Albuquerque debuts its fancy new Breaking Bad statues
Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston were both on hand to ogle the city's new bronze Walter White and Jesse Pinkman
Walter White has achieved, at long last, the attention and recognition he cooked oh so many pounds of meth to get: A statue in his honor, erected in his hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
White’s actor, Bryan Cranston, was on hand (along with his old co-star Aaron Paul) to receive the honor of getting their own bronze statues memorializing their Breaking Bad characters (and their complementing scowls). The sculptures were unveiled at the Albuquerque Convention Center on Friday, after being announced earlier this month.
And, we’ll be honest: In the grand (and frequently, uh, fraught) world of bronze statues of famous people, artist Trevor Grove did a pretty good job here; were we Cranston, we might have had our fingers crossed for slightly less “Angry Heisenberg” brow creasing, but you definitely look at both of the statues and think, “Oh, the guys from Breaking Bad.” We’ll also note that both actors look very cute while contemplating their bronze simulacra; for some reason, both men appear fascinated by touching their fancy new 500-pound bodies and shiny metal heads.
Not that Cranston and Paul were the only members of the extended ABQniverse in attendance; Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Thomas Schnauz, Melissa Bernstein, and Trina Siopy were all on hand from the show’s behind-the-scenes staff, while Dean Norris and Better Call Saul’s Rhea Seehorn, Patrick Fabian, and Michael Mando were also present. (The statues are, after all, nearly as much about commemorating their show, currently heading into its last three episodes, as the parent series.)
Addressing the crowd, Gilligan made some jokes about the existence of the project—but also didn’t mince words about why he asked Sony Pictures Television to commission the statues and gift them to the city as a thank you for its hospitality: “Let me tell you what I see when I look at these two works of art: I see two of the finest actors America has ever produced. I see them in character as two larger-than-life tragic figures, cautionary tales, world-famous ones at that.”