All The Characters Mike Killed In Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul
Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) took a handful of lives in Breaking Bad, and his kill list continues to grow during the events of Better Call Saul.
Mike Ehrmantraut acquired quite a kill list throughout Breaking Bad and the prequel series, Better Call Saul. Played by Jonathan Banks, Mike made his debut in Breaking Bad season 2 as a fixer for his former lawyer, Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk). After becoming involved in the drug operations connected to Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), Mike received a more prominent role. Though Mike was killed by Walt by the end of the series, he returned to Vince Gilligan’s fictional universe for the prequel series. Now heading into its sixth season, Better Call Saul documents the early days of Mike’s partnership with Saul as well as his journey in becoming Gus Fring’s (Giancarlo Esposito) second-in-command.
From the moment Mike debuted on Breaking Bad, it was made clear that Banks’ character was a hardened man who wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. Not only was he a fixer, but Mike worked as a private investigator, an intimidator, and a skilled assassin. His extreme loyalty and calm demeanor in dangerous situations made Mike an important asset in the eyes of Gus. As his boss’ drug empire started to grow, so did their list of threats. Though Mike wasn’t keen on killing, he did what he had to do.
Mike killed a handful of figures throughout his time on Breaking Bad, but his kill list has greatly increased during the events of Better Call Saul. The number could potentially grow even more based on Mike’s arc in the sixth and final season of Better Call Saul. With Gus’ ongoing tension with the cartel and dangerous gangs, more violence is certainly in store. For now, here’s everyone Mike directly killed in Breaking Bad and the prequel series.
Troy Hoffman & Jack Fensky
Before Mike built a life in New Mexico, he was a corrupt cop in Philadelphia for many years. His son, Matty, followed in Mike’s footsteps by joining the department where he was partnered with Troy Hoffman (Lane Garrison). Like Mike, Troy was a corrupt member of the department. When he was offered a kickback from fellow officer Jack Fensky (Billy Malone), Matty was brought into the deal. After initially rejecting, Troy and Jack viewed Matty as a liability, so they set up an ambush to kill him. After figuring out the truth, Mike avenged his son’s death. Through a Better Call Saul flashback in season 1, Mike led Troy and Jack to believe he was drunk after telling them he knew the truth about the murder. When the pair tried to kill him too, Mike used a hidden gun to eliminate Matty’s killers.
Werner Ziegler
Werner Ziegler (Rainer Bock) was the German engineer hired by Gus Fring to oversee the construction of the superlab in Better Call Saul season 4. The man had trouble keeping the details of the lab a secret, which he was warned about multiple times. After sneaking out of his living quarters, Werner inadvertently revealed intel on the lab’s construction to Lalo Salamanca (Tony Dalton). With the crime family serving as one of Gus’ biggest enemies, Gus had no choice but to punish Werner. Mike fought for the engineer to have a chance to return to work, but Gus had his mind made up. Knowing his fate, Werner asked for one final walk outside to look at the stars. While he did so, Mike shot him in the head, falling into a depressive state after the event.
Colombian Gang Members
In the Better Call Saul season 5 episode titled “Bagman,” the Salamanca family acquired money for Lalo’s bail from a cartel site in Mexico. To safely deliver it, they hire Jimmy McGill (aka Saul Goodman) to transport bags of cash from a remote location. During the return trip, Jimmy was ambushed by a convoy of Colombian gang members. The leader, Jefe (Gabriel Rodriguez), ordered his men to steal the money and to kill Jimmy. Before one of the gang members pulled the trigger, he was shot by a sniper. Caught in the middle of a gunfight, Jimmy was soon saved by Mike. One of the mercenaries escaped, but after becoming trapped in the desert overnight, Mike caught sight of the lone survivor. With his sniper rifle, Mike shot the man named Tiburón (Corey Eubanks) while Jimmy lured him to their location.
Leonel Salamanca
Seeing as Mike was Gus’ right-hand-man since the events of Better Call Saul, he too had run-ins with the Salamanca family, including “The Cousins.” The brothers, named Marco and Leonel (Luis and Daniel Moncada), were hitmen for the cartel and subsequently worked as Hector Salamanca’s (Mark Margolis) enforcers. In Breaking Bad, the Cousins set their sights on Walt due to his involvement in the drug trade. Gus then turned their attention to Walt’s brother-in-law, Hank Schrader (Dean Norris). In reality, Gus set up Marco and Leonel by warning Hank of an impending attack. The DEA agent shot and killed Marco but Leonel survived the event. While the man was in the ICU, Mike snuck into his room to finish him off. With no survivors, Mike, Walt, nor Gus could be connected to Hank’s attack.
Cartel Assassins
In the Breaking Bad season 3 finale, Gus’ chemical supplier, Duane Chow (James Ning), was introduced. As the owner of Golden Moth Chemical, Chow made a deal with Gus, but the cartel caught wind of the partnership. Four members of the Juárez Cartel took Chow hostage until Mike arrived and shot them dead. Mike then shot Chow through the hand as punishment for not informing Gus about the situation. The following season, Mike was riding in the back of a refrigerated Los Pollos Hermanos truck that was going on a meth delivery run. The truck was hijacked by a pair of armed cartel members who killed the driver before shooting up the entire truck. By taking cover, Mike was able to hide as the men entered the truck. He then jumped from behind boxes and opened fire on the pair.
Gaff
Following the failed hijacking of the Los Pollos Hermanos truck, the cartel sent the right-hand-man of the leader of the cartel to negotiate with Gus. Gaff (Maurice Compte), the man doing the negotiating, eventually convinced Gus and his team to cook signature blue meth in Mexico. While there, Gus poisoned the top members of the Juárez Cartel. When Gaff realized what was happening, Mike snuck up behind the henchman and strangled him.
Chris Mara
After Gus’ murder, Lydia Rodarte-Quayle (Laura Fraser) tried to cut any lingering connections to the man’s drug empire. In Breaking Bad season 5, she hired a man named Chris Mara (Christopher King) to assassinate anyone who had dangerous intel. Mara previously worked for Gus under Mike following the events of Better Call Saul, so he was familiar with those previously involved. He successfully killed Chow before luring Mike with the same intention. By outsmarting Mara, Mike learned the truth regarding Lydia’s orders before killing his former ally.
