Network executives originally begged for beloved comedic actors Matthew Broderick or John Cusack to play the ruthless meth kingpin Walter White in the hit series Breaking Bad.

A closer look

Network executives originally begged for beloved comedic actors Matthew Broderick or John Cusack to play the ruthless meth kingpin Walter White in the hit series Breaking Bad. The suits at AMC were absolutely terrified of casting Bryan Cranston, whom they exclusively viewed as the goofy, roller-skating dad from Malcolm in the Middle, and could not fathom him as a murderous drug lord. Series creator Vince Gilligan had to force them to watch Cranston's terrifying guest appearance on The X-Files just to prove the man could actually act. Thank goodness Gilligan won that fight, because watching Ferris Bueller slowly transition into a hardened cartel boss would have turned the greatest television drama of the twenty-first century into a bizarre, unintentional sitcom masterpiece!