Bryan Cranston reprises Walter White for anti-pollution ad

Last Updated on October 24, 2024

I am the one who reduces, reuses and recycles! Walter White is back, but instead of cooking up meth, he’s cleaning up trash. You’re goddamn right…

In the 30-second ad, Walter White (that is, Heisenberg) is seen rolling a barrel in the desert. But this isn’t a Golden Moth product. Instead, it’s revealed to be a garbage can, which he sets up next to a spread of trash. Amongst the pile is a pair of pants that were made famous in both the first episode and the final season’s “Ozymandias.” Once the camera cuts to a close-up, Walter White holds up a discarded cup from Los Pollos Hermanos and says, “Keep litter out of my territory.”

The video was shared by Lujan Grisham, the current governor of New Mexico, the state which, of course, Walter White called home. It’s part of an initiative called “Breaking Bad Habits!” In a statement, Grisham said, “I need everyone’s attention. We’re going to talk about what you can do to reduce packaging and plastics and have a discussion about that and about where they go.”

Using an anti-hero in your campaign for the environment might seem like a curious choice, but with the obvious geographical connection and immediately identifiable figure, there might be no one better. Walter White may have been killed off in Breaking Bad’s finale, but the guy is still far more relevant than Captain Planet and the Planeteers.

Walter White has lived on as one of the greatest TV characters ever, solidified even more so due to Bryan Cranston’s willingness to use him elsewhere, as in the case of the “Breaking Bad Habits!” campaign. He previously brought back the character for a pair of Super Bowl ads: one for Esurance and another promoting PopCorners alongside Aaron Paul’s Jesse Pinkman.

But these will be about the extent of Walter White’s returns, as Bryan Cranston is still against a full-on Breaking Bad reunion. Malcolm in the Middle on the other hand…

What do you think of Walter White’s return for this campaign? What do you think would make the most sense for the character to plug?