Bryan Cranston Returns As Walter White In Unexpected Role
Bryan Cranston was already a talented actor, but it was his performance as Walter White on Breaking Bad that made him a true household name. The role supercharged the actor’s career, which is probably why he doesn’t mind returning to the role at the drop of a (porkpie) hat. Case in point: Cranston recently reprised his iconic role for an anti-littering ad for the state of New Mexico.
Amusingly, it’s difficult to tell that this is an anti-littering campaign at first because we initially focus on Bryan Cranston’s Walter White pushing a barrel through the desert.
Bryan Cranston is obviously portraying Walter White in this ad, something you can certainly tell by the end when he dons the hat at the end and recreates his character’s “Heisenberg” persona. Of course, the easiest way to tell what the ad is going for is through its not-so-subtle labeling. In reference to the actor’s hit show, the commercial is called “Breaking Bad Habits” and encourages citizens of New Mexico to do their part to help fight littering.
Amusingly, it’s difficult to tell that this is an anti-littering campaign at first because we initially focus on Bryan Cranston’s Walter White pushing a barrel through the desert. This seemed like a familiar enough sight to fans of Breaking Bad, a show in which this character famously hid money in barrels that he buried in the desert. The purpose of the ad isn’t revealed until near the end when the character uses the barrel to begin gathering litter that has been carelessly left around the area.
For Breaking Bad fans, Bryan Cranston’s return as Walter White has some fun Easter eggs. Aside from the winking nod to the character keeping cash in his barrels, we see White find a pair of khaki pants when gathering up litter. This is in reference to the show’s first episode when the character loses his pants in his tragicomic efforts to become a major meth vendor.
Some audiences who love Bryan Cranston and Breaking Bad might have enjoyed seeing him reprise the role for something more than a silly public service announcement.
Speaking of those efforts, the final way that Bryan Cranston homages his old Walter White character in the commercial is through its hilariously goofy tagline. With his Heisenberg-style hat on, the character looks right into the camera and gruffly declares, “keep litter OUT of my territory!” As cheeky as it is, this is a reference to the character’s dark arc in the show as he goes from being a mild-mannered teacher to being a dangerous thug who doesn’t hesitate to kill those in his way.
The internet understandably had a field day with Bryan Cranston reprising his Breaking Bad role, with many joking that they never expected Walter White to come back from the grave for something so weird.
Some audiences who love Bryan Cranston and Breaking Bad might have enjoyed seeing him reprise the role for something more than a silly public service announcement. However, we prefer to think of this as proof positive that the actor just wants to have fun with a character that he brought to life. Breaking Bad is a major franchise unto itself, and like the best stars of other big franchises (including DC and Marvel), Cranston seems to enjoy just vibing in this strange universe he helped create.
The internet understandably had a field day with Bryan Cranston reprising his Breaking Bad role, with many joking that they never expected Walter White to come back from the grave for something so weird. Maybe it’s not so weird, though, when you consider that the show became a television phenom by always surprising fans. We might have wanted more of “the one who knocks,” and that made the appearance of “the one who recycles” in this video that much funnier.
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