a cancer at the beginning of the series. He turns to a life of crime, producing and selling methamphetamine with a former student, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), with the aim of securing his family's financial future before he dies.
Breaking Bad is an American television drama series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and produced in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Breaking Bad is the story of Walter White (Bryan Cranston), a struggling high school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with advanced lunga cancer at the beginning of the series. He turns to a life of crime, producing and selling methamphetamine with a former student, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), with the aim of securing his family's financial future before he dies.
Premiering on January 20, 2008, the series is broadcast in the United States and Canada on the cable channel AMC, and is a production of Sony Pictures Television. On August 14, 2011, AMC announced that Breaking Bad had been renewed for a fifth and final season consisting of 16 episodes.This final season is split into two parts, each consisting of 8 episodes and broadcast over the course of two years; the first half premiered on July 15, 2012 and concluded on September 2, 2012, and the second half is scheduled to begin in summer 2013.
Breaking Bad has received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its writing, cinematography, directing and acting. The series has won seven Emmy Awards—including 
three consecutive wins for Lead Actor in a
Drama Series for Cranston, two wins for Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Paul, and three nominations for Outstanding Drama Series.
Cranston has also been nominated twice for a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama and he was nominated three times for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series.
Breaking Bad was created by Vince Gilligan, who spent several years writing the Fox series The X-Files. Gilligan wanted to create a series in which the protagonist became the antagonist. "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 is to turn him from
Mr. Chips into Scarface. He has said it is difficult to write for Walter White because the character is so dark and morally questionable: "I'm going to miss the show when it's over, but on some level, it'll be a relief to not have Walt in my head anymore." As the series has progressed, Gilligan and the writing staff of Breaking Bad have made Walter more and more unsympathetic. Gilligan said: "He's going from being a protagonist to an antagonist. We want to make people question who they're pulling for, and why." Cranston said by the fourth season: "I think Walt's figured out it's better to be a pursuer than the pursued. He's well on his way to badass." Gilligan defines the term "breaking bad" as "to raise hell".
Vince Gilligan has indicated that he intends to conclude Breaking Bad with the fifth season. In early August 2011, negotiations began over a deal regarding the fifth and possible final season between the network AMC and Sony Pictures Television, the production company of the series. AMC proposed a shortened fifth season (six to eight episodes, instead of 13) to cut costs, but the producers declined. Sony then approached other cable networks about possibly picking up the show if a deal could not be made. On August 14, 2011, a deal was made in which AMC renewed the series for a final 16 episodes.