RJ Mitte, who played Walter White Jr. on "Breaking Bad", is a Lafayette, La. native and a big fan of the New Orleans Saints. Mitte was a gust on Tuesday’s Black and Blue Report. Below is a transcript of the interview.
When you got started with Breaking Bad, did you expect it to be as successful as it was?
"No, never. You can never really plan for a show like Breaking Bad to happen. You kind of have to do it and hope for the best. I think we all knew the scripts were amazing. We all knew that but we never knew how many people would love it and how many people are continuing to love it."
How did you get casted?
"I auditioned like any other actor would. I auditioned five times, four in Los Angeles and once in New Mexico. I went to New Mexico, got in that morning, auditioned, went back to my room and an hour later they called me and said I had the job. I had to go back and pack up and fly out because they were starting filming."
How long does that process take?
"The auditioning process can really take forever. That process is here or there because there is still a chance that filming can be pushed or the director wants to go a different way or the money's not there so they have to move the target.
The auditioning can take anywhere from a week to seven months to forever. It's all about how fast they are moving on the work. How fast are they getting filming and the crew in place? Is the cast in place? I was the very last cast member so all in all, it took about a couple of months from my first audition to my last audition."
Your character Walter White, Jr. has cerebral palsy in the show and you have a mild case in real life. How does that affect your preparation for this character?
"Just preparing for the character was definitely the eye opener from the stand point of my CP isn't as severe as his but I grew up with my disability. I know what it was like to have that. I know what it was like to go through the treatments, to go through the physical therapy and occupational therapy. It was definitely a big thing to realize everything that I had to overcome and what I get to play now and what people will see from there on out. It was definitely an honor to play this type of character."
Let's switch over to you being a Saints fan. Was it because you grew up in Lafayette, La.?
"A little bit but the majority of it is my family. My family are massive Saints fans. My mother, my uncle, my grandmother, everyone just loves the Saints. I have a hard time watching football with my mother because I can't take her anywhere. Really, I can't. If we go to a sports bar or anything to watch the game, anyone else from the other team, stay away from our table. It will not end well for them."
Do you still live in California? Do you have to go to the sports bars to watch the game?
"No, they're on. We get the games. We go to a bar, the 505 Bar and there is a bar next door to it as well that we go to to watch the games. It's nice to have a bunch of fans to watch the games with. When you have everyone that is rooting for the same team, it's just the energy that makes it so much better and it adds moral to everyone. It's fun. They're a blast. I kind of every once and a while will lock my mother away at home because it's not safe for the other teams (laughter)."
When is the last time you've been in New Orleans for a game?
"Ten years. I think the last Saints game I went to was when I was 12 years old. I went with my Uncle. I don't even think it was an official game. It was a game to get ready for the season. It was just a warm up. But they killed it. I'm always working, always moving forward. The one thing I always forget about is how massive the players are. That's one of those things. I was standing by a couple of football players about a week ago and I was just thinking, 'If I was on that field I would die.'"
Do you have a favorite player now or one growing up?
"I'm not one of those people that pick players. I've always enjoyed the game. My thing about football is that it's a team effort because without one player, they wouldn't be able to do what they do. I was never that kid that was like, 'that's my favorite player.' For some reason, I could never get into that but I love the sport of the game and watching it with my family. It's something that I always wanted to be able to do. I always wanted to be able to play football because I was always breaking bones. I was always breaking something. I was never allowed to do that but I love watching the games. I love watching the Saints. Being from the area and being from where your team is playing, it represents who you are and it represents your family and it represents your culture and I think that's really important that we still have that."
Did you always want to grow up to be an athlete?
"I always wanted to be an athlete and try out for sports. I always wanted to work. I thought it was fun. I love to watch the games but I would rather play. Being around 6'2" and 155 pounds, that would not go well."
What was your take on this past season?
"I thought it was a good season. I thought everyone was a little rusty from being suspended last year. I think it went very well. I enjoyed the games. I enjoyed rooting. It was so close that they could have. It was right there but it was fun. It was a blast watching them. I'm ready to see them win next year though. I'm ready to see it happen. We need to get back on that winning streak."
