Nacho Varga

Lore & Background

Nacho's relationship with Mike Ehrmantraut began when Pryce brought Mike as a bodyguard for a side deal involving stolen pills. When Nacho's payment was $20 short, Mike insisted he pay the full amount. Later, after Nacho broke into Daniel Wormald's house and stole money and baseball cards, Mike convinced Nacho to return the cards and $10,000 in exchange for the Hummer. Nacho was impressed by Mike's coolness under pressure. As Tuco became increasingly volatile, Nacho decided to eliminate Tuco and tried to hire Mike to kill him, but Mike instead arranged for Tuco to attack him in view of police, leading to Tuco's arrest and conviction. Nacho then took Tuco's place in the organization under Hector Salamanca.

In Their Own Story

Nacho realized Hector suffered from angina and decided to try to kill him by replacing his nitroglycerin with ibuprofen in the hopes of inducing a fatal heart-attack. Mike advised Nacho that if Hector died, Nacho should immediately take the ibuprofen capsules from Hector and replace them with the real ones so that the cause of death would not be uncovered. Nacho succeeded in making the switch, but Hector did not die; so Nacho planned to shoot him. Before he could act, Nacho was notified to attend a meeting with Gus Fring, Juan Bolsa, and Hector. Juan informed Hector that Juárez Cartel leader Don Eladio Vuente had decreed that the cartel would make the transport of Hector's drugs via Gus's trucks a permanent arrangement. An outraged Hector had a stroke and fell to the ground unconscious. Gus performed first aid while awaiting an ambulance, and succeeded in saving Hector's life, though he remained comatose. Nacho took the ibuprofen capsules from Hector and replaced them with the real medication. Gus looked at Nacho suspiciously.

Reader's Guide

Nacho began as a lieutenant in the Salamanca drug trade under Tuco Salamanca in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When he has time, he helps his father Manuel at an upholstery-repair shop. Around 1996 and 1997, Nacho and Tuco worked with a biker gang from Riverside County, California, distributing low-quality methamphetamine. Nacho witnessed an intoxicated Tuco shoot and kill one of his dealers, Dog Paulson, whom he suspected of supplying his competitors. A piece of Dog's skull became lodged in Nacho's shoulder. The incident led Nacho to grow increasingly wary of Tuco's erratic behavior, worsened by his drug use. In season 1, while attempting to represent Craig Kettleman, Jimmy McGill has a run-in with Tuco, who has Nacho and other associates drag Jimmy and two skaters to the desert to kill them. Nacho believes Jimmy's plea that he is a lawyer and convinces Tuco that killing an attorney would result in police scrutiny, so Tuco lets Jimmy go. Nacho later approaches Jimmy about stealing the Kettleman money, but Jimmy refuses. Nacho is arrested as the prime suspect when the Kettlemans disappear, and he coerces Jimmy into helping clear his name, leading to Nacho's release. In season 4, Juan tells Nacho that he and Arturo Colon will run the Salamanca family while Hector is hospitalized. Gus pays for Hector's specialized care and, while reviewing Hector's medical records, realizes there is no nitroglycerin in his system, which means Nacho tried to kill him. When Nacho and Arturo arrive at Gus's chicken farm to pick up their next cocaine shipment, Gus ambushes Arturo and suffocates him with a plastic bag. Gus reveals that he is aware of Nacho's attempt to kill Hector, but has not told the Salamancas, so Nacho is now under his control. Nacho, Victor, and Tyrus Kitt fake an ambush site on a remote road, which includes riddling Nacho's car with bullets, shooting Arturo's body, and wounding Nacho. Nacho succeeds in calling Leonel and Marco Salamanca (the Cousins) for help. They burn the car and take him to veterinarian Dr. Caldera, who succeeds in saving Nacho's life. Victor sells the drugs taken from Nacho to the Espinosas, a rival gang. Nacho falsely identifies the Espinosas to Leonel and Marco as the ones who attacked him. They attack the Espinosa compound, kill everyone inside, and recover the "st" (the source cuts off here).

Did You Know?

• Michael Mando was approached through his agent from Better Call Saul's casting directors and sent in an audition tape before being flown to Los Angeles to meet with showrunners Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould.
• The Breaking Bad season two episode "Better Call Saul" mentions the character by his real name, Ignacio, and also introduces Saul Goodman and mentions Lalo.
• Mando watched crime and criminology documentaries and all of Breaking Bad to prepare for playing Nacho.
• Initially, Nacho was going to have a larger role with Jimmy in the first season as the "Big Bad," but the character of Chuck McGill became more of an antagonist, so Nacho was placed on a slower path.
• Mando considered Nacho the only character in Better Call Saul that was "breaking good," as "an ambitious person who believes in a morality outside of justice."