How ‘Breaking Bad’ Actor R.J. Mitte Made an Impact as a Disability Rights Activist

R.J. Mitte was best known for playing the son of Walter White on the iconic TV drama Breaking Bad. But the actor also held another pivotal role.

Mitte did a lot of good off the screen, via his family connected Mitte Foundation and through a host of health non-profits before his unexpected death on Monday. The actor, at age 34, died by suicide in Brownsville, Texas, his rep confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter.

Mitte was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at age 3. He famously exaggerated his condition while playing Flynn, the son to Walter (played by Bryan Cranston) and Skyler White (Anna Gunn), for five seasons on the Emmy-winning AMC drama that aired from 2008 to 2013. Mitte used his Breaking Bad platform to challenge stereotypes around people with disabilities. He advocated for greater inclusion as president of The Mitte Foundation, a Texas-based philanthropic organization launched by the late Roy F. Mitte and Joann Cole Mitte, his adoptive parents. In addition to driving disability rights awareness, the family connected foundation also offered scholarships and arts programs, and funded community initiatives.

Mitte’s lifelong activism also included being an honorary trustee and spokesperson for United Cerebral Palsy after he was diagnosed with the neurological condition. In a 2015 interview with the BBC, Mitte recalled nabbing the role of Walter “Flynn” White Jr. at age 14 as a disabled actor as a part that “gave me an opportunity to bring light to subjects like this and disabilities that need to be heard and to show people how normal a disability really is.”

He made his way to Hollywood by following his younger sister, Lacianne, after she got a job offer to work in film production. He first appeared uncredited a year later on an episode of Hannah Montana, and had early acting roles on 7th Heaven and Weeds. Mitte’s big break came with the Vince Gilligan drama, and his performance on 56 episodes of Breaking Bad drew on his real-life experiences with CP.

Mitte also served as an ambassador for the Shriners Children’s nonprofit medical network as he urged more care for children with specialized health needs. The health non-profit supports research to develop new treatments for the benefit of physicians and other healthcare professionals and their patients.

Mitte helped fundraise for Shriner’s Children after being treated at Shriners Hospital for Children in Shreveport, Louisiana, after his diagnosis and for most of his childhood to overcome physical and verbal impediments. “I can’t thank Shriners Hospitals for Children enough for what they did to help me overcome the effects of cerebral palsy,” the actor said in a 2014 statement as he joined a Love to the Rescue fundraising campaign. “Had it not been for my doctors and therapists, I would not be walking and talking as well as I am today. I know first-hand that Shriners Hospitals for Children is a special place where kids are given a life of possibilities because they send Love to the rescue every day.”

At the 2013 Media Access Awards, Mitte received the SAG-AFTRA Howard Russell Award for his disability activism and portrayal of Walt Jr. That came on top of receiving a Screen Actors Guild Award for best drama ensemble for the final season of Breaking Bad. “Beyond his acting, Mitte advocated for people with disabilities and worked to raise awareness of a variety of conditions while pushing for expanded roles for people with disabilities in Hollywood with disabilities,” SAG-AFTRA said in an Instagram post on news of Mitte’s death.

His Breaking Bad co-stars, meanwhile, led the Hollywood tributes that praised both his acting, as well as his activism. “That kid was pretty raw when we started shooting the pilot in February of 2007, but little by little we watched him grow into a really fine actor. He parlayed his experience on the show to be a vocal advocate for performers with disabilities, and was the head of a philanthropic organization with a focus on helping the disabled community,” Cranston shared, in part, in a lengthy post on Instagram. “We were texting each other just a few weeks ago — figuring out when we could meet for lunch. I don’t know if that lunch would have changed his future… But I do know that I loved him, and thoroughly enjoyed being with him throughout the years on the series, and after the spotlight on Breaking Bad dimmed… I’ll miss you,” son.”