Vince Gilligan to receive top Location Managers Guild career honor
The Breaking Bad creator will be honored with the Eva Monley Award at the 2026 LMGI Awards in Santa Monica.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
2 min read
Vince Gilligan is getting a career salute from the people who help make TV worlds feel real.
The Location Managers Guild International will present Gilligan with its 2026 Eva Monley Award, the guild’s top honor, at the 13th annual LMGI Awards on August 22 at the Eli and Edythe Broad Stage in Santa Monica, Deadline reported.
Gilligan is being recognized for a body of work that includes Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and Pluribus. All three series were filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, according to Deadline.
In a statement released with the announcement, Gilligan praised the crews who secure filming locations and keep productions moving once the cameras arrive.
“It’s not easy to knock on a homeowner’s door and convince them to let 300 strangers traipse through their kitchen,” Gilligan said. He added that location managers and scouts pull off everyday “miracles,” from finding truck parking near sets to working with neighborhoods during large shoots.
From Albuquerque to awards season
Gilligan is back in the Emmy conversation this year with Pluribus, his Apple TV series, which received 18 nominations for its first season, according to Deadline.
His earlier awards haul is already hefty. Gilligan has four career Emmys for AMC’s Breaking Bad, including Outstanding Drama Series wins in 2013 and 2014. Better Call Saul, the prequel series, received 53 Emmy nominations across its six-season run but did not win, Deadline reported.
Before his run as one of TV’s best-known creators, Gilligan wrote two feature films and then moved into television with credits including The Lone Gunmen and The X-Files. His other small-screen work includes Battle Creek, Harsh Realm and El Camino, the Breaking Bad film.
Deadline reported that Gilligan’s awards record also includes six Writers Guild of America Awards, two Producers Guild of America Awards and one Directors Guild of America Award.
Guild praises locations as part of the story
In its announcement, the LMGI said Gilligan’s work reflects the idea that places can do more than sit in the background of a scene.
The guild said locations in his shows help shape story and character, turning ordinary settings into places recognized by audiences around the world.
The LMGI has also announced two other 2026 honorees. Mike Fantasia will receive the guild’s Lifetime Achievement Award, while the Association of Film Commissioners International will receive the Trailblazers Award, according to Deadline.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.