Bryan Cranston has a plan for his Hollywood career to come to a brief end in 2026 so that he can spend more time with his wife, Robin Dearden. The Emmy winner announced the plan in a new GQ UK interview, saying he will take at least six months off from Hollywood and move to France in 2026.
As reported by GQ: “In 2026, one of the greatest actors of this era will retire – at least temporarily. Cranston is planning to shut down his production company, sell his half of Dos Hombres, and abscond with Dearden to a foreign country, probably France, for a minimum of six months.”
On Friday, he posted an Instagram clarifying that although some publications had characterized his break as retiring from acting, he did not mean permanently.
“Some news came out that wasn’t entirely clear…even to me. So I wanted to set the record straight. I am not retiring,” he wrote. “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!”
“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,” he wrote on the Instagram post.
“I want to change the paradigm once again,” Cranston told the publication. “For the last 24 years, Robin has led her life holding onto my tail. She’s been the plus one, she’s been the wife of a celebrity. She’s had to pivot and adjust her life based on mine. She has tremendous benefit from it, but we’re uneven. I want to level that out. She deserves it.”
Cranston told GQ UK that the couple will live in a small village, learn how to speak French and how to cook French cuisine, among other tasks.
“I want to have that experience,” Cranston said. “I want to go for day trips and have the fire in the fireplace and drink wine with new friends and not read scripts. It’s not going to be like, ‘Oh, I’ll read and see what I’m going to do.’ No, it’s a pause. It’s a stop. I won’t be thinking about [work]. I’m not going to be taking phone calls.”
Cranston is remaining in Hollywood for now. He’s got a role in Wes Anderson’s “Asteroid City,” which Focus Features is releasing in theaters June 16, and he’s part of the ensemble of Matthew Vaughn’s big-budget spy thriller “Argylle,” coming to Apple at a later date. Cranston is also hoping to pull off a “Malcolm in the Middle” reunion project, which he’s openly discussed for years now.
“I’m curious about that family 20 years later,” Cranston told GQ UK about the potential revival. “What happened to them? Where are they? What are the kids doing? They’re grown men now.”
While Cranston is ready to embrace a “Malcolm” reunion, he’s putting any “Breaking Bad” reunion on pause for now.
“They wanted to do a ‘Breaking Bad’ 15-year reunion,” Cranston said. “And I thought, ‘In a quick five years from now we’re going to do the 20 and then the 25, then the…’ It’s like, let’s not try to do too much.”
Cranston also revealed vague details about a musical he is trying to get off the ground as a producer before his 2026 hiatus kicks in. He’d star in the project as well.
“I don’t want to just put a coat of paint on an old chestnut,” Cranston said. “I’ve got to scrape it down to the bare wood and really make it shine. It’s got to pop. It’s got to be something special.”
Head over to GQ UK’s website to read Cranston’s profile in its entirety.
