Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn, Bryan Cranston pose in the press room at the 66th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles. Los Angeles, California – Monday August 25, 2014.
Like many people, I discovered Breaking Bad through word of mouth after its fourth season aired. We rented the early seasons through Netflix back when they mailed via DVD and you had to curate your queue. Good times! We caught up on the rest through reruns on AMC. The whole time I watched it, I couldn’t believe that Walter White was so brilliantly played by the dad from Malcolm in the Middle.
Speaking of, the Malcolm reboot kicked off on Friday, April 10. During an appearance on Hot Ones Versu, Frankie Muniz and Bryan Cranston were talking about Breaking Bad. Frankie brings up how much he didn’t like the character of Skyler, who was Walter’s wife and played by Anna Gunn. As you may recall, Skyler’s character really went through it the entire series. The Skyler hate was huge back in the day, so much so that both Gunn and creator Vince Gilligan have addressed it and called out the sexism behind it. Similarly, Bryan did not hesitate to put Frankie in his place and set the record straight.
Ever since Breaking Bad introduced fans to prototypical anti-hero (and let’s be honest, eventual villain) Walter White, two-time Emmy-winning actress Anna Gunn, who plays his wife Skyler, has had to contend with a legion of sexist fans villainizing her.
The conversation was broached again recently during a “Hot Ones Versus” with Malcolm in the Middle co-stars Bryan Cranston and Frankie Muniz.
“I love Breaking Bad,” the latter said, before gritting his teeth and continuing, “I wanted to kill Skyler.” Cranston’s jaw dropped as Muniz added: “To make your life easier; 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.”
Cranston — whose portrayal of Walt, a high school chemistry teacher who turns to drug manufacturing to pay for expensive cancer treatment, led to four Emmy wins — defended the character, and subsequently, Gunn.
“She got a lot of blowback from that,” he said. “Well, first of all, Anna Gunn is a superb actor, but she got, like, ‘Oh, why don’t you get off his back?’”
“Well, that’s how I felt,” Muniz responded.
“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. Like, we couldn’t understand why,” Cranston said, alluding to show creator Vince Gilligan.
A juggernaut of the prestige television era, Breaking Bad would go on to be nominated for 58 Emmys throughout its five-season run from 2008 through 2013, winning 16 statuettes. The crime drama series also spawned the equally beloved Bob Odenkirk vehicle Better Call Saul, which clinched 53 Emmy nods but did not receive any awards during its run from 2015 to 2022.”
F-cking justice for Skyler, y’all! I love that Cranston set the record straight without any hesitation. The Skyler hate wasn’t Anna Gunn’s fault, but rather a product of a time that we still haven’t gotten past. (Yes, I am equating Skyler to Hilary Clinton.) Skyler was always in the right, but never had a chance because of misogyny. The show was written for viewers to root for Walter and ignore when he turned into the villian. It was the same era as Dexter, when anti-heroes were all the rage. I love that Bryan still stands up for Skyler because she’s the real victim here.
Bryan Cranston DEFENDS his Breaking Bad character’s wife, Skyler White, after Frankie Muniz said he HATED her and felt she only made his life harder
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— Killa
(@KillaKreww) April 10, 2026
Photos credit: Avalon.red and Getty Images