With all of the video games Breaking Bad's Jesse Pinkman played over the course of five seasons, you would think people would know not to mess with his toys. Well, if they were unaware of that fact before, they certainly know now.
In a saga that seems never-ending, Aaron Paul, the actor who portrayed Jesse on the hit AMC show about a meth kingpin, recently responded to the successful online petition to stop Toys "R" Us from selling Breaking Bad action figures in its stores. He did so by pointing out how ridiculous and hypocritical the whole situation really is.
Wait, so @ToysRUs pulled all of the Breaking Bad figures from their shelves and still sells Barbie? Hmmmm...I wonder what is more damaging?
— Aaron Paul (@aaronpaul_8) October 23, 2014
And what about all of the violent video games you sell @ToysRUs ? Do you still sell those? Florida mom really messed it up for everyone. — Aaron Paul (@aaronpaul_8) October 23, 2014
Paul also got political by hilariously making it seem like President Obama was just as outraged about the situation, even though his Twitter account didn't actually send out the below message. But since the president is also a fan of Breaking Bad, maybe he isn't too happy about Toys "R" Us removing the action figures from its stores IRL.
“@BarackObama: Wait, are you serious about the whole @ToysRUs thing?!?” Yes I am Mr. President. Yes I am.
— Aaron Paul (@aaronpaul_8) October 23, 2014
Paul even signed and promoted a link to an online petition created by toy collector Daniel Pickett to get the Breaking Bad action figures back on Toys "R" Us' shelves. At the time of this writing, the petition garnered more than double the signatures of the petition it's countering with more than 24,000 supporters.
Here's the petition to sign to keep the toys on the shelves! This would be so fun to show the Florida mom. YeahBitch https://t.co/8iEFsLBCIn — Aaron Paul (@aaronpaul_8) October 24, 2014
That "Florida mom" mentioned in the above tweet is Susan Myers, the woman who originally petitioned Toys "R" Us. That petition had 9,299 supporters by the time it claimed victory on Oct. 22.
"While the show may be compelling viewing for adults, its violent content and celebration of the drug trade make this collection unsuitable to be sold alongside Barbie dolls and Disney characters," Myers wrote regarding to why she created the petition.
Paul's high-profile response to the toy removal and this new petition will certainly put some pressure on Toys "R" Us to consider its next move very carefully. It's unclear what the fate of the Breaking Bad action figures will be at this point. "Let's just say, the action figures have taken an indefinite sabbatical," Toys "R" Us said in a statement on Oct. 21 regarding the Breaking Bad collectibles in its stores.
Playing off of the retailer's anthropomorphizing of the action figures, Paul's Breaking Bad co-star Bryan Cranston, who portrayed protagonist Walter White on the show, also responded to the controversy on Twitter.
Toys R Us puts Breaking Bad toys on 'indefinite sabbatical.' Word on the street is that they were sent to Belize. Nicely played Florida Mom.
— Bryan Cranston (@BryanCranston) October 22, 2014
"Florida mom petitions against Toys 'R Us over Breaking Bad action figures." I'm so mad, I'm burning my Florida Mom action figure in protest — Bryan Cranston (@BryanCranston) October 20, 2014
Well, it certainly doesn't seem like this toy story will end any time soon. Hopefully, it won't get so bad that lawyers will need to get involved, but if it does, better call you know who.
