Summary
- Skyler White, portrayed by Anna Gunn, was unfairly vilified by viewers who saw her as standing in the way of Walter's criminal ambitions.
- Throughout Breaking Bad, Skyler had her own journey into criminality, showcasing traits of strength, cunning, and deception.
- As the show progressed, Skyler's actions carried great weight and audiences began to root for her, especially as Walter's true nature was revealed.
Breaking Bad is one of the most iconic TV series of all time, but one character who never truly got her due was Walter's long-suffering wife, Skyler White, though she had some great individual moments. Portrayed by Anna Gunn, this character, and the actress who played her, was vilified by viewers who saw her as annoyingly standing in the way of Walter's goal to build a meth empire and provide for his family. Viewers can now see the full arc of Walter's transition into a villain, so today it feels like audiences may have been too harsh on Skyler.
While Walter White's transformation into the meth kingpin Heisenberg from a mild-mannered chemistry teacher was the main driving force behind the story of Breaking Bad, Skyler was also embroiled in her own journey into criminality as she laundered Walt's drug money, talked her way out of legal trouble, and did everything she could to protect her family. Throughout the show's five-season run, there were many instances where Breaking Bad audiences could root for Skyler, and the positive, clever, and endearing aspects of her character shone through.
10 Confronting Jesse For “Selling” Walter Weed
Season 1, Episode 2: “Cat’s in the Bag”
An early moment that let audiences know Skyler White wasn't going to sit back while her husband embraced the criminal underworld. Skyler appeared unannounced at Jesse Pinkman’s house to confront Walter’s new partner in crime. As Skyler explained that Walt "told me everything", Jesse feared their meth operation was about to end before it had time to begin. Here Skyler showcased her traits as a strong character who was not afraid to step into her husband's new life. However, she revealed her ignorance when she warned Jesse "do not sell marijuana to my husband" to a confused but agreeable Jesse.
9 Fakes Going Into Labor After Being Accused Of Stealing Jewelry
Season 1, Episode 7: “A No-Rough-Stuff-Type Deal"
After attempting to return a tiara that her kleptomaniac sister Marie gifted her, Skyler was accused of stealing and was brought to the back of a jewelry store. As the threat of criminal charges loomed over her, Skyler pulls every trick she can think of to get out of trouble. Skyler’s convincing acting skills come to the forefront as she fakes going into labor and hyperventilation. This skill for quick and cunning thinking would serve her well in later seasons when the stakes became even higher.
8 Calling Walter Out About His "Fugue State" Excuse
Season 2, Episode 5: “Breakage”
Having narrowly escaped death following a kidnapping from Tuco Salamanca, Walter had no logical way to explain his absent days to his wife Skyler. In a moment of pure inspiration, Walter took off all his clothes and was found wandering naked through a supermarket. Two episodes later, Skyler made it clear she was not so easy to trick and did not buy Walt’s excuse. When confronted about smoking while pregnant, she condescendingly told Walt “perhaps I smoked them in a fugue state?” Anna Gunn’s convincing performance here showed viewers she was beginning to distrust Walt, who would not be able to get away with these weak lies for much longer.
7 Making Up Walter's Gambling Story To Help Marie
Season 3, Episode 9: "Kafkaesque"
When Hank Schrader’s medical bills are adding up as he recovers from an assassination attempt, Skyler made an offer to her sister Marie to pay for her husband-in-law's expenses. To explain how Skyler and Walter can afford this, she makes up a lie on the spot about Walter becoming a gambling expert after his cancer diagnosis. This was a definitive moment for Skyler’s character, as she showcased she was just as capable as Walter of being deceitful to the people she loves.
6 Asking Saul If Walter “Carpools To His Job At A Meth Lab"
Season 4, Episode 1 “Boxcutter”
By this point in the series, Skyler was well aware of her husband’s reputation as the notorious Heisenberg, and his dealings with criminal lawyer Saul Goodman. When Skyler noticed that Walt’s car was in their driveway, she called Saul to find out where he was. Saul, tried to explain Walt’s strange behavior, stating he was carpooling to work because it was “good for the environment”, to which Skyler demonstrated, despite everything, she still had a sense of humor when she sarcastically asked if he “carpools to his job at a meth lab?” It is hilarious responses like this that had audiences rooting for Skyler.
5 Haggling The Purchase Of The Car Wash
Season 4, Episode 3: “Open House”
Realizing that they needed a legitimate way to launder the huge amount of money that Walter was making, Skyler was set on purchasing A1A Car Wash, the location where Walt used to work his second job when he was still a high school chemistry teacher. Here Skyler demonstrated herself as just as proud and headstrong as her husband, and she talked Bogdan Wolynetz, Walt’s old boss, down almost $80,000 from their original offer, teaching audiences she can be ruthless when she wants to. By this point, Skyler was just as capable of driving the plot forward as any other character and her actions now had great weight.
4 Laundering Walter’s Earnings
Season 4, Episode 7: “Problem Dog”
Now truly in too deep into her role as an accomplice in Walter’s life of crime, Skyler was tasked with laundering Walt’s earnings through their newly purchased car wash business. Upon learning that she must account for $274,000 every two weeks, she told Walt that amount of money could not be cleaned that quickly. However, for the first time, it felt like she was in a partnership with her husband, and her expression when Walt gave her an out, reveals that there was a part of her who just might enjoy breaking bad herself, and becoming the one responsible for solving this difficult money problem.
3 Helping Ted Beneke With An IRS Audit
Season 4, Episode 9 “Bug”
With consistent experience breaking the law, Skyler extended these skills to help her boss and affair partner Ted Beneke out of tax troubles with the IRS. Having gotten her old job back as an accountant, Skyer presented herself as a ditzy bookkeeper who did not understand the complexities of the tax system. Skyler’s perceived cluelessness allowed Ted to avoid an investigation, and she arranged to provide Ted with the money he needed. However, Ted wasted this opportunity in a series of events that eventually left Ted with a broken neck. Skyler's willingness to fain stupidity and con the IRS added yet another layer of complexity to her character.
2 Having An Awkward Dinner With Jesse And Walter
Season 5, Episode 6: “Buyout”
In an unconventional pairing, Skyler, Jesse, and Walter were having a painfully awkward dinner together. Skyler and Walt’s marriage had drastically deteriorated, and two episodes before, she told Walt she was waiting “for the cancer to come back” so that he would die. By this point, Skyer is so fed up with everything related to Walt that she filled her wine glass and walked out of the room. Over the course of five seasons, Walt had transformed into a wholly unlikable man. The fact that Skyler was no longer pretending they were still together taught audiences that the love she had for Walt had disappeared.
1 Picking Up A Knife To Protect Her Family
Season 5, Episode 14: “Ozymandias”
Building towards the show’s conclusion, the White family had truly fallen apart and Walter’s reasoning that he produced meth to help them was shown to be false. With all the lies and deceit out in the open, Skyler demonstrated she was willing to do anything to protect her family and slashed Walt’s hand with a knife. Walt’s expression when he saw that his wife and son truly feared him was a watershed moment in Breaking Bad and a realization things could never go back to the way they were before. Walt had shown himself to be a monster and, at this point, audiences could not help but root for Skyler.
