The important role of Jeff the cab driver on Better Call Saul is one of few roles in the Breaking Bad franchise to undergo a recasting, making it a source of contention for some diehard fans. Throughout Better Call Saul and the series tie-in movie, El Camino, there have been special appearances from very minor characters seen in Breaking Bad with the same actors reprising their roles, serving as fun Easter eggs. That may have made it all the more jarring for some fans when Pat Healy was introduced as an all-new Jeff in season 6 following previous appearances by Don Harvey in the role in seasons 4 and 5.After the new Jeff's episodes aired, one common complaint seen among Better Call Saul fan discussions is that the casting change was a major bummer. This is not so much a critique against Healy or his acting skills so much as a glaring inconsistency in a franchise that otherwise pays very close attention to the most minute details. Physically, Healy doesn't look very much like Harvey, and it's fair to say that both actors also took a different approach to how they portrayed Jeff. Some viewers have even said they didn't realize at first that it was supposed to be the same character.Despite the social media chatter, Healy did manage to win many viewers over with his take on the role, even if some people were initially confused. For his part, Harvey has also praised Healy in the role, referring to the new Jeff's performance as the silver lining of the recasting. Taking to Twitter, Harvey noted how he was disappointed to miss out on returning as Jeff, as he was filming HBO's We Own This City at the time of production, but went on to say kind words about Healy."Thanks for all the comments on my Jeff in BCS-4&5," Harvey wrote. "Disappointed I couldn’t return for season 6 due to scheduling conflicts. The bright spot is the wonderfully talented Pat Healy put his own stamp on the role. Great job Pat."
Pat Healy Brings Something Different to Jeff
In the Better Call Saul Insider Podcast, co-creator and showrunner Peter Gould addressed the casting change. He explained that the Breaking Bad team had always been lucky when it came to the availability of actors, but when it came time to film the back half of season 6 of Better Call Saul, Don Harvey was off the table due to contractual obligations to his HBO series. To find their new Jeff, the team went back to the original audition tapes for the role, coming back across Pat Healy. Ultimately, Gould is happy with how the show turned out with the new actor.
"We were very sad," Gould said of the recasting. "We did not know what to do. Then our brilliant casting folks said, 'Why don't we take a look at the original auditions for this role?' And there was Pat. It would have been a different string of episodes with Don. I think Pat is fantastic. I love what Pat does with this role."
While Jeff's role was memorable and significant, it was still rather limited, as Gould also explained. Because Harvey only spoke in one scene at the start of season 5, Gould hoped the fans would be willing to accept the casting change, perhaps especially so with Healy having so much more screen time than Harvey.
"To be fair, Don is also a great actor, but also to be fair to us, he really only had one speaking scene. So, hopefully, the audience will roll with it," Gould said.
The series finale of Better Call Saul arrives on Aug. 15 on AMC and AMC+.