Juan Bolsa

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Juan Bolsa
Portrayed by	Javier Grajeda
Character information
Aliases	Don Juan ("Something Beautiful")
Age	50s
Fate
Status	Deceased
Date of death	March 20, 2009
Social life
Occupation	Mexican Drug Cartel Boss
Relationships	Don Eladio (boss) †
Appearances in Breaking Bad
First	"I.F.T."
Last	"I See You" (alive) "Hermanos" (flashback)
Appearances in Better Call Saul
First	"Sabrosito"
Last	——
Appearance in El Camino
✘ No

“	I don't tell you how to fry your chickens, Gustavo. You should really leave matters of my organization's politics to me.	„
	― Juan Bolsa

Juan Bolsa was a high-level member of the Juárez drug cartel which the Salamanca family belongs to. It is Bolsa who orders Tortuga's execution by Marco and Leonel Salamanca, and later places his head on a booby-trapped tortoise for the DEA to find.

He is also the cartel's liaison with Gustavo Fring, and the one who arranges a meeting between Gus and the Salamanca Family (Marco, Leonel, and Hector) on the matter of Walter White.

After secretly sanctioning a hit on DEA Agent Hank Schrader in order to turn the American government against the cartel, Fring would ultimately get Bolsa murdered by Federales to cover his own role in the failed assassination.

History

Better Call Saul

Season 3

Hector and Gus meet at a remote location, flanked by their respective henchmen. Over a speaker phone, Hector communicates with Juan Bolsa, who tells him that Don Eladio is satisfied with the new "consolidated transportation method" of shipping drugs over the border, and wants the practice to continue using Gus's distribution network exclusively. Hector angrily smashes the phone, wanting to have his own distribution method instead of Gustavo's. Hector's heart problems act up, leading him to open the vial containing Nacho's spiked pills. However, the pills have no apparent effect, and Hector curses Eladio, Bolsa, and Gus before leaving. ("Fall")

A cartel meeting occurs at Hector's warehouse in Albuquerque with Gus and Juan Bolsa, unbeknownst to them Nacho Varga is planning on killing Hector on the spot. Bolsa informs Hector that Don Eladio is reinforcing his orders regarding Gus' operations. Hector grows enraged the Don's orders and starts screaming at Bolsa and Gus that the Salamancas have worked hard for the cartel, they lost blood for the cartel, they invested money in the cartel and even then they are treated like dogs. Hector starts having another attack in his infuriated state, he suffers great pain when he tries to take his medication - Nacho's spiked pills finally kick in. Hector suffers an apparent heart attack and collapses to the floor, Gus rushes in and performs CPR as Juan Bolsa flees. Hector survives and is taken to a hospital by ambulance while Gus rightly suspects Nacho's involvement. ("Lantern")

Season 4

TBA

Season 5

After seeing the tattoo Tiburón and the gang he was apart of had, Gus realizes that Juan Bolsa hired them. Gus calls Bolsa who is pleased that Gus can get back to business as usual, noting the recent string of "bad luck" he has suffered. Gus explains to Mike Ehrmantraut that Bolsa had hired the gang to protect his own interests by protecting Gus' interests. ("Bad Choice Road")

Breaking Bad

Season 3

Juan Bolsa arranges a meeting between himself, Tio Salamanca, The Cousins and Gus. He tells Gus he will urge the Salamanca family to be patient, but advises that Gus risks losing the favor of the cartel if he does not finish his business with Walter quickly and that he cannot guarantee the Cousins will listen to reason. He has forbidden the Cousins to kill Hank Schrader, as the DEA is "off limits" ("I.F.T.").

After the ambush on Hank leaves one Cousin dead and another in the hospital, Bolsa is confined to his home as Mexican federales are watching him closely due to pressure from the American government. He suspects Gus of being responsible for the Cousins making a move on Hank, but cannot see the benefit to Gus as the pressure is delaying the drug shipments across the border. He promises that he will get the surviving Cousin, Leonel, the best lawyer possible and will get the truth of what happened.

Bolsa about to get shot by Mexican federales.

Once Leonel suffers a cardiac arrest and dies due to being poisoned by Mike Ehrmantraut on orders from Gus, Bolsa calls and warns Gus that he is convinced he was involved in that death, promising he will survive the government's attention and pay Gus a visit afterwards. However, as he is speaking with Gus, gunshots are heard. Seeing his bodyguards getting killed, he attempts to make his escape. Opening his door, he is gunned down by an unseen assailant as Gus smiles on the other end of the line ("I See You").

Season 4

In a flashback, it is revealed that Juan Bolsa was present in the day Gus and his partner, Max Arciniega, made the first move trying to get in contact with the Juárez Cartel. The two are called to meet Bolsa, Tio and the head of the cartel, Don Eladio Vuente. Gus and Max try to convince them that their product is nothing like anything they ever sold, it is chemically superior. Juan Bolsa and Tio make fun of them, and then Don Eladio orders Tio to kill Max.

Bolsa and Tio hold Gus down, forcing him to look in the eyes of his deceased partner, while Don Eladio taunted Gus, telling him to stay away from the Cartel. This ended up being the reason why Gus plotted the murder of Juan Bolsa and The Cousins, to get revenge on what they did to him ("Hermanos").

Bolsa's death would later be avenged by his ally Hector who, with the aid of Walter White, suicide-bombs Gus, killing him.

Murders connected to Bolsa

• Tortuga: Decapitated by The Cousins on Bolsa's orders.
• DEA Field Agent: Blown to pieces by a bomb strapped to a tortoise by The Cousins on Bolsa's orders.

Quotes

Gus: "Do I not run my own territory?"

Juan: "Of course you do. And I will advise them to be patient. But I recommend you finish your business with the man quickly. Or you risk losing the good graces of the cartel. That would not be wise. And those boys inside, I cannot guarantee that they will listen. They are...not like you and I."

―Juan Bolsa during his meeting with Gustavo Fring.

---

Gustavo: "Juan, you sound like you're under a lot of stress. Maybe you should call me back when you're seeing things more clearly."

Juan Bolsa: "I see things clear enough. One DEA gets shot, all of Washington starts barking. The DF suddenly has to put on a big show and I wind up with federales in my rose bushes. And just for a while, appearances, politics... Are you still there, Gustavo?"

Gustavo: "Yes, I'm here."

Juan Bolsa: "I'll weather this. I always do. My brother is a police chief. I got connections. They'll get me through. And when I get proof and the others find out what you've done, maybe we come pay you a visit. Maybe—"

―Gus and Juan's phone conversation, shortly before Juan is gunned down on sight. Gus, hearing this on the phone, smiles, breaks apart the phone and throws it away.

Appearances

Breaking Bad

Episodes	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3			✔					✔
Season 4								✔
Season 5A
Season 5B

Better Call Saul

Episodes	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3				✔						✔
Season 4	✔		✔
Season 5	✔								✔
Season 6

Trivia

• Javier Grajeda and Bryan Cranston were once roommates. They met while starring in an episode of the TV show Cover Up. Bryan Cranston's character was a serial killer who killed Javier Grajeda's detective character.
• The literal translation of his name into English is "John Sack". "Johnny Sack" was a character on The Sopranos.
  • "Johnny Sack" acted as an intermediary between the Lupertazzi family in New York and the DiMeo family in New Jersey, much as Juan Bolsa acted as an intermediary between the Juárez Cartel and Gustavo Fring's empire north of the border.
• It is unknown whether the mugshot of Bolsa, which appeared on an interactive game on AMC's website, is considered canon.

Production

• The filming location used for Juan Bolsa's hacienda was a bed and breakfast located at 6708 Tierra Drive NW, Albuquerque, NM 87107.

Gallery

Juan Bolsa's mugshot.