Bryan Cranston Clarifies He’s ‘Not Retiring,’ Only Plans To ‘Hit The Pause Button For A Year’

Bryan Cranston is setting the record straight about his future plans. The Breaking Bad star took to his Instagram account on Friday and posted a lengthy statement explaining that he’s “not retiring” and, really, just hitting “the pause button for a year” after he turns 70 in 2026.

The clarification comes one day after an interview with British GQ, in which the actor said he would sell his half of his and former co-star Aaron Paul’s Dos Hombres Mezcal Tequila brand, shut down his production company, Moonshot Entertainment, and live the leisure life with his wife of 34 years, Robin Dearden, somewhere across the pond.

Perhaps France.

“Hey everyone, I hope this little message finds you well. Some news came out that wasn’t entirely clear…even to me. So I wanted to set the record straight,” Cranston opened in his caption to a carousel of photos of him and Robin. “I am not retiring. What I am going to do is hit the pause button for a year after I reach my 70th birthday in 2026. Holy crap – 70!
I’m not even sure what ‘pausing’ means entirely, but at this moment, I think it means that by taking a year off it will provide several things.”

Cranston went on to say that hitting the “pause button” will allow him to spend time with Robin “in a way that I haven’t been able to in the last 25 years…not as a wife of a celebrity, but as a loving married couple entering into – well, let’s be honest, our latter years, with new hopes and goals and experiences.”

The short break, he hopes, will also give him “a sort of ‘reset’” in his career.

“I’ve had such an unbelievable ride for over two decades – with playing characters on TV, films, and on stage that I could only have dreamt about…until it actually happened,” he continued. “I could not be more grateful and thankful for such opportunities. That said, I feel as though I’m beginning to run out of fresh ideas in how to play characters that I’m being offered. So exploring a more expanded life experience will give me the chance to replenish my soul and prepare for whatever roles I may be afforded in a more authentic way.”

The goal, he said, will be to “unplug from social media, step off the hamster wheel of business, and dive into the classic novels that I’ve always promised myself I would read but haven’t…But before that happens, I’ve got some unfinished business.”

For now, Cranston said he’s focusing on several films coming out soon, “a few stories for TV” and “circling my attention on returning to Broadway – but this time in a new light…more on that later.”

He signed the post expressing gratitude to a very understanding fan base who have followed him over the course of a decorated career in Hollywood.

If he finds himself in France, Cranston told the men’s magazine he would envision the couple living in a small village and learning the language. They’ll also take up cooking and maybe even grow a garden.

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