'Breaking Bad' Co-Stars Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston Reunite to Bring Crystal Meth to the Smithsonian
Aaron Paul, VInce Gilligan, and Bryan Cranston at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History on Nov. 10 (Getty Images)
Smithsonian, b****!
Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston reunited Tuesday at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History to donate Breaking Bad artifacts. The former co-stars were with show creator Vince Gilligan at the donation ceremony in Washington, D.C., where two hazmat suits, gas masks, and prop baggies of Walter White’s signature blue crystal meth, among other things, were donated.
Paul — who played White’s drug-cooking sidekick, Jesse Pinkman, on the series — is an enthusiastic and excitable fella (“Yeah, science!”) and he felt that way about the show, which ended in 2013, having a special spot in history.
Paul and Cranston on the show (Everett Collection)
“The Smithsonian now has two of our meth suits in their hallways and I could not be more excited about that fact,” Paul, who won three Emmys for his work, posted Wednesday on Instagram. “I mean they have the hope diamond, Lincoln’s top hat, and now a bunch of really cool items from the greatest TV show of all time.”
He continued, “Yes, I may be a little biased but I am also very proud. That man standing up there at the podium is the reason this show exists. Vince fu*%ing Gilligan. He is the reason I have a career and I will be indebted to this man until my dying breath. This show was a success because of you. Simple as that. We needed our audience to believe in us and that you did my friends.”
Some of the donations (Twitter)
Paul ended by writing, “Breaking Bad is now in the Guinness book of world records as the highest critically acclaimed TV show in history. That is absolutely INSANE. To all of you, Thank you.”
Paul’s wife, Lauren, shared a photo of Aaron, Bryan, and Vince at the donation ceremony. “Gotta brag on my hub for a second,” she wrote. “It was SO RAD to watch Aaron, Bryan and Vince, alongside some of their BB family, watch as their masterpiece was honored at the Smithsonian last night.”
Paul’s wife, Lauren, posted this shot (Instagram)
The display isn’t all about the fake meth and Tyvek suits. Additional donations from the show include Heisenberg’s black hat, a Los Pollos Hermanos cup, and Hank Schrader’s DEA badge. Dean Norris, who played Hank, was also in attendance, as well as Jonathan Banks, who now stars in the spinoff Better Call Saul, and RJ Mitte, who was Walt Jr.
At the ceremony, Cranston tried on the hat he wore on the show, quipping, “I wanted to see if it still fits.” And Gilligan marveled at the whole experience. “If you had told me there’d be crystal meth in the same museum as The Star-Spangled Banner, Thomas Edison’s light bulb, Abraham Lincoln’s pocket watch, and Dorothy’s ruby slippers, I’d have told you you were using too much of Walter White’s product.”
Fans of the show who are dying to see the exhibit have a bit of a wait. According to the museum, “there are no immediate plans to display the objects,” but an exhibition on “American culture” is in the works which will incorporate pieces from “theater, music, sports, and entertainment collections.” And that is scheduled to open in 2018.
Yeah, Smithsonian!
