Topics: Breaking Bad, Bryan Cranston, Film and TV, Celebrity
Some acting roles could be played by any number of stars, but some of the most iconic on-screen characters could only be played by one person.
There are few better examples than Breaking Bad's Walter White, whose meth-cooking shoes were filled by none other than Bryan Cranston.
The smash hit AMC crime drama follows chemistry teacher White on his journey to becoming a drug kingpin, which he at first does to make money for his family after being diagnosed with lung cancer.
The series received wide acclaim, in particular for Cranston's compelling performance, who has won seven Emmys, a Golden Globe Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, and two Tony Awards since first appearing as White in 2008.
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But the 69-year-old has been accused of 'lying' about the situation that saw him cast in Breaking Bad, which breathed new life into his career after spending six years as America's dad in Malcolm in the Middle.
According to Cranston's 2016 memoir A Life in Parts, he had not even been show creator Vince Gilligan's first choice for the role of Walter White, and that fellow actor Steve Zahn, 58, had been in the running.
But the White Lotus star has hit back at the long-standing claim in a new interview.
While promoting his latest film Anaconda, Zahn simply told the Hollywood Reporter 'no' when asked if it was true that he was almost Walter White, with deference to Cranston's performance as the sympathetic if nefarious drug maker.
But when he was told that the claim had appeared in the actor's memoir, he said that Cranston was just making things up.
"Oh, really!? Cranston is so awesome, but I find that hard to believe. I think Cranston is lying!" he said.
The War for the Planet of the Apes actor didn't leave it there either, saying he would track down Cranston to talk about it himself.
He said: "He’s in London right now doing a play, and I’m shooting in London, so I’m going to go talk to him"
UNILAD has contacted Cranston's reps for comment.
Something that is true, however, is that show executives had originally been worried about casting the father from the family comedy Malcolm in the Middle as the complex meth-cooking cancer patient, with Cranston largely being known at that time for his comedy skills rather than his dramatic chops.
Instead, according to a 2012 interview with the Reporter, they wanted two bigger names to fill the role, with John Cusack and Matthew Broderick being the two names first considered.
But happily, for Cranston and for TV lovers, both of them turned the opportunity down.
What actually landed the career-making role was Cranston's small but dynamic performance in a guest spot on season six of The X-Files.
The series' second episode was actually written by Vince Gilligan, who gave Cranston the role of a terrified man whose head will explode if he stops moving west. Despite being handed a surreal script, Cranston's talent in making the role work showed a glimmer of what he was capable of.
