Breaking Bad leads NYT’s century TV list

Breaking Bad has been named the best television show of the 21st century so far in a New York Times survey of more than 500 television industry professionals.

The AMC crime drama topped a list of 100 programs that premiered on or after 1 January 2000, beating HBO’s The Wire at No. 2 and AMC’s Mad Men at No. 3. Succession and Fleabag completed the top five.

The ranking was based on responses from 516 actors, writers, producers, showrunners, executives and other television professionals, who were asked to submit up to 10 of their favorite shows from the period. Participants included Bryan Cranston, Elisabeth Moss, Adam Scott, Rose Byrne, Colman Domingo and Jason Bateman.

Created by Vince Gilligan, Breaking Bad premiered in 2008 and ran for five seasons until 2013.

The series follows Walter White, played by Cranston, a high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with cancer who enters the methamphetamine business with former student Jesse Pinkman, portrayed by Aaron Paul. His effort to secure his family’s finances develops into an increasingly violent criminal enterprise.

Game of Thrones ranked sixth, followed by Veep, 30 Rock, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Atlanta.

The Sopranos, one of television’s most acclaimed dramas, was not eligible because it premiered in 1999, before the ranking’s cutoff, despite continuing its run into the 2000s.

Breaking Bad was also a major awards winner during its original run. It won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series in 2013 and 2014, while Cranston won four Emmys for his performance as Walter White. DT