“I am the one who pops!”
One of television history’s most popular characters would be Walter White, aka Heisenberg, the chemistry teacher turned drug lord in Breaking Bad. Expertly played by Bryan Cranston with an Emmy-winning performance over the course of five seasons, the character went out with a band when Breaking Bad came to a close in 2013. But that wasn’t the last fans saw of Heisenberg, as Cranston recently reprised the role for a pair of flashback sequences in the final season of the prequel series Better Call Saul.
It’s looking like we’ll soon see Heisenberg rise again, if a first look at the upcoming Super Bowl ad for PopCorners is any indication. First revealed by Entertainment Weekly, the image features the silhouette of a man in the Albuquerque desert holding a bag of the snack food. While his face cannot be clearly seen, the figure is easy to recognize as that of Heisenberg, complete with the trademark hat. With that said, it hasn’t been officially confirmed that it will indeed be Cranston reprising the role for the spot, or if someone else will be playing Walt as a way of spoofing Breaking Bad. However, Frito-Lay teases that the ad will be very exciting for fans of the series.
“We are excited to revive one of the most famous television shows of all time to tell the PopCorners’ story for the first time at the Super Bowl… and we can’t wait to see fans’ reactions to who and what’s coming,” Frito-Lay VP of marketing Rhasheda Boyd was quoted as saying.
Walter White Has Appeared in a Super Bowl Ad Before
It wouldn’t be the first time Walter White returned in a Super Bowl ad. Back in 2015, Cranston returned as Walter for an Esurance ad that imagined the prolific meth maker working at a pharmacy. In 2020, Cranston would also appear in another Super Bowl ad for Mtn Dew Zero that spoofs The Shining. Given Cranston’s Super Bowl ad history, and his clear desire to revisit Heisenberg when the opportunity arises, it seems likely he’ll be involved with the PopCorners ad as well.
Breaking Bad aired for five seasons from 2008 to 2013. Also starring Aaron Paul as Heisenberg’s partner in crime, Jesse Pinkman, the series follows Cranston as Walter White, a chemistry teacher who turns to producing high-quality meth following a lung cancer diagnosis. The series earned tremendous accolades during its run and remains highly revered, recently having statues put up of Walter White and Jesse Pinkman in the city of Albuquerque.
