"You were the conscience of the show"— Anna Gunn opens up on changed reception towards her ‘Breaking Bad’ role Skyler White

American actress Anna Gunn recently got candid about her Breaking Bad role Skyler White and how fans have had a change of heart over the past few years. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on April 19, the 55-year-old stated,

“People come up to me now and say, ‘You were the linchpin for me. You were the conscience of the show. You were what pulled me into the show.’”

Notably, when Breaking Bad ran from 2008 to 2013, Anna Gunn’s Skyler White, the wife of the protagonist Walter White (played by Bryan Cranston), had a negative reception among the fans of the show, as they often criticized her for seemingly standing in the way of her husband.

---

Anna Gunn felt it was her responsibility to “stand up” for her Breaking Bad role

Last week, Anna Gunn sat down for an interview with The Hollywood Reporter’s Brian Davids, which was published under the title Sugar’ Star Anna Gunn on “True Gent” Colin Farrell, ‘Breaking Bad’ Reunions and Rian Johnson’s Unforgettable Gesture.

During the conversation, the two-time Primetime Emmy winner discussed her Breaking Bad character, Skyler White, and how the audience's perception of her has changed over time.

“Now, when people come up to me, it’s incredibly different… There’s still a long way to go, but we have made seismic changes since then… They say, ‘The first time I watched it, I hated that character. But the second time I watched it, I realized, ‘Oh my God, that poor woman,’” Gunn explained.

She also mentioned how, over the years, the fan criticism of Skyler White has gone down, from being deemed an “antihero” to the “linchpin” and “conscience” of Breaking Bad.

The mother of two also confessed how she was not aware of the critical reception when the show aired, as she did not have a social media presence. However, later, when she heard about it from her friends and family and decided to look into it, she was disappointed and realized it was “probably a mistake.” However, later, it was this mistake that led to “a great deal of soul searching.”

Gunn further explained that while nobody ever came up to her in person and told her how much they hated her Breaking Bad character, the backlash came online in “anonymous” forms, which became “upsetting at times” and even “alarming when it turned violent.” This, she recalled, made her feel “threatened” and "concerned,” which is when she decided to step up for herself.

“So, I just didn’t want to feel bullied by all that, and I felt that it was my responsibility to stand up and answer to it, which is what I did,” Anna stated in regards to her 2013 The New York Times op-ed where she defended her role.

The Deadwood star continued by saying,

“I really just had to go through that ring of fire, for lack of a better phrase, to understand that a lot of it was, frankly, misogynistic. A lot of it was the way that female characters were treated, and I think we have come a long way since then.”

The Santa Fe native told The Hollywood Reporter that since writing her op-ed “I have a character issue,” she has seen significant changes in the way women characters are now portrayed, and lauded her fellow actresses for speaking up and continuing to “pave the way” for female antihero characters.

She also explained that her “need” to “say something” emerged from being the mother of “two daughters,” as it was “important” for her “that they know” the realities behind these characters.

During her interview, the Sugar actress also recalled how, initially, she blamed herself for the negative reception of Skyler White and even consulted with screenwriter Vince Gilligan about the matter.

Anna Gunn’s interview comes in the wake of Breaking Bad’s tenth-anniversary reunion of the final season's win at the SAG Award, which happened in February 2024 at the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.

It was attended by many of her co-stars from the show, including Bryan Cranston, RJ Mitte (Walter “Flynn” White Jr.), Aaron Paul (Jesse Pinkman), Jonathan Banks (Mike Ehrmantraut), Dean Norris (Hank Schrader), Betsy Brandt (Marie Schrader), and Bob Odenkirk (Jimmy “Saul Goodman” McGill).