The creative mind behind Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, Vince Gilligan, is back with a brand new series. Pluribus, a science-fiction drama, is set to premiere on Apple TV+ on November 7, 2025. The show features a familiar face from the Gilligan universe in a lead role written specifically for her. Here is the full lineup of the cast and characters for this new show.
The Main Cast of Pluribus
The series centers on a small group of characters navigating a world that has been turned upside down. The lead role is played by a Better Call Saul alum, with two other actors joining as key supporting characters.
Rhea Seehorn as Carol Sturka
Rhea Seehorn, best known for her Emmy-nominated role as Kim Wexler in Better Call Saul, takes the lead in Pluribus. She plays Carol Sturka, a historical romance author who is profoundly unhappy. In a strange turn of events, her misery becomes her greatest asset. Carol is the only person immune to a mysterious global virus that makes everyone else content and optimistic. She finds herself deeply disturbed by the enforced happiness and becomes the reluctant hero who must save the world from this unsettling peace. Vince Gilligan has confirmed that he wrote this lead character specifically for Seehorn.
Karolina Wydra as Zosia
Karolina Wydra, known for roles in Sneaky Pete and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., stars as Zosia. While specific details about her character are being kept under wraps, she is described as a dynamic counterpoint to Seehorn’s Carol. In the altered world of the show, Zosia appears to act as a kind of chaperone or guide for Carol as she navigates the new reality.
Carlos Manuel Vesga as Manousos
Carlos Manuel Vesga, whose credits include The Snitch Cartel: Origins, appears in a key supporting role as Manousos. His character is another part of the central ensemble, though the exact nature of his relationship to the unfolding events is part of the show’s mystery.
Recurring and Guest Characters
Pluribus features several notable actors in guest and recurring roles that will impact Carol’s journey.
Miriam Shor as Helen
Miriam Shor, from Younger and Hedwig and the Angry Inch, plays Helen. Helen is Carol’s manager and also her wife. In the early scenes of the series, her warmth contrasts with Carol’s cynicism before the world changes.
Additional Cast Members
The ensemble also includes Samba Schutte (Our Flag Means Death) in an unspecified role. Kevin Chambers appears as Dr. Nguyen, and Peter Bergman plays a White House official whom Carol contacts for help. The cast also features McKenzie Scott as a patient, twin sisters Monae and Monique Lott, and Jennifer Bravo as a neighbor.
Behind the Scenes of Pluribus
The series marks Vince Gilligan’s first major project outside the Breaking Bad universe in 17 years and his return to science fiction after working on The X-Files.
The Creative Team
Vince Gilligan is the creator, showrunner, and an executive producer. He also wrote and directed the first two episodes of the series. The writers’ room is filled with many of Gilligan’s trusted collaborators from Better Call Saul, including Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock, and Ariel Levine. The show is produced by Sony Pictures Television for Apple TV+.
The Premise and Setting
Pluribus is set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the same location as Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. The story begins as an unexplained event sweeps across the globe, transforming the population into unnaturally happy and content citizens. The series follows Carol Sturka, who is immune to this change, as she struggles to survive in this new world and find a way to reverse the effects.
“It’s mostly just fear any time you embark on something new,” says Gilligan of Pluribus. After working within the Breaking Bad universe for nearly 15 years, the creator was embarking on something entirely new.
Production and Release Schedule
Filming for the first season took place in Albuquerque over seven months, from February to September 2024. Apple TV+ will release the first two episodes of the nine-episode season on November 7, 2025. After the premiere, one new episode will be released weekly every Friday, with the season finale scheduled for December 26, 2025. Apple has already ordered a second season.
Rhea Seehorn spoke about the challenge of the role, noting, “I knew it would be very, very challenging as an actor to play all the things that he wanted. And it’s genre defying, it’s switching tones, sometimes within the same scene. There’s nobody I’d rather do that with than Vince.”
Co-star Karolina Wydra added, “I was just blown away by [Vince’s] vision of this big idea that he created – of what it means, what is human nature, what is happiness, what is contentment?”
