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Elizabeth A. "Betsy" Kettleman and Craig I. Kettleman are supporting antagonists in the 2015 AMC crime drama Better Call Saul.
Betsy Kettleman was played by Julie Ann Emery (who also played Fiona Kemp in Dexter), while Craig Kettleman was played by Jeremy Shamos.
Personalities[]
Despite his shady activities in con artistry, Craig is quite affable and introverted. He doesn't appear to be truly evil, and is shown to be a pushover who merely follows orders at times, hinting to the possibility that he was manipulated into committing his acts of embezzlement by his wife. Craig is also significantly more polite and well-mannered than his wife, as demonstrated when he greets Jimmy McGill with respect when he re-enters their lives, in comparison to Betsy who treats the lawyer with extreme hostility.
Betsy, on the other hand, is an assertive, self-centered opportunist who does everything in her power to make sure her husband is not caught of his crimes, going as far as to bribe Jimmy for his silence. Initially, Betsy is obsessed with securing Jimmy's help for her family. However, following her legal complications, she becomes openly hostile towards Jimmy and blames him for her own failures, exploring her overwhelming sense of self. In an American Greed interview on James Morgan McGill, Betsy calls Craig and herself "survivors" of Jimmy's con artistry, portraying her extreme hypocrisy when it comes to protecting her public image.
History[]
Season 1[]
Jimmy McGill meets with Craig and his wife Betsy to discuss Craig's case after he was charged with embezzling $1.6 million. Just as her husband is ready to sign a letter of engagement, Betsy holds his hand instead and requests some further time to consider it. Craig and his family hide out when Jimmy issues a warning. Jimmy finally finds them in the woods close to their house after an unsuccessful hunt for them. They should return home, according to Jimmy, but Betsy objects. Jimmy attempts to depart with a bag he's picked up, but Betsy seizes it. Craig looks on with fear. The money that Craig took is eventually revealed when the bag finally rips open. Jimmy is begged by Craig and Betsy not to reveal their identities, and they offer him some of the money in exchange. At first, Jimmy declined their offer. Jimmy responds by offering to serve as their attorney, but they decline, bringing up the cash bribe in the process.
Kim Wexler meets with Craig and Betsy and counsels them against going to trial because their prospects of succeeding are very slim. Instead, she urges them to accept the plea agreement she has arranged, which would shorten Craig's sentence to only sixteen months in jail. The Kettlemans turn down the offer, dismiss Kim, and go back to Jimmy for legal counsel. The Kettlemans warn Jimmy that he would join them in hell after accepting their bribe when he orders them to go back to Kim and accept the plea bargain. Jimmy reluctantly accepts their case after realizing this. In order to retrieve the stolen funds, Jimmy instructs Mike Ehrmantraut to break into the Kettlemans' home. Once they get it, Jimmy has Mike take the money to the district attorney's office and returns the money he obtained from the bribe. The next day, Jimmy tells Craig and Betsy where the money is going and urges them one last time to accept Kim's offer. Betsy is reluctant to follow through, but Craig persuades her by urging her to consider their children. The deal is ultimately completed at HHM, where Jimmy guides the Kettlemans.
Season 6[]
After Craig has finished paying his obligation to society, their lives start to get a little worse for Betsy and her husband because Craig is no longer the county treasurer and they have been given low-level work at a tax service company that is located in a small trailer outside of town. As a result, their kids must attend public school, which truly aggravates Betsy. Craig and Betsy revert to their criminal ways and decide to extort their senior clients out of a desperate attempt to raise their level of living. Jimmy breaks into their trailer one day with the intention of using them as pawns in a plot to accuse Howard Hamlin of drug use. Upon seeing him, Betsy is quite agitated, and she and Craig quickly inform Jimmy that their lives have declined significantly since their last meeting (despite their refusal to take responsibility for their own behaviors). Jimmy claims that Howard gave them questionable legal advice because of his drug usage, clearing them of all charges, and that all they need to do is sign a Letter of Engagement in order to get their lives back. The Kettlemans reluctantly accept at first, but when they decline to hire Jimmy to represent them, Jimmy pretends to be insulted.
Craig and Betsy go to attorney Clifford Main in the hopes that he will defend them against Howard. However, Clifford declines them because he is working with Howard on a case for Sandpiper Crossing and because he thinks their potential case is lost, so Betsy farewells him with arrogance (though Clifford actually thinks Howard may be a drug addict because of false evidence Jimmy earlier planted). They attempt to enlist the aid of additional attorneys but are also rejected, coming to the conclusion that their case against Howard is hopeless. They make a call to Jimmy and invite him to their trailer. When he does this and brings Kim along, Betsy reveals that she has learned that Jimmy was using them as pawns to bring down Howard and, after rejecting a bribe from Jimmy, threatens to report him to the authorities if he does not represent them against Howard. However, she is forced to remain silent when Kim, who has learned that they are defrauding their elderly customers, threatens to report their dishonest actions to the IRS unless they refund their customers.
External Links[]
- Betsy Kettleman on the Breaking Bad Wiki.
- Craig Kettleman on the Breaking Bad Wiki.