RJ Mitte, Walter White Jr. in Breaking Bad, Dies at 34
The actor who played Walter White Jr. died Monday in Texas at age 34. An investigation is under way, and Bryan Cranston has paid tribute.
American actor RJ Mitte, best known as Walter White Jr. in Breaking Bad, died on Monday, October 12, 2026, in Texas. He was 34. TMZ reported the death, citing a county official, and Mitte’s representatives have confirmed it.
What is known about the circumstances of Mitte’s death?
According to American media reports, Brownsville police received an emergency call around noon local time on Monday. By the time officers arrived, Mitte was already dead. Reports say no criminal activity is suspected at this point, and the investigation is continuing. A spokeswoman for a judge’s office in Texas also confirmed the death.
TMZ reports that the death was a suicide. The outlet does not attribute that detail to an official source, and police have not announced a cause of death, so we are passing it on only as TMZ’s claim. The same outlet published footage from outside Mitte’s home in Texas: several police vehicles parked by the house, part of the street closed off, and yellow tape stretched around the property.
What did Cranston and Mitte’s family say?
Bryan Cranston, who played Walter White in the series, posted a joint photo with Mitte on social media on Monday evening. He wrote that he met Mitte when the young actor was 14. His message ends with these words:
“I’m in deep despair. I loved him and I truly enjoyed spending time with him through all the years on the show, and after the attention on ‘Breaking Bad’ faded… I will miss you, son.”
In the same post, Cranston praised Mitte’s perseverance in living with cerebral palsy and his journey from a teenager on set to a talented actor and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities.
Mitte’s representatives sent TMZ a statement describing him as a beloved actor, philanthropist and passionate fighter for the rights of people with disabilities. They said he was an ambassador for United Cerebral Palsy and Shriners Children’s. His family, as Telegraf reports, said he used “his platform to challenge stereotypes and promote greater representation of people with disabilities.”
Who was RJ Mitte?
He was born in 1992 and grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana. He moved to Hollywood with his family at 14, because of his sister, whom an agent had noticed in Houston when she was a child. He started out as an extra on shows such as “Everybody Hates Chris” and “7th Heaven,” and his first credit on IMDb is an uncredited role as a school athlete on “Hannah Montana” in 2007.
He went to his first audition for a California public service announcement, an “anti-meth commercial.” Mitte noticed the irony himself on “The Joe Vulpis Podcast” earlier this month, since his big breakthrough came in a series about a chemistry teacher who starts making and selling methamphetamine.
On Breaking Bad, known in Serbia as Cista hemija, he played Walter White Jr. in 56 episodes across all five seasons that AMC aired from 2008 to 2013. Among other honors, the series won a SAG Award for best ensemble cast. Mitte had a milder form of cerebral palsy, just like the character he played. On the same podcast he said of that time: “We truly didn’t realize how big an impact the show would have.”
After the series he appeared in “The Oak Room,” “The Recall” and “The Guardians of Justice (Will Save You!),” had a recurring role on “Switched at Birth,” and this summer starred alongside Finn Wittrock in the film “Westhampton.” In 2021 he appeared in “Triumph,” based on the true story of a high school student with cerebral palsy who wanted to join the wrestling team. In an interview at the time, he said:
“You know, when you have a disability, there are these assumptions that you’re weaker, that you’re slower, that you’re fragile.”
According to TMZ, Mitte was engaged to Kennedy Suarez, whom he proposed to last year after a relationship of several years.
What happens with the film Forgotten Outlaw?
Mitte was due to play the lead in “Forgotten Outlaw,” which was in pre-production. Work on the project has stopped since his death. Writer, director and producer Nick Tizeker told TMZ he is determined to continue the project but will have to find a new lead actor. In his words, Mitte was the ideal choice for the role, because of his approach to the character and his physical resemblance to the person he was supposed to play.
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