Breaking Bad is one of those hit and rare shows that has its own flavor of evil. There’s always a bad guy behind every trouble that takes place in a show, but this show is among those series where every season becomes more challenging with the rise of a stronger villain.
And when we talk about the villains or bad guys, they’re not only small-time crooks or meth heads, there are businessmen in suits, old and retired people doing something big to get a bigger picture and extra cash. Even some white-collar professionals go rogue to make a living on their own terms. Yes, every bad character has its own taste and story.
Let’s have a look at each villain in Breaking Bad that made Walter White’s (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse Pinkman’s (Aaron Paul) lives tough and challenging, season by season, and trust me, this whole thing is much more gray than black and white.
Breaking Bad’s Dark Side | All the Villains and Bad Characters in Each Season
Here’s a quick catch about bad characters. They aren’t the only ones who are known villains and are assigned to do a specific role. The real trouble makers are the ones who even drag a good person into a difficult time or position. That’s why in this article, we’ll discuss all the bad plus evil characters as well, and categorize them by each season of the series.
Season 1 Villains | The Small Time Monsters
Emilio and Krazy-8
The very first villains Walter and Jesse faced in the series. Apparently, they were Pinkman’s friends who used to move meth on a small scale and in local territories. In their very first intro, it could be clearly seen that these cousins didn’t like Jesse, but Emilio (John Koyama) was Pinkman’s school friend, and they used to cook together.
On the other hand, Dominga Molina (Max Arciniega), aka Krazy-8 (his business pseudo), was just a distributor and was never seen in good faith with Jesse. These cousins gave some real trouble to both main characters. At one point, they were even about to take both of them down in a single shot, but were captivated because of Walter’s cleverness.
Krazy-8 was the first person ever who put a gun to Mr. White, as a man of such character and history had never faced such of situation before.
Jesse’s Friends: Combo, Skinny Pete, Badger
Combo, Skinny Pete, and Badger are not villains, but they were the real trouble creators for Jesse in the beginning.
The very first batch of meth that Mr. White and Pinkman cooked was in an RV, and that RV was sold by Combo Ortega (Rodney Rush). He never told anyone in his home where the RV was, which clearly shows he stole his own RV and sold it for $7K. This whole thing was revealed by his own mother to Hank (Dean Joseph Norris) when he was trying to track that same RV after Combo’s death.
Combo’s death was a real hit to Walt’s bsuiness but, he actually never cared about him.
Skinny Pete (Charles Baker) was among the best characters who helped Jesse throughout the series, but what we see in the beginning is another spoiled child who’s crazy for a few ounces of crystal. And that’s why he was among his few bad friends who forced him to cook more and bring it to them just for fun.
This one bad habbit based on favor became the real reason Pinkman got more addicted to cooking.
And Badger, aka Brandon Mayhew (Matt Jones), was a totally non-serious guy who always saw his dear friend as a source to overcome his desires. He actually never cared about him. Yes, he supported him in his business dealings and street-level distribution, especially in season 2, but he wasn’t among the good friends who actually cared for him.
Season 2 | Where The Actual Collapse Begins
If you look closely, Breaking Bad’s season 2 punishes everyone, from main and decent characters to evil and bad ones.
Tuco Salamanca
The real face and definition of pure evil. He was so much indulged in drugs and crime that he actually never used to know what he was doing. He was a quick and unpredictable decision maker, which made him very dangerous and threatening as a boss. He even killed his own associate for interrupting him.
Scaring everyone and behaving like an animal, that’s all he knew all the time. On many random occasions, he was about to take out both Walt and Pinkman, but again, they were saved by such a cruel person because of Mr. White’s cleverness. What he got at the end was a very unfortunate death at the hands of simple and scary citizens.
You can’t negotiate with Tuco, you have to save yourself from him.
Hector Salamanca
I’m not sure if anyone has noticed or not, but Hector Salamanca (Mark Margolis) is the only character in the whole series who hasn’t spoken a word. As a matter of fact, he’s one of the most influential and dangerous villains of the Breaking Bad series because of his deeds in Better Call Saul, which is a prequel to the series.
He couldn’t speak a word because of his illness, but he was a known don and a powerful man with a corrupt family background, so he always hated Walt and Jesse for what they did to his nephew, Tuco. He tried his best to take over Walt, but he failed to do so, as he couldn’t do anything on his own anymore, all he could do was give an order.
Foe or friend, whatever you call him, at first he was against Walt, and then later he helped him to put out the man he despised most.
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The Salamanca Cousins
They were nephews of Hector and cousins to Tuco Salamanca. They hardly spoke 2 or 3 words in the whole series. Just like their uncle, they also had a powerful influence, especially from Better Call Saul. Leonel (Daniel Moncada) and Marco (Luis Moncada) are actually brothers in real life as well. Throughout the series, these two brothers were the most terrifying characters because of what they do to people wherever they go.
These two were deadly. They walk on screen and your soul leaves your body.
They caused a lot of trouble for Walt’s family and business. Luckily, he was saved by these two ferocious brothers, by Mike (Jonathan Banks) and Gustavo Fring (Giancarlo Esposito), because of their personal interests. They also got a bad ending, just like their uncle and cousin.
Walter White was really lucky he never faced the Salamanca twins. They were silent, deadly, and terrifying.
Jane Margolis
Yes, and hear me out…
Jane (Krysten Ritter) was among the characters who suffered the most in the series. Yes, she isn’t a villain, in fact, she was a victim more than anything, but as we discussed above, we’re listing all the characters with bad deeds and dark minds. So, Jane was also a bad character. As a viewer, everyone felt sorry for what happened to her, but she reaped what she sowed.
In simple and straight words, at a very early age, she was addicted to highly toxic drugs, and on top of that, she was using Jesse as a potential source to escape from her dad and rehabilitation. Unfortunately, after blackmailing Mr. White to get Jesse’s money, they planned to run away from everyone after one last dose, and that became her end.
Seasons 3 and 4 | The Era of Cartel and Supervillains | The War of Geniuses
Gustavo Fring
Gustavo was no ordinary man. He was the most dangerous and competitive opponent Walt and Jesse ever faced, end of story after this. He knew how to play all the games, how to trick someone, how to trap, or how to make someone follow. Without any doubt, he was a wolf in a sheep’s clothing. He’s among the most dangerous villains of the cinematic universe.
As a matter of fact, Mr. White became a villain himself after his time with Gustavo Fring.
As usual, he also faced a very uncertain death, and he was actually defeated because of his old rivalry with Hector Salamanca, who actually helped Walter take him by giving his own life. I guess cartels have no morals for life, their revenge is more important, which was a benefit for Walt as well.
Gus Fring was quite evil, calculating, too polite and perfect.
The Cartel
Don Eladio Vuente
Every business has a hierarchy, and without it, nothing could run smoothly. In the world of Cartels, Don Eladio Vuente (Steven Bauer) was the one who led everything at the backend. As we’ve seen, especially in Better Call Saul, Don Eladio was the head of their crime organization, and he used to keep an eye on everyone’s moves, whether they were in the USA or Mexico.
He didn’t have much screen time in the series, but as far as viewers are concerned, one thing is clear, he was no ordinary man and was one of the darkest personalities of the show. He also lost his life in a massacre when Gus Fring was taking his revenge.
Don Juan Bolsa
He was another Don controlling some of the major territories for distribution. He was more like a political character who normally goes with the one who has more power and money. He also lost his life in a live raid which was led by Gustavo, and the major cause was again an old rivalry related to friendship and business.
Don Eladio and Juan never got a chance to see Mr. White in person. Apparently, Walt’s meth was a premium-grade product, and everyone was aware of that, but they never got to see great Heisenburgh in person.
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Mike Ehrmantraut
Gray-area villain
If there’s a name for fierce loyalty in the series, that will be Mike. Now the question arises, if he’s so loyal, why do we consider him in the bad list category, or even a villain? So, we all know that Mike was actually a retired police officer who became the chief of security for Gustavo because of his experience and skills. And, when we mention Gus, obviously, he wasn’t doing good deeds.
Mike wasn’t a villain to audience, but to Walt? Of course, he was a threat.
He was highly involved in bad stuff for multiple reasons, especially for her granddaughter. Unfortunately, he lost all the money after Gus passed away. But he was able to score some extra cash with the help of Walt and Jesse. He lost his life in a simple misunderstanding, or we can say, because of the arrogance of Walter White.
Mike’s death was a very unfortunate one. He never deserved what happened to him at the end, as, despite his bad deeds, he was actually a good person.
Tyrus and Victor
Victor (Jeremiah Bitsui) was one of the closest associates of Gus, who kept a close eye on all the operations, especially the hidden and bad ones. Throughout seasons 3 and 4, it can be seen that he didn’t personally like Walt and Jesse, for what reason nobody knows. Maybe that’s why, when Mr. White and Jesse betrayed Gus, Victor dragged them into a forced protection and was getting ready to finish them, but instead, he lost his own life.
On the other hand, Tyrus Kitt (Ray Campbell) was Gus’s closest associate after Victor. He handled his role very well. He was too focused and dedicated to his job. It can be seen that when he was asked to keep an eye on Walt, he literally made him so annoyed that he had to call the cops on Tyrus, which was a funny scene as well. After Gus, where he went, no one knows.
Victor and Tyrus were Gustavo’s most loyal soldiers.
Season 5 | The Empire Era
Lydia Rodarte
Lydia Rodarte-Quayle (Laura Fraser) is one of the most cunning and dangerous antagonists of the series. She’s the best example of the darkest minds. She only cares for her daughter, and the rest of the people don’t matter to her. Even the worst thing she did was to kill an innocent lady just to teach Jesse a lesson.
A business lady circulating crystal all over the USA and Europe can’t be decent or sympathetic. Lydia was indeed a dangerous lady.
What Mr. White did to her was a kind of poetic justice. He made her realize that with each breath and second, she’s moving towards her death, and there’s nothing she could do about that. She could never save herself from the poison Walt had given her. And honestly, she actually deserved that after what she did to everyone.
She was a corporate villain, a polite sociopath, and was a kind of woman who will take down anyone if it helps her supply chain.
Todd Alquist
Todd Alquist (Jesse Plemons) is the main reason for all the chaos that happened at the end. It’s a highly debatable fact, but that makes sense in many ways because the things he did prove that he can never be trusted, nor should he be involved in anything.
Breaking Bad’s season 5 introduced seriously toxic villains who have no moral codes or sympathy for anyone when it comes to their personal gain.
He was the only person who even outsmarted Walter White, as well, because of his charming attitude and lies. Mr. White was not only an excellent cook, but he was also known for his smart moves and cleverness, still, he replaced Jesse with Todd and made him his closest associate, which was a major mistake at the end.
Despite all the chaos Todd caused, he never suffered, actually got an easy escape from his life, but still he got what he deserved at the hands of Pinkman.
Uncle Jack and The White Supremacist Gang
Todd’s uncle Jack (Michael Bowen) and his fierce gang were totally another type of creature. As a viewer, you will begin to wonder how these people live together, how they support each other even in tough situations. Without a doubt, one of the most cruel gangs we saw at the end, which even took down Walter White and his empire, and took all his hard-earned black money.
Mr. White became overconfident after taking down each enemy he ever faced from the very beginning of the series, especially after Gus. He thought he could control people like Jack and his puppets through money. As he became too rich by that time, he thought so, but that was his biggest mistake, for which he paid $80 million, as Jack took all the barrels of cash except one for Walter.
Heisenberg
The real villain
If we’re talking about all the villains, then we must include Walter White as well, and yes, that’s a harsh truth, because of his evolution from each season. He began to evolve into a monster with each episode and became darker and darker. Even at one point, his own wife, Skyler (Anna Gunn), became afraid of him, especially when he said these words to her.
I’m not in danger, Skyler. I’m the danger
Season 4 Episode 6 (Cornered)
These words stuck in her mind forever, and without any doubts, that is one of the best quotes from the Breaking Bad series. She was already mentally away from him for a long time, especially after she discovered that he cooks one of the most dangerous substances for a living, and he lied all the time after his cancer diagnosis.
As a personal opinion, Walter White was a name of excellence, but his evolution into Heisenberg was totally a different thing. It was like a dual personality with insane mental issues. Maybe that’s why, at the end, when he lost everything, he confessed to his own wife that he wasn’t doing this because he was good at it, but he enjoyed it.
Manipulating everyone, including Jesse, poisoning people without a trace, dumping unwanted people who leave no tracks, and lying at every turn to everyone. At the end, Heisenberg was the real boss and the biggest villain.
