Watch: ‘Breaking Bad’ Star RJ Mitte Dead at 34
RJ Mitte was still out and about shortly before his death.
Less than two weeks before his rep confirmed he died at age 34, the Breaking Bad actor made a public appearance in Los Angeles to celebrate one of his latest films.
Mitte stepped out in Beverly Hills on Sept. 30 for a screening of his 2026 movie Talking To Strangers, sporting a grey suit and abstract purple dress shirt for the event.
Mitte starred as Joshua alongside costar Lin Yin as Martyin the film, whose synopsis on IMDb reads, “A rigid loner with cerebral palsy and a vibrant force of nature form an unlikely friendship over lunch—until she asks him for the unthinkable.”
Indeed, the actor—whose cause of death has not been confirmed—was diagnosed at age 3 with cerebral palsy, which affects posture and mobility, according to the CDC. And although he worked in therapy to manage his symptoms, he challenged himself as a teenager to “regress” onscreen to accurately portray the character Walt White Jr. in Breaking Bad from 2008 to 2013.
“It was very hard to regress,” he told AMC when the show premiered. “I had to stay up real late so I could learn to blur my speech more. I had to learn how to use crutches so it didn’t look like I’m faking walking. I didn’t want to look like just another faker because I really have it. If you’re going to do it, you have to do it the full way.”
While Mitte noted it was “hard” to play the part, he explained how he channeled his own past experiences into the role.
“For example, I used to walk on my toes a lot when I was a kid because I could barely move my feet,” he noted, “so when I was learning to portray Walter Jr., my mom would remind me about that. It was a big help.”
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In addition to appearing in Talking to Strangers this year, Mitte—who got engaged to girlfriend Kennedy Suarez in 2025—was slated to appear in several upcoming projects, including Code Name Thumbtack, Forgotten Outlaw, Like It Was Yesterday, Somebody Like You and Cassi. His upcoming horror-thriller film One Eye Open, directed by Michael D. Coffey, is scheduled to be released on Oct. 16.
For a closer look at Mitte’s life in the spotlight, read on.
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