Starring in one of the best television shows in history is both a privilege and a challenge, and this is why Breaking Bad actor Raymond Cruz decided to leave the show for his own mental sanity. The strenuous role he played in the series took a toll on him, so he asked the writers to kill his character.
The surprising thing about this is he was meant to play a bigger, more significant part of the narrative. He was supposed to join the league of the show’s villains, but it seemed like fate had a different plan.
Raymond Cruz Didn’t Want to Play Tuco Salamanca in Breaking Bad
While conversing with AMC, Mexican-American actor Raymond Cruz revealed why he wanted to depart from the show despite its high ratings and a promising role given to him. He played Tuco Salamanca, one of the members of the most influential dealers group in the series, and was supposed to assert the role of a villain throughout the second season.
In a shocking twist of events, he asked creator Vince Gilligan to kill him off because he could not deliver his role. “I asked them to kill me. Honestly, I wasn’t looking forward to coming back and doing the part,” he told the site.
Salamanca is one of the most loyal members of the cartel and is also described as having an unpredictable temper. This is why the series creator wanted to expand the role, and that was because of his interesting personality.
The star was told to do eight more episodes, but he could no longer pull it off. The executives were shocked at his decision because they had never encountered an actor who wished for his character to be killed off. Cruz insisted he wanted to leave.
The writers had no choice but to revise the script and make sure Salamanca died. The character perished during a shootout when a bullet struck his head. Cruz was satisfied with how they got rid of him in the show.
It’s definitely a shame that he never became a full-fledged villain because he had so much potential. It’s also understandable that he did not want to disappoint the fans by giving a subpar performance. Still, Salamanca remains an unforgettable character from the Breaking Bad series.
Why Raymond Cruz Returned in Better Call Saul
Cruz returned as Tuco Salamanca in Better Call Saul, and when asked by The Hollywood Reporter how it felt being in the shoes of his character again, he said, “There’s nothing fun about it.”
Fans would certainly wonder why he decided to come back after he asked to be dropped from the project, but he admitted that when he got the call, he agreed to do it. Still, he echoed the same sentiment about the difficulty of playing the role. “It’s very physical and it wears you out. You get very drained,” he told the outlet.
Gilligan was able to convince him to return by proposing the idea that Salamanca was not yet exposed to the drug during the prequel.
Breaking Bad is currently available to watch on Netflix.
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