Bryan Cranston addresses viral 'Breaking Bad' and 'Malcolm in the Middle' fan theory

On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Monday, actor Bryan Cranston, who is best known for his roles as Walter White on the critically acclaimed AMC series Breaking Bad and as Hal Wilkerson on the early 2000's sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, addressed a very popular fan theory that Breaking Bad is a prequel to Malcolm in the Middle.

According to some fans, Walter White (spoiler alert) survived the series finale and assumed a new identity as Malcolm in the Middle patriarch Hal Wilkerson. So what does Cranston think of this fan-favourite theory?

On The Tonight Show, Cranston told Fallon jokingly, "I'm not at liberty to disclose that kind of information without security clearances."

Cranston then got serious as he put the theory to rest, stating, "I think it's fun but, you know, it's fun. I don't know. No, Walter White is definitely dead. He's dead, he's dead, he's dead. He's dead."

Although, whether or not we can believe Cranston remains to be uncertain, as the last time the actor was on the late night talk show, he totally lied about there being a Breaking Bad sequel in the works, which was later revealed as last year's Netflix original film, El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.

When Fallon called Cranston out on lying to his face, Cranston stated, "Yeah I'm a big fat liar," as he explained that he had actually filmed the movie in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for two days before appearing on Fallon's show.

Cranston recently revealed he’d tested positive for COVID-19, and urged people to wear masks. The US actor said he was “one of the lucky ones” as his symptoms were mild.

Read more: Aaron Paul shares post-Breaking Bad woes

He shared the news on Instagram alongside a video of him donating his plasma – the liquid part of the blood – to scientists helping to fight the disease. The Malcolm In The Middle star said: “I was pretty strict in adhering to the protocols and still… I contracted the virus.”

He added that the number of deaths from the virus in the US “sounds daunting”.