Vince Gilligan Biography

George Vincent Gilligan, Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and a director of Breaking Bad and its spin-off Better Call Saul. He was a writer and producer for The X-Files and was the co-creator of its spin-off The Lone Gunmen.

Both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul have received widespread critical acclaim, with Gilligan winning two Primetime Emmy Awards, six Writers Guild of America Awards, two Critics' Choice Television Awards and Producers Guild of America Awards, one Directors Guild of America Award and a BAFTA. Outside of television, he co-wrote the screenplay for the 2008 film Hancock.

Early life

Gilligan was born in Richmond, Virginia, the son of Gail, a grade school teacher, and George Vincent Gilligan, Sr., an insurance claims adjuster. His parents divorced in 1974 and he and his younger brother, Patrick, were raised in Farmville and Chesterfield County, and attended the laboratory school run by Longwood College. Growing up, Gilligan became best friends with future film editor and film title designer Angus Wall. His interest in film began when Wall's mother, Jackie, who also taught alongside Gilligan's mother, would lend her Super 8 film cameras to him. He used the camera to make science fiction films with Patrick. One of his first films was entitled Space Wreck, starring his brother in the lead role. One year later, he won first prize for his age group in a film competition at the University of Virginia.

Jackie would take Wall and Gilligan to Richmond and drop them off at Cloverleaf Mall to see films, and encourage both of them to pursue a career in the arts. "I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for Jackie. She was a wonderful lady and a real inspiration," he recalls. Gilligan was recognized for his talents and creativity at an early age. George Sr. described him as a "kind of a studious-type young man, and he liked to read, and he had a vivid imagination". He introduced Gilligan to film noir classics, as well as John Wayne and Clint Eastwood Westerns on late-night television. Gilligan won a scholarship to attend the prestigious Interlochen Center for the Arts. After eighth grade, he moved back to Chesterfield to attend high school.

Education

After graduating from Lloyd C. Bird High School in 1985, Gilligan went on to attend NYU's Tisch School of the Arts on a scholarship, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in film production. While at NYU, he wrote the screenplay for Home Fries, which was later turned into a film; Gilligan received the Virginia Governor's Screenwriting Award in 1989 for the screenplay. One of the judges of the competition was Mark Johnson, a film producer. He was impressed by Gilligan, saying he "was the most imaginative writer I'd ever read". Johnson would serve as a mentor to Gilligan, introducing him to The X-Files creator Chris Carter.

Career

The X-Files and The Lone Gunmen

Gilligan's big break came when he joined the Fox television drama The X-Files. Gilligan was a fan of the show, and submitted a script to Fox which became the second season episode "Soft Light". He went on to write 29 more episodes, in addition to being co-executive producer of 44 episodes, executive producer of 40, co-producer of 24, and supervising producer of 20. He also co-created and became executive producer of The X-Files spin-off series The Lone Gunmen. The series only ran for one season of 13 episodes.

Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul

Gilligan created, wrote, directed, and produced the AMC drama series Breaking Bad. He created the series with the premise that the hero would become the villain. "Television is historically good at keeping its characters in a self-imposed stasis so that shows can go on for years or even decades," he said. "When I realized this, the logical next step was to think, how can I do a show in which the fundamental drive is toward change?" He added that his goal with Walter White was to turn him from "Mr. Chips into Scarface". While pitching the show to studios, Gilligan was initially discouraged when he learned of the existing series Weeds and its similarities to the premise of Breaking Bad. While his producers convinced him that the show was different enough to still be successful, he later stated that he would not have gone forward with the idea had he known about Weeds earlier.

Breaking Bad received widespread critical acclaim and has been praised by many critics as being among the greatest television dramas of all time. Gilligan has been awarded numerous times for writing, directing, and producing the series. The Writers Guild of America has awarded him four times in straight succession, from 2012 to 2014; three as a part of the Breaking Bad writing team and one individually for writing the episode "Box Cutter". He also received two Primetime Emmys in 2013 and 2014 for producing the show. In 2014, he won the Directors Guild of America Award for directing the finale of Breaking Bad, "Felina".

In September 2013, Sony Pictures Television announced a deal with AMC to produce a Breaking Bad spin-off prequel entitled Better Call Saul, to focus on character Saul Goodman from the original series, before he became Walter Whites lawyer, and to star Bob Odenkirk reprising his role as the title character. Gilligan co-created the series with Breaking Bad writer Peter Gould, with both of them acting as showrunners. The first episode, which Gilligan directed and co-wrote, premiered on February 8, 2015.

Other work

Gilligan first had a screenplay produced in 1993 for the romantic comedy film, Wilder Napalm. While working on The X-Files, one of Gilligan's early screenplays was produced as a film, Home Fries, which starred Drew Barrymore and Luke Wilson. Gilligan was hired by The X-Files creator Chris Carter to be a consulting producer on his new series Harsh Realm. After The X-Files, Gilligan wrote three episodes of the short lived police procedural series Robbery Homicide Division and an episode of the ABC series Night Stalker. In 2007, Gilligan and fellow The X-Files producer Frank Spotnitz wrote a sci-fi pilot entitled A.M.P.E.D., which was not picked up for a full series. He also rewrote the screenplay for the film 2008 Will Smith film Hancock, which was originally written by Vincent Ngo.

Gilligan made his acting debut in 2014 in "VCR Maintenance and Educational Publishing", the ninth episode of the fifth season of NBC's comedy series Community. He plays a cheesy actor hosting "Pile of Bullets", a fictional 1990s VCR-based video game. In September 2013, Sony announced that it struck a deal with CBS to produce a new television series created by Gilligan and David Shore entitled Battle Creek. Based on a script written by Gilligan ten years prior, the show follows the partnership of two police detectives who must compete with a seemingly-perfect FBI agent. Gilligan co-wrote the first episode with Shore, the showrunner of the series. CBS ordered thirteen episodes and the series aired on CBS starting March 1, 2015. CBS decided not to renew the series for a second season.

Personal life

Gilligan has been with his girlfriend, Holly Rice, since 1991. In an interview in 2011, Gilligan stated that he was raised Catholic, but added "I"?m pretty much agnostic at this point in my life. But I find atheism just as hard to get my head around as I find fundamental Christianity. Because if there is no such thing as cosmic justice, what is the point of being good?"

He further stated his philosophy as: "I feel some sort of need for biblical atonement, or justice, or something. I like to believe there is some comeuppance, that karma kicks in at some point, even if it takes years or decades to happen. My girlfriend says this great thing that"?s become my philosophy as well. "?I want to believe there"?s a heaven. But I can"?t not believe there"?s a hell."?"

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	Wilder Napalm	Writer
1998	Home Fries	Writer
2008	Hancock	Co-writer	Written with Vincent Ngo

Television

Production staff

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1995-1996	The X-Files	Creative consultant	Season 3
1996-1997		Co-producer	Season 4
1997-1998		Supervising producer	Season 5
1998-2000		Co-executive producer	Seasons 6-7
1999-2000	Harsh Realm	Consulting producer	Season 1
2000-2002	The X-Files	Executive producer	Seasons 8-9
2001	The Lone Gunmen	Co-creator Executive producer	Season 1
2007	A.M.P.E.D.	Executive producer	Pilot
2008-2013	Breaking Bad	Creator Executive producer	Seasons 1-5
2015-present	Better Call Saul	Co-creator Executive producer	Season 1-
2015	Battle Creek	Co-creator Executive producer	Season 1

Writer

Year	Show	Season	Episode	Episode number	Original airdate	Notes
1995	The X-Files	2	"Soft Light"	23	May 5, 1995
1996		3	"Pusher"	17	February 23, 1996
		4	"Unruhe"	4	October 27, 1996
			"Paper Hearts"	10	December 15, 1996
1997			"Leonard Betts"	12	January 26, 1997	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Memento Mori"	14	February 9, 1997	Written by Gilligan & Chris Carter & Frank Spotnitz & John Shiban
			"Small Potatoes"	20	April 20, 1997
		5	"Unusual Suspects"	3	November 16, 1997
			"Christmas Carol"	6	December 7, 1997	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Emily"	7	December 14, 1997	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
1998			"Kitsunegari"	8	January 4, 1998	Written by Gilligan & Tim Minear
			"Bad Blood"	12	February 22, 1998
			"Folie a Deux"	19	May 10, 1998
		6	"Drive"	2	November 15, 1998
			"Dreamland"	4	November 29, 1998	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Dreamland II"	5	December 6, 1998	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
1999			"Tithonus"	10	January 24, 1999
			"Monday"	14	February 28, 1999	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban
			"Three of a Kind"	20	May 2, 1999	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban
			"Field Trip"	21	May 9, 1999	Teleplay by Gilligan & John Shiban (Story by Frank Spotnitz)
		7	"Hungry"	3	November 21, 1999
			"Millennium"	4	November 28, 1999	Written by Gilligan & Frank Spotnitz
2000			"The Amazing Maleeni"	8	January 16, 2000	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"X-Cops"	12	February 20, 2000
			"Theef"	14	March 12, 2000	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Je Souhaite"	21	May 14, 2000	Also director
		8	"Roadrunners"	4	November 26, 2000
2001	The Lone Gunmen	1	"Pilot"	1	March 4, 2001	Written by Gilligan & Chris Carter & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Bond, Jimmy Bond"	2	March 11, 2001	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Planet of the Frohikes"	7	April 6, 2001
			"Maximum Byers"	8	April 13, 2001	Written by Gilligan & Frank Spotnitz
			"All About Yves"	12	May 11, 2001	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"The Cap'n Toby Show"	13	June 1, 2001	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
2002	The X-Files	9	"John Doe"	7	January 13, 2002
			"Jump the Shark"	15	April 21, 2002	Written by Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz
			"Sunshine Days"	18	May 12, 2002	Also director
	Robbery Homicide Division	1	"Free and Clear"	4	November 30, 2002	Written by Gilligan & Frank Spotnitz
			"City of Strivers"	7	November 8, 2002
			"Life is Dust"	9	November 30, 2002	Teleplay written by Gilligan & Todd A. Kessler & Sean Jablonski (Story by Michael Mann)
2005	Night Stalker	1	"What's the Frequency, Kolchak?"	10	March 17, 2006
2007	A.M.P.E.D.	Pilot				Written by Gilligan & Frank Spotnitz
2008	Breaking Bad	1	"Pilot"	1	January 20, 2008	Also director
			"Cat's in the Bag..."	2	January 27, 2008
			"...And the Bag's in the River"	3	February 10, 2008
			"Cancer Man"	4	February 17, 2008
2009		2	"Peekaboo"	6	April 12, 2009	Written by Gilligan & J. Roberts
			"ABQ"	13	May 31, 2009
2010		3	"No Mas"	1	March 21, 2010
			"Full Measure"	13	June 13, 2010	Also director
2011		4	"Box Cutter"	1	July 17, 2011
			"End Times"	12	October 2, 2011	Director only
			"Face Off"	13	October 9, 2011	Also director
2012		5	"Live Free or Die"	1	July 15, 2012
			"Madrigal"	2	July 22, 2012
2013			"Felina"	16	September 29, 2013	Also director
2015	Battle Creek	1	"The Battle Creek Way"	1	March 1, 2015	Written by Gilligan & David Shore
	Better Call Saul	1	"Uno"	1	February 8, 2015	Also director Written by Gilligan & Peter Gould
2016		2	"Klick"	10	April 18, 2016	Also director Written by Gilligan & Heather Marion

Acting

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2014	Community	Devon	Episode: "VCR Maintenance and Educational Publishing"
2015	Comedy Bang! Bang!	The Commissioner	Episode: "Lil Jon Wears a Baseball Cap and Sunglasses"

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result
1997	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series	The X-Files
		Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
1998		Outstanding Drama Series
		Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
2008		Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series	Breaking Bad
2009	Writers Guild of America Award	Best New Series
		Best Episodic Drama
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series
2010	Producers Guild of America Award	Best Episodic Drama
	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Dramatic Series
	Humanitas Prize	60 Minute Category
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series
2011	Producers Guild of America Award	Best Episodic Drama
	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Dramatic Series
2012	Critics' Choice Television Award	Best Drama Series
	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Dramatic Series
		Best Episodic Drama
	Directors Guild of America Award	Outstanding Directing - Drama Series
	Edgar Allan Poe Award	Best Episode in a TV Series
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series
		Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
2013	Critics' Choice Television Award	Best Drama Series
	Producers Guild of America Award	Best Episodic Drama
	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Dramatic Series
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series
2014	Directors Guild of America Award	Outstanding Directing - Drama Series
	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Dramatic Series
	Producers Guild of America Award	Best Episodic Drama
	British Academy of Film and Television Arts	Best International Programme
	Golden Globe Award	Best Television Series - Drama
	Critics' Choice Television Award	Best Drama Series
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series
		Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
		Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
2015	Producers Guild of America Award	Best Episodic Drama
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series	Better Call Saul
2016	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Episodic Drama
	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Drama Series