Breaking Bad is an American television crime 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 inoperable lung cancer at the beginning of the series. He turns to a life of crime, producing and selling methamphetamine in order to secure his family's financial future before he dies, teaming with his former student, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul).
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; the second half premiered on August 11, 2013.
The series has won seven Primetime Emmy Awards—including three consecutive wins for Best Actor for Cranston, two wins for Best Supporting Actor for Paul, and four nominations for Outstanding Drama Series. Cranston has also been nominated three times for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor and nominated four times for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actor, winning once at the 19th Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Breaking Bad has received widespread critical acclaim and is considered one of the greatest TV dramas of all time. Guinness World Records awarded Breaking Bad the highest rated TV series of all time having a Metacritic score of 99/100.