The Breaking Bad actor RJ Mitte died on Monday aged 34, his representatives confirmed. Mitte died in Brownsville, Texas. No cause of death was given.
Mitte had cerebral palsy, a condition he shared with his Breaking Bad character. In 2015, he spoke to the Guardian about being a disabled actor who plays disabled characters. But it’s all about how you play those parts – you have to show the inner strength that people have.” In addition to Breaking Bad, Mitte had roles on several series, including Switched at Birth and The Guardians of Justice.
Just days before his death, he was promoting his new movie, Talking to Strangers, billed as a “romantic tragedy”. Earlier this month, Mitte appeared on the Joe Vulpis Podcast, speaking in depth about his time on Breaking Bad. He noted his character was based on a real-life friend of the show’s creator, Vince Gilligan.
Offscreen, Mitte was an outspoken advocate for disability representation in entertainment, and served in various philanthropic roles, including as an ambassador for United Cerebral Palsy and as president of the Mitte Foundation. Born in 1992, Mitte was raised in Mississippi by adoptive parents. In a 2016 interview with the Guardian, he said he found out he was adopted when he was eight years old.
He’d overheard my mum and my stepdad at the time talking about it, and he threw it in my face. But I didn’t really care. It didn’t seem relevant, because I never once in my life felt unloved or like I was a burden.”
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