Gus Will 'Take Matters into His Own Hands' in 'Better Call Saul' Season Six

Gus Fring will have to "take matters into his own hands" in the final season of Better Call Saul, Giancarlo Esposito told Newsweek.

**Warning: This article contains spoilers for the first two episodes of 'Better Call Saul' Season 6**

The drug kingpin will have his work cut out for him when it comes to the ruthless Lalo Salamanca (Tony Dalton) and his informant Nacho Varga (Michael Mando) in the coming episodes, The Mandalorian star teased while discussing the show's opener.

Season 6 began with a thrilling double bill that saw Lalo fake his own death and prepare to take on Gus, but not before he informs his uncle Hector (Mark Margolis) that he's alive and agrees to get proof of the Los Pollos Hermanos owner's betrayal first.

"Lalo's worse than Nacho Varga because he doesn't care and he has no respect for any human life," Esposito said of the antagonist. "So, there's something about protocol, that Gus is very much about how you do things, how you share information, and if you respect human life or not.

"As you can see from [Episode 1] Lalo doesn't reward loyalty, he doesn't care and it's all about him. He's trying to impress his uncle."

When asked if the two characters may face off in the Breaking Bad spin-off's final episodes, Esposito avoided spoilers with ease by adding: "I can't say that they come head-to-head.

"But, I can say that Gus will eventually have to, one way or the other, take some matters into his own hands, if what we see in regard to Lalo being controllable doesn't happen."

On Gus Turning His Back on Nacho Varga

As fans of the Breaking Bad franchise will know, Gus has been slowly biding his time to exact his revenge on the Salamanca cartel, and in particular Hector, for the killing of his partner Maximino "Max" Arciniega (James Martinez).

His plans were scuppered somewhat by Nacho's attempt to kill Hector, which resulted in the drug boss being rendered disabled and unable to speak after a stroke.

Gus, in retaliation, forced Nacho to be his man on the inside, threatening his father to convince him to become a double agent and help take down the kingpins.

In Season 6 it appears that Gus feels Nacho has finally reached the end of his usefulness as he betrayed his hiding place to the Salamancas so they could capture him.

"Nacho made certain decisions on his own which Gus has never forgotten," Esposito said of his character's decision. "If we go back in time, Nacho made a decision to, on his own, take care of Hector Salamanca and when you make decisions like that, without checking in with the boss, you're in trouble.

"You become a loose cannon and you can't be counted on. Gus counts on loyalty, he counts on information, he counts on knowing what people think."

Referencing the moment in the double-bill premiere, where Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) tries to persuade Gus to help Nacho rather than leave him to die, Esposito went on: "You see Mike try to sway Gus in a certain way, which allows us to know this man has personal feelings, and you can't have those to be ahead of the game.

"Although you get a sense that Gus hears it is there anything else he has to say? He knows there's something else he has to say, but he asked the question, 'is there anything else you have to say?'

"And Mike prudently turns and walks away because Gus would then say what he really thinks about someone who knows him well and questions his leadership or authority, and you don't do that with Gustavo Fring because he's a guy who's thought way down the road past you.

"Mike being a very formidable opponent for Gus, which is why he's with Gus, maybe forgot that this man is brilliant in his thinking and frustrated, has anxiety at the moment, that something didn't work out the way he would have liked.

"And probably, begrudgingly, somewhere inside of him, has a modicum of respect for a Lalo Salamanca, who has taken a page out of his own book and thought a little bit ahead. So fireworks are going to happen when we really come down to it."

Esposito added: "Look, it's not that Gus hates Nacho Varga, he also feels for Nacho's father and that has to be taken into account.

"So, he knows what strings to pull, and he's going to pull all of them because it's beyond his relationship with Mike, it's beyond his relationship with Nacho. It's about him having the ability to take over the cartel."

Working with Mark Margolis on the Animosity Between Gus and Hector

Fans of Vince Gilligan's original series may know how Gus and Hector's war ends but Season 6 will continue to up the stakes between the two characters.

Esposito has known his co-star Margolis for almost 40 years, and it is thanks to their long history of working together that they know intrinsically how best to play off of one another as Gus and Hector, especially when combined with the story first set up in Breaking Bad.

"You get to know a person and you disregard all the things that you like, and you make note of the things that annoy you, on and off screen, and you use them, and you don't make it personal," the actor said of working with Margolis and how they convey so much in their performances while saying so little.

"I have a very, very endearing relationship with Mark Margolis. He's a very smart human being, and a very smart actor. We've watched each other age and mature, and look at life in a different way.

"You use things against people, when you're friends you're able to because your actors, and then you compliment them when you see them find another route, and they compliment you when they acknowledge you're finding another route. It's a chess match, just like the show."

The Boys star added: "I adore working with him because he's present, he sees everything, he hears everything, and the ability for him to be able to give you all of the information by saying very little, grunting and groaning, is amazing.

"Equally so, Gus has to tell you a lot in very few words and that takes an actor who thinks about the history that they've created in their mind.

"They're not just thinking about the Yankees, whether they're going to win or not, they're not thinking about getting an ice cream cone after the wrap. They're thinking about what got them here, and what they hate about each other, what happened in the history of their character's relationship to one another.

"So I adore Mark, he's incredible in the show, and he comes back to us as strong as ever, and [is] really displaying characteristics that we thought we knew but we see something new within his portrayal this season."

Better Call Saul Season 6 Part 1 continues airing on Mondays at 9 p.m. on AMC. Part 2 will be released from July 11.