Famous “Breaking Bad” actor, Giancarlo Esposito, said his financial situation was once so bad that he contemplated plotting his own murder so that his children could obtain life insurance money.
Esposito said that being offered a role on “Breaking Bad” ultimately saved him from financial ruin, but admitted he thought planning his own murder was the way to go when things became overwhelmingly stressful. He spoke candidly about his depression on a recent episode of SiriusXM’s “Jim & Sam,” and revealed he was dirt broke and nearing bankruptcy before he took on the role of Gus Fring on the show.
“And my way out in my brain was — and I said, ‘Hey, do you get life insurance if someone commits suicide? Do they get the bread?’ And my wife said, ‘well, that’s kind of tricky,’” he said. “And she had no idea why I was asking her this stuff. I just started scheming. If I got somebody to knock me off, death through misadventure, [my kids] would get the insurance.”
The famous actor said lack of money in 2008 led him down a very dark road that triggered him to think he had to go to extreme lengths to protect his family’s financial future.
“I had four kids. I wanted them to have a life. It was a hard moment in time. I literally thought of self-annihilation so they could survive. That’s how low I was.”
“So that was the first inkling that there was a way out, but I wouldn’t be here to be available to it, or be a part of it, or be there for my kids,” Esposito said.
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 10: Giancarlo Esposito visit’s ‘The IMDb Show’ on March 10, 2020 in Santa Monica, California. This episode of ‘The IMDb Show’ airs on March 19, 2020. (Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb)
Giancarlo Esposito attends the premiere of Lena Waithe and Andrew Dosunmu’s Netflix Film BEAUTY at The Tribeca Festival on June 11, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images for Netflix)
“Then I started to think that’s not viable because the pain I would cause them would be lifelong, and there’d be lifelong trauma that would just extend the generational trauma with which I’m trying to move away from,” he said on the podcast.
Just when it seemed there was nothing working in his favor, a new job offer changed the course of his dark thought process.
“The light at the end of the tunnel was ‘Breaking Bad,'” he said.
Giancarlo Esposito attends the 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards at Fairmont Century Plaza on January 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association)
Actor Giancarlo Esposito attends The World Premiere of Disney’s “THE JUNGLE BOOK” at the El Capitan Theatre on April 4, 2016 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
Actress Anna Gunn and actors Giancarlo Esposito, Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul attend the AMC’s Premiere of “Breaking Bad” Season Four at The Chinese 6 Theatres on June 28, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
PARK CITY, UTAH – JANUARY 21: Giancarlo Esposito visits the IMDb Portrait Studio at Acura House of Energy on Location at Sundance 2024 on January 21, 2024 in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Mat Hayward/Getty Images for IMDb)
Esposito went on to play Fring on 26 episodes and later reprised his role on the prequel series, “Better Call Saul,” for 38 episodes.(RELATED: ‘The Sopranos’ Star Drea De Matteo Posted Racy Photos To OnlyFans To Save Her Home From Foreclosure)
His role on “Breaking Bad” led to more work, including projects such as “The Mandalorian” and “The Boys.”