‘Breaking Bad’ Final Season: Will Hank Survive The Last Eight Episodes?

While the revelation was somewhat forced by 'Breaking Bad's final season structure of airing two separate eight-episode blocks, longtime fans of the series were no doubt ready to drop a few bricks over Hank's toilet-side revelation in mid-season finale "Gliding Over All." The news was certainly five seasons in the making, but actor Dean Norris reveals his character arc over the final season could have gone very differently. Find out what almost happened to Hank and get the latest 'Breaking Bad' scoop from the coming episodes inside!

Hank Schrader will have quite a mess on his hands when 'Breaking Bad' returns for its final eight episodes this summer, and we don't just mean the big info-dump at the end of the last episode. And while we have a long way to go from Hank's "W.W." epiphany to a New Hampshire Denny's, Dean Norris recently revealed in an interview from the Albuquerque set that he'd asked series creator Vince Gilligan to kill off Hank in the first eight episodes of season 5.

“I called [creator] Vince [Gilligan] and I said, ‘Hey man, maybe Hank should die in the first eight. Wouldn’t that be a great ending?’” Norris had apparently already accepted his next role in a comedy pilot, but was forced to bow out when 'Breaking Bad's final season was split into two eight-episode chunks. “It was either do eight episodes or do 24 and I’ve got five kids, man.”

Of course, the final eight episodes of 'Breaking Bad' will likely prove some of the most Hank-centric episodes yet, but it remains to be seen if the DEA lawman will ultimately survive his brush with New Mexican meth kingpin Heisenberg, now revealed to be his own brother-in-law Walter White.

'Breaking Bad' has yet to set an official summer premiere date, but what say you? Do you think Hank dying in the first eight-episodes would have been a bigger gut punch? Where do you think the final episodes of 'Breaking Bad' will take us?