‘Breaking Bad’ star RJ Mitte, who played Walter White Jr., dies at 34 as Bryan Cranston mourns his on-screen son

Bryan Cranston mourned his former co-star in an emotional Instagram tribute, recalling their time together on the series.

Beyond acting, Mitte championed disability rights and appeared in several other films and television productions.

For Breaking Bad fans, the White family’s breakfast table was almost as familiar as Walter White’s secret meth lab. And whenever Walter White Jr. appeared, he was often asking his father for money, defending his mother or wondering why his family was falling apart.

‘Breaking Bad’ star RJ Mitte, who played Walter White Jr., dies at 34 Mitte died on Monday, October 12, 2026, in Brownsville, Texas. His publicist confirmed that he died by suicide, according to Reuters. No further details about the circumstances have been disclosed.

Bryan Cranston, who played Walter White, paid an emotional tribute to the actor he had watched grow up on the set of the award-winning series.

“RJ Mitte, my sweet son on Breaking Bad, has died,” Cranston wrote in a message shared on Instagram.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bryan Cranston (@bryancranston)

The actor recalled meeting Mitte when he was just 14 and watching him develop from a young teenager into a talented performer. Cranston also praised his former co-star’s determination and his work advocating for performers with disabilities.

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The news was particularly painful because the two had exchanged messages only weeks earlier about meeting for lunch.

“I don’t know if that lunch would have changed his future,” Cranston wrote. “But I do know that I loved him and thoroughly enjoyed being with him throughout the years on the series, and after the spotlight on Breaking Bad dimmed.”

He ended the tribute with a simple farewell: “I’ll miss you, son.” 

The actor behind Walter White Jr. (Source: LA Times) Mitte played Walter “Flynn” White Jr. throughout all five seasons of Breaking Bad, which aired from 2008 to 2013.

The character was the teenage son of Walter White, a high school chemistry teacher who secretly builds a drug empire after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis. While Walter becomes increasingly ruthless as his criminal alter ego, Heisenberg, takes control, his son remains largely unaware of the double life tearing his family apart.

Walter Jr. is a teenager trying to make sense of his parents’ increasingly strained marriage and his father’s strange behaviour. He admires Walter and struggles to understand why the man he loves seems to be changing into someone he barely recognises.

The character also has cerebral palsy and uses crutches, reflecting Mitte’s own experience of living with the condition. His portrayal helped bring a disabled teenager into one of television’s most celebrated dramas without making disability the character’s entire identity.

The actor behind Walter White Jr. Mitte was 14 when he was cast in the series. His performance earned him a devoted following, with fans affectionately remembering Walter Jr.’s frequent appearances at the family breakfast table.

The show went on to win 16 Emmy Awards, including two for outstanding drama series, and established Mitte as a recognisable face in television. 

Born in Jackson, Mississippi, on August 21, 1992, Mitte was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at three. He spent much of his childhood wearing leg braces and using crutches but eventually outgrew his need for walking devices through exercise and athletics.

He began pursuing acting after travelling to Los Angeles with his younger sister, Lacianne Carriere, in 2005. Before landing his breakthrough role, he appeared in background roles on Hannah Montana and Everybody Hates Chris.

After Breaking Bad, Mitte continued building his career across film and television. He appeared in the drama series Switched at Birth and the superhero satire The Guardians of Justice. His film credits included The Recall, The Oak Room and Standing Up for Sunny (2019).

In Standing Up for Sunny, he played a comedian with cerebral palsy. In Triumph (2021), he portrayed a high school student with the condition who dreams of joining his school’s wrestling team.

These roles reflected an interest in playing characters whose lives were not defined solely by disability.

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Away from acting, Mitte became an outspoken advocate for disability rights and greater inclusion in the entertainment industry.

He served as an ambassador for United Cerebral Palsy and Shriners Children’s and worked with SAG-AFTRA to promote better employment opportunities for performers with disabilities.

He also served as president of his family’s non-profit, the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation, which—in addition to supporting the disability community—provided academic scholarships, community grants, and funded major initiatives like the Mitte Cultural District in Brownsville, Texas. 

His death has prompted tributes from colleagues who remembered not only his talent but also his advocacy and the possibilities ahead of him.

Viewers who watched Mitte grow up as Walter White Jr. will forever remember him as part of the family at the centre of Breaking Bad.

However, his active involvement in challenging assumptions about disability and pushing for more opportunities for people like him to be represented on screen transcends the television series.