Bryan Cranston seems to have mastered the fine art of paying your dues—and making the most of a later-in-life big break.
Esquire takes a hike with the 61-year-old actor, best known for playing the lovable dad on Malcolm in the Middle and the not-so-lovable one on Breaking Bad, in advance of him starring in Richard Linklater’s much-anticipated Last Flag Flying out November 3.
The actor comes alive talking about his dark side, his feelings on the President, the temptations of celebrity, and what’s next. The feature appears in the November issue of Esquire on newsstands October 24.
Photo credit: Marc Hom
BRYAN CRANSTON QUOTES:
· How Cranston connects with his dark side: “In many ways, I think I have used my career as a therapy session in life. It has been, I think, tremendously beneficial for me to get into roles that are sometimes disturbing, and to be able to purge my darker side into the character and have a cathartic release.”
· On Trump: “There’s no moral foundation to the man.”
· On politics and his new movie Last Flag Flying out next month: “If I lose fans for my political stance, or because people don’t like the movie, so be it. I’d rather be someone who stands up for something.”
· What prevented him from falling prey to many temptations when he attained global fame with Breaking Bad: “I mean, I was fifty. So I was already formed. Like, the clay was dry.”
· Looking ahead: “I think I’ve got maybe another five or six years of what I call punching it in the face, then maybe twenty years of active involvement. After that, who knows?”
