BTS Footage of Jerry Seinfeld Struggling To Stay in Character Because of Bryan Cranston is Absolutely Hilarious
Jerry Seinfeld is most popularly recognized for his impressive work as a semi-fictionalized version of himself in the sitcom Seinfeld. The stand-up comedian-actor co-wrote the sitcom, which aired from 1989 to 1998 on NBC with Larry David. Seinfeld became one of the most popular sitcoms of all time, and even today, fans go back to watching the show with the same enthusiasm.
The sitcom follows the story of Seinfeld with his three friends, a former girlfriend, and a neighbor across the hall. It has been described as a show that is about nothing but often focuses on the minutiae of daily life. Seinfeld and David’s hard work has paid off well, as the show remains one of the most beloved sitcoms.
Jerry Seinfeld excels in observational comedy and was named the 12th greatest stand-up comedian of all time. Even a great comedian or actor can find working with their friends challenging because it’s hard to keep a straight face and not laugh. Jerry Seinfeld is no exception.
Jerry Seinfeld breaks his character on Seinfeld thanks to Bryan Cranston
Bryan Cranston appeared as Dr. Tim Whatley in five episodes of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. In behind-the-scenes footage that has resurfaced online, the audience can see how hard it is for Jerry Seinfeld to keep up his straight face and act as he is supposed to. The reason for his cracking up during the scene was Bryan Cranston.
In the episode titled The Strike, Seinfeld appears alongside Dr. Tim Whatley, who, looking at Seinfeld’s ‘two-face’ girlfriend Gwen, played by Karen Fineman, reacts accordingly. Now Jerry Seinfeld couldn’t finish filming the scene because Cranston’s reaction to Gwen was not only hilarious but also unique every time. He never seems to do the same thing twice, and every time he manages to crack Seinfeld.
Cranston’s iconic appearance on the show is regarded as season eight’s episode, The Yada Yada. In the episode, Jerry Seinfeld goes to his dentist for a standard checkup, and before the mask is given to Jerry, the dentist (Cranston) inhales some of the nitrous oxide himself. The Breaking Bad actor explained the scene upon his appearance on The Rich Eisen Show:
“I was playing the dentist, and Jerry thought that I was molesting him in the chair. There was a guy on a ladder, an electrician, who said to me, ‘Hey, you know what would be funny? When nobody else was on the set but me.”
Cranston further mentioned that the electrician gave him the idea that he could take a hit of the laughing gas before he gave it to Jerry. Cranston did the same, and the stand-up comedian and actor broke his character and couldn’t stop laughing.
Bryan Cranston described working on Seinfeld as like working on a comedy boot camp
The Breaking Bad actor noted during his conversation with Rich Eisen that Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David are comedy geniuses. In another interview with The Independent, he said,
“Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David are like skilled surgeons with comedy. They’ll slice something up, remove a moment, or include a moment.”
He recalled when the duo asked him to wait for two seconds before delivering his line, as they believed that it would get bigger laughs. Cranston said that they were right, adding that comedy is a very delicate, perishable thing. He also recalled during the interview that every time they had to stop taping, it was because Jerry Seinfeld was cracking up.
Cranston mentioned that if you’re able to make Jerry Seinfeld laugh, then it feels like you’ve hit a home run. He credited the experience he had while working on Seinfeld as his preparation for Malcolm in the Middle.
Seinfeld is available to stream on Netflix.
