Exclusive: Dean Norris on revisiting his 'Breaking Bad' character on 'Better Call Saul'

Bill Keveney | USA TODAY

Dean Norris is happy to revisit Hank Schrader, his “Breaking Bad” character, on AMC prequel “Better Call Saul.” He’s even happier with the version he’s playing in two episodes starting Monday (9 EST/PST): the cocky, gung-ho DEA agent from the early part of the original series.

“I told (producers) it’s going to be fun to play Hank before all the depression, before he took a turn for the worse” after killing a drug lord in “Bad,” Norris says. “You know, the loudmouth, strong, tough, not-a-care-in-the-world kind of guy that I only got to play in the first two seasons.”

In "Saul," which is in its fifth and penultimate season, Hank appears years before the Tuco Salamanca shootout, which marked the start of a PTSD spiral for Hank that rubbed off on Norris, who lost both his parents during that show's run.

"You can't play that level of depression without it affecting you a bit," says Norris, whose bond with Hank extends to producing a real-world version of the DEA agent's home brew, Schraderbräu. "So it was great to come back and play him fun again."

The "Saul" episodes reunite Norris and Steven Michael Quezada, who played Hank's DEA partner Steven Gomez on "Bad," which ended in 2013. "Batman and Robin back together!" Norris says.

The original series, which claimed Hank's life in the final season, "meant a lot to me in my life, so it was kind of emotional to be back there and reconnect with all the people" on "Saul" who had worked on "Bad," too, says Norris, 56, who went on to CBS' "Under the Dome" and is shooting the final season of TNT's "Claws."

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"Hank is a blowhard, but he's also really good at what he does," Norris says.

So why didn't he realize his brother-in-law Walter White (Bryan Cranston) was a drug kingpin until the final season? "I get asked that all the time. Walt was too close. It made perfect sense that Hank didn't know until the moment he found out. … It's the old 'Purloined Letter.' It's right in front of your face and sometimes you don't see it."

Hank is the first of the six characters credited in all 62 "Bad" episodes to make a guest appearance on the prequel, which spotlights the earlier years of Walt's shady lawyer, Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk), and gives new prominence to two other "Bad" supporting characters, retired cop and master fixer Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) and drug kingpin Gustavo "Gus" Fring (Giancarlo Esposito). Several minor "Bad" characters have resurfaced, too.

Monday's episode marks the initial encounter between Hank and Saul, who sparred a couple of times on "Bad," including a verbal clash in Odenkirk's debut, a Season 2 episode titled "Better Call Saul."

Executive producer Peter Gould rewatched that episode several times to make sure that "Bad" scene didn't look like their first meeting.

"When we watched it, it felt like these two guys had engaged before, that they didn't particularly like each other. … Phew!" says Gould, who created "Saul" with "Bad" creator Vince Gilligan.

Hank and partner Steven also squared off against Saul in Season 5 of "Bad," when the lawyer defends an incarcerated Mike.

Retrofitting "Saul" to sync up with the "Bad" storyline has been more challenging than the producers expected. One writer rewatches all 62 "Bad" episodes before the start of production each season to make sure "Saul" avoids conflicts.

"It's like doing a Rubik's Cube, and I've never finished a Rubik's Cube," Gilligan says. "Peter and I foolishly thought it'd be easier to do a spinoff series because so much was already in place. But that only makes it harder, because you've got to match things (to) the preexisting series."

The "Saul" creators say they've tried to avoid gratuitous "Bad" cameos, insisting on having a rationale for such appearances. Hank's return made sense when they needed Saul to clash with "some very tough law enforcement folks," Gould says. "If we went by just who we wanted to see, we would have had the whole cast back in Episode One."

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There's not much time left to bring back more of the main "Bad" characters, led by Walt and his meth business partner, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul).

Viewers won't see Walt or Jesse this season, but "you're going to definitely see some familiar faces from 'Breaking Bad' who you haven't seen before on 'Better Call Saul,' " Gould says.

As for whether Walt and Jesse will show up in the 13-episode final season, due next year, Gould says it hasn't been determined (although fans will be surprised if they don't appear). "We don't plan these things super far ahead. We kind of go inch by inch. … Anything can happen, which is great, but also a little scary."

Norris says he'd enjoy seeing other "Bad" characters, including Hank's wife, Marie (Betsy Brandt), return as the prequel moves closer to its finale – and the original show's beginning. "I'd love to see them in it."