to Mexico and force them to cook meth 24/7, Walt and Jesse managed to break free and kill him.

If Lalo was still alive, they would’ve faced repercussions for Tuco’s death much sooner.

After killing Tuco, Walt and Jesse were safe from the Salamancas until Tuco’s cousins came to town in the following season. But if Lalo was still alive, they would’ve faced repercussions for Tuco’s death much sooner. Lalo would’ve been operating in New Mexico and Tuco would’ve clued him in to the distribution deal and the kidnapping plot. Walt and Jesse would’ve had to answer to Lalo after killing Tuco. That probably wouldn’t have ended well, given that Lalo murdered Howard Hamlin and Fred Whalen for a lot less.

Without Gus, Walter’s Operation Never Becomes That Big

Walt Had Distribution Problems Before He Started Working For Gus

Walt and Skyler looking at a pile of money in Breaking Bad

If Gus wasn’t around in Breaking Bad, then there’s no way Walt’s drug operation would’ve become as massive as it did. From the moment he and Jesse started cooking meth, their biggest problem was distribution. They could produce meth in great quantities out of their RV, but Jesse couldn’t move all that product himself. Even if he spent all night slinging crystal by the teenth, the most he could make was a couple of grand — and that was when they weren’t getting into trouble with rival dealers for selling on their territory.

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By using his fast food chain Los Pollos Hermanos as a front, Gus was able to create a drug business so big that it could be listed on the NASDAQ. In order for the supply to meet the demand, he needed Walt and Jesse to produce industrial amounts of meth and paid them millions for it. There’s no way Walt and Jesse could’ve become millionaires without Gus’ distribution model. If Lalo had killed Gus, then Walt’s meth empire wouldn’t have grown to the impressive size that it did.

Lalo’s Death Is The Best Thing That Could’ve Happened To Walt

A Lot Of Walt’s Success Depends On Lalo’s Failure

All told, Lalo’s death was the best thing that could’ve happened to Walt. If Gus hadn’t killed Lalo before Walt was diagnosed with cancer and got into the meth business, Lalo would’ve caused endless problems for him. Throughout the third and fourth seasons of Breaking Bad, Walt grew to resent Gus, but he had no idea that he had Gus to thank for killing what would’ve been his worst enemy. A lot of Walt’s success depends on Lalo being out of the picture.