Bryan Cranston Defends 'Breaking Bad' Skyler To Frankie Muniz
by Leyla MohammedBuzzFeedBuzzFeed StaffAs a Celebrity Reporter, I cover everything from fashion and award shows to TV, film, and cultural conversations.
Breaking Bad spoilers ahead!
If you’re a fan of Breaking Bad, you’ll likely be aware that Skyler White — partner of protagonist Walter White — is one of TV’s most hated characters.
Ursula Coyote / ©AMC / courtesy Everett Collection
In fact, the hatred towards Skyler was so extreme that it extended to her real-life actor, Anna Gunn, who wrote an essay for the New York Times in 2013 about the vitriol. “As the hatred of Skyler blurred into loathing for me as a person, I saw glimpses of an anger that, at first, simply bewildered me,” she wrote in part.
Lewis Jacobs / ©AMC / courtesy Everett Collection
Like Anna, I have always been surprised by the volume of hate Skyler has received from some BB viewers (compared to Walter) for getting in the way of her husband’s criminal activity. (Yes, she makes some morally questionable choices throughout the series, but undoubtedly none as harmful as Walter’s.)
Ursula Coyote / ©AMC / courtesy Everett Collection
Fortunately, Skyler has at least been defended by Walter’s real-life actor, Bryan Cranston, time and again — most recently during a sit-down conversation on Hot Ones Versus with his onscreen Malcolm in the Middle son Frankie Muniz.
Ron Galella / Getty Images
After declaring that he “loved Breaking Bad,” Frankie shamelessly told Bryan, “I wanted to kill Skyler to make your life easier.”
First We Feast / Via youtube.com
After Bryan’s jaw dropped, Frankie insisted, “Your life would have been so much easier! You were such a bad guy; you could have just gotten rid of her. All she did was complain! Look at the money!”
First We Feast / Via youtube.com
“See, she got a lot of blowback from that. First of all, Anna Gunn is a superb actor. But she got, like, ‘Oh, why don’t you get off his back?’” Bryan replied, quoting the criticism that Anna has received. Frankie said, “That’s how I felt.”
First We Feast / Via youtube.com
Seemingly perplexed, Bryan then said, “Wait a minute, let me understand this. Her husband leaves without any explanation, she’s pregnant, he’s making crystal methamphetamine, and people have died, and she’s the bitch?!”
First We Feast / Via youtube.com
Frankie laughed and replied, “When you put it that way, I guess.”
Reacting to the moment online, several fans have since praised Bryan for defending Skyler. “People thinking Bryan Cranston would agree with the Skyler haters are delusional… Embarrassing that Frankie thought they would bond over this ‘joke.’ He sees his character for the villain that he absolutely was,” one person on Reddit said.
Ursula Coyote / ©AMC / courtesy Everett Collection
“Growing up is knowing that Skyler was right. No one would want to be married to that guy. Love Bryan Cranston for checking ppl who still think she’s the problem,” someone else wrote.
Cindy Ord / Getty Images
“A slightly annoying female character will always be worse than a murderous psychopathic male character to most men,” one person said. “The Skyler hatred just shows that a woman’s worst crime is being ‘annoying.’ Like your husband is a drug kingpin and killing people and bombing nursing homes but you’re not supposed to complain LOL,” another user agreed.
“Imagine not seeing your tv dad for 25 years and when you do you try to spread the tired manosphere talking points he’s been putting up with since 2008,” one viral X post read.
> Imagine not seeing your tv dad for 25 years and when you do you try to spread the tired manosphere talking points he’s been putting up with since 2008 pic.twitter.com/W6YBCdaWFS
— Colin McLaughlin (@colinthecrabb) April 12, 2026
@colinthecrabb / First We Feast / youtube.com / Via youtube.com
And people on Instagram seemed to strongly agree with Bryan, too:
@complexpop / Via instagram.com
A round of applause for Bryan! Let us know what you think in the comments, and check out the full Hot Ones Versus video here.
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