Staying close with his Better Call Saul stars on and off the set ultimately saved Bob Odenkirk‘s life. During the production of the show's sixth and final season, it had been reported that Odenkirk had suffered a heart attack. At the time, he was with two of his Better Call Saul co-stars, Rhea Seehorn (Kim Wexler) and Patrick Fabian (Howard Hamlin), who both quickly sprung into action to assist Odenkirk with getting medical help. Soon after, the actor was flown to a nearby hospital to be treated, having since recovered and putting the incident behind him.
In a new interview with Variety, Seehorn looked back upon that frightening day. She believes that the camaraderie that the three co-stars had, which included spending many hours together even when not filming, was vital in saving Odenkirk. As Seehorn explains, Odenkirk's recovery was dependent on prompt medical attention, and if he had been alone when the heart attack happened, he wouldn't have gotten that help, potentially leading to much more tragic results.
“There’s so many things that day, and I know Bob feels the same way, that are just like gifts from the universe. I don’t know how else to put it, because he didn’t go to his trailer. If he had, he would be dead, or significantly brain damaged… Somehow my messy piles everywhere and thousands of unfinished jigsaw puzzles did not drive him to the brink of not wanting to be near me. So he came and hung out with us.”
Seehorn explained that on that day, the three were hanging out in an empty studio while taking a break from shooting. Odenkirk was on an exercise bike while watching a sports game while Seehorn and Fabian chatted. Suddenly, Odenkirk began to fall from the bike, but his friends were quick to come to his aid. When they realized how serious the situation was, they immediately called for help, at which point the on-set medic Rosie Estrada began administering aid while transport was en route.
“We ran to catch him because it’s a concrete floor and didn’t want him to hit his head, and then realized that something much bigger was going on. We realized that he was having some kind of cardiac arrest… We were in shock. It was awful. We didn’t know if he was going to make it, even after they got him to the hospital. I barely remember, but I’m sure I had a lot of wine.”
Bob Odenkirk Gets Emotional Hearing How His Friends Saved Him
Bob Odenkirk cannot remember the events of that day, but he would later learn about the efforts taken by his friends from the cast and crew to help save his life. While he can't recall the moment personally, just hearing how they were there for him makes Odenkirk emotional to recount the story. As he told Variety:
“After hearing all the stories from all the people and hearing what Rhea and Patrick did, kneeling down, Rhea holding my head, Patrick grabbing my hand, them yelling at me to stay here, I mean, it was a massively impactful, devastating scenario that everyone participated in except for me. But having heard it, it sits with you and it will resonate through the rest of my life. And our friendship will too.”
While the final episodes of Better Call Saul will arrive on July 11, the bond shared by the show's co-stars will endure, especially after all they've gone through over the course of their six seasons.
