RJ Mitte, best known for his role in Breaking Bad, has died at the age of 34.
A county official told TMZ that Mitte, who portrayed Walter White Jr., died by suicide in Texas on Monday. Authorities said the circumstances remain under investigation.
Mitte appeared in 56 episodes of the acclaimed AMC drama between 2008 and 2013. His other screen credits included The Recall and The Guardians of Justice (Will Save You!).
Diagnosed with cerebral palsy at the age of three, Mitte used his public platform to champion greater representation and opportunities for disabled performers across the entertainment industry.
In a statement, his representative said: “It is with profound sadness we share the tragic passing of beloved actor, philanthropist, and passionate disability rights advocate RJ Mitte.”
The statement continued: “RJ Mitte was best known for playing Walter ‘Flynn’ White Jr. on AMC’s critically acclaimed and award-winning series Breaking Bad.”
“Mitte drew on his own experience with cerebral palsy to bring authenticity to the character, while also using his success to promote disability awareness and inclusion. Alongside entertaining audiences around the world, he served as an ambassador for United Cerebral Palsy and Shriners Children’s.”
Breaking Bad actor RJ Mitte, pictured in 2019, has died at 34
Mitte portrayed Walter “Flynn” White Jr. in the Bryan Cranston-led drama Breaking Bad
RJ Mitte joined Bryan Cranston at the 2012 Emmy Awards
Our News Outlet has contacted Mitte’s representatives and the Brownsville Police Department for additional comment.
Breaking Bad aired from 2008 until 2013, earning widespread praise from critics and viewers and becoming one of television’s most celebrated dramas.
The series followed Walter White, played by Bryan Cranston, a terminally ill high school chemistry teacher who enters the drug trade with Jesse Pinkman, his former student portrayed by Aaron Paul.
Mitte’s death comes one year after he became engaged to Kennedy Suarez on her 30th birthday.
Speaking to People at the time, Mitte said: “I’m thrilled to have found my person, my partner in life who makes me want to be better, no matter what we’re doing.”
He added: “Kennedy is my everything, and I can’t wait to officially start our life together and see what adventures life takes us on next.”
Mitte proposed during the 56th annual Dia del Sol benefit in Carlsbad, California, in 2025. The event raised money for United Cerebral Palsy of San Diego, where he served as an ambassador.
After the engagement, Suarez shared a message on Instagram celebrating her birthday, writing: “My 30th felt like a fairytale…. I have the man of my dreams by my side & we are doing what we love most – helping others.”
A county official told TMZ that RJ Mitte, recognized for playing Walter White Jr., died by suicide in Texas on Monday
The actor’s death follows his 2025 engagement to Kennedy Suarez, announced on her 30th birthday
Following the engagement, Suarez took to Instagram to write, ‘My 30th felt like a fairytale’; pictured October 5 2025
In 2019, five years after Breaking Bad, Mitte admitted he still missed being a part of the show’s cast – pictured with Cranston and Anna Gunn on the show in 2008
Mitte and Suarez lived in Brownsville, Texas, and the actor was president of The Mitte Foundation, his family’s Austin-based charity.
The Foundation rejuvenates and funds South Texas–based marginalized communities.
Cerebral Palsy is a group of disorders that affect movement, posture and balance due to abnormal brain development or damage.
Symptoms range from muscle stiffness and poor motor control to difficulties with balance and coordination.
During his life, Mitte called for larger representation of disabled actors on television.
‘Representation is everything, as we’ve seen over the last ten years with the growth of representation on television,’ he told WUWF in 2023.
‘Having positive influences of individuals with disabilities, not just cerebral palsy, but all of them, changes the mindset. TV is something that we all share; we all watch. TV really brings communities together in a way that you might not realize through social outlet.
‘I think that can really inspire individuals, and that can do wonders for confidence and self-esteem. If you see a character that’s going through the same struggle as you, and they’re succeeding, and in your life you may not be, it can help inspire you to get that extra push,’ he added.
The role took Mitte’s career to a whole new level and ‘opened a lot of doors’ for him
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Mitte took a selfie with podcaster Joe Vulpis during what appears to be one of his last interviews
In 2016, Mitte described how much he would ‘love’ to turn on the TV to watch a disabled person discuss something ‘that doesn’t just focus on their impairment.’
‘We know lots of progress is being made, but the industry must do more to help disabled people work both in front of and behind the camera,’ he told the Irish Examiner, according to Variety. ‘During the Paralympics there will be more disabled people than ever before on TV, but this shouldn’t be something that just happens every four years.’
‘I would love to switch on my TV and see a disabled person talking about something they are genuinely interested in or acting out a part that doesn’t just focus on their impairment.’
Mitte also credited his disability for taking him in the direction he wound down: ‘I wouldn’t be in the position I am in today without my disability,’ he said. ‘I utilized everything I know about living with cerebral palsy for my role in Breaking Bad.’
In 2019, five years after Breaking Bad, Mitte admitted he still missed being a part of the show’s cast.
‘That’s going to follow me ’til the day I die,’ he told The Sydney Morning Herald as he reflected on his time on the hit AMC series.
The role took Mitte’s career to a whole new level and ‘opened a lot of doors’ for him.
‘Breaking Bad put me on the map,’ he told The Independent in 2021. ‘You’re only talking to me today because of it. None of my projects would exist without that show and the opportunity it gave me. It really opened a lot of doors for me. I wouldn’t have the media profile and the following that I have today without Walter White Jr. I would just be some kid who lives in Texas.’
Mitte reflected on the end of Breaking Bad and how the show set an ‘unobtainable’ bar with The Joe Vulpis Podcast
‘I set a bar for myself as a young man that is kind of unobtainable,’ he said of Breaking Bad
In what appears to be one of his last interviews, Mitte reflected on the end of Breaking Bad and how the show set an ‘unobtainable’ bar with The Joe Vulpis Podcast.
‘I don’t think it was end. That was really the end of Heisenberg’s journey but I don’t think that was the end of Skyler, Walt, and Holly’s journey,’ Mitte said.
‘I think there’s a lot of unanswered questions there that for them, will probably never be answered. And so I think there’s still a big step for the White family.’
‘There’s more to be told,’ the interviewer said.
‘There’s always more to be told,’ he added. ‘But you got to tell it right!’ he said. ‘Again, if something happens in the future with the show… the fans control that, really, truly, like, the fans control what continues to get made.’
‘I think it’d go right to the top,’ the interviewer said. ‘Top of Netflix, top of wherever it’s streaming.’
‘I want to top Breaking Bad,’ he said. ‘That’s the hardest… I set a bar for myself as a young man that is kind of unobtainable. And I tell people, I say, look, it’s a long way down from the top of the mountain.’
Mitte hails from Mississippi and was six years old when he found out he was adopted.
During his life, Mitte called for larger representation of disabled actors on television and said he ‘utilized everything’ he knew about his disability for Breaking Bad; pictured in the 2023 film The Unseen
Mitte pictured during one of his final red carpet appearances on September 30 at the screening of Talking to Strangers
‘I was about six when I was told that I was adopted,’ he told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2019. ‘My stepbrother heard my mom and my then-stepdad talking and said to me, “You are adopted. They don’t love you.” I didn’t believe him, but my parents confirmed that I was. I was like, “Okay.”’
‘I’ve never felt the need to track my birth mother,’ he said. ‘Medically, I’d like to know my family history, but until I feel that need, I have enough family and friends. I don’t need any more.’
Mitte’s mother chose to adopt him as she believed she would be unable to have her own children due to an ovarian cancer diagnosis.
‘The reason Mom adopted me was because she’d had ovarian cancer and was told she couldn’t have children. Then, magically, 11 years later, my sister Lacianne came along.’
Mitte’s mother lost her job after a car accident left her partially paralyzed for six years, and he did all he could to keep their family afloat.
‘A few months later, Mom was in a car accident and was partially paralysed for six years. After the accident, she was fired from her job. She was a single parent, and we had just moved into a new place in Louisiana and feared we would lose everything.
‘I mowed lawns, picked up stuff and took it places. I did whatever I could to scrape cash together. I have devoted my life to my mom and my sister, and I still take care of them today.’
If you or someone you know needs help, please call or text the confidential 24/7 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US on 988. There is also an online chat available at 988lifeline.org
