Emmy winning actor Bryan Cranston on Monday lamented the death of “Breaking Bad” co-star RJ Mitte, calling the late actor and disability advocate “my sweet son.”
Cranston, 70, said he was in “deep despair” over Mitte’s death by suicide and wondered if he’d still be alive today had they only met up for lunch in recent days.
“It is especially devastating to hear that he took his own life. Why? We were texting each other just a few weeks ago — figuring out when we could meet for lunch,” Cranston said in a statement on Monday night.
“I don’t know if that lunch would have changed his future … But I do know that I loved him, and thoroughly enjoyed being with him throughout the years on the series.”
The 34-year-old Mitte, who played the son of Cranston’s lead character Walter White in the hit AMC series “Breaking Bad,” died Monday in Brownsville, Texas.
“I’m in deep despair as I write this tonight. RJ Mitte, my sweet son on Breaking Bad has died,” Cranston said. “I met him when he was only 14 years old when he was cast as Walter White Jr., a part he played with such joy and enthusiasm.”
Mitte had cerebral palsy and Cranston said that challenge never slowed down his late co-star.
“He met the demanding shooting schedule head on with great determination,” according to Cranston.
“He parlayed his experience on the show to be a vocal advocate for performers with disabilities, and was the head of a philanthropic organization with a focus on helping the disabled community.”
“Breaking Bad” ran for 62 episodes between 2008 and 2013, as one of the era’s most critically acclaimed shows.
Cranston won six of his seven Emmys for work on “Breaking Bad,” playing a high school chemistry teacher-turned-meth kingpin Walter White.
Cranston was in all 62 episodes of “Bad” and Mitte’s Walter White Jr. appeared 56 times.
“That kid was pretty raw when we started shooting the pilot in February of 2007, but little by little we watched him grow into a really fine actor,” Cranston wrote.
“All that promise and potential now is such a loss.”
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.