Toys R Us Under Fire For 'Breaking Bad' Action Figures

By Sam Sanders / NPR

Published October 21, 2014 at 9:22 AM PDT

This story was published more than 10 years ago.

Bryan Cranston (left) starred as chemistry teacher turned meth dealer Walter White, and Aaron Paul played former student and drug-dealing co-conspirator Jesse Pinkman in AMC's Breaking Bad, which wrapped up its fifth and final season on Sunday. — Bryan Cranston (left) starred as chemistry teacher turned meth dealer Walter White, and Aaron Paul played former student and drug-dealing co-conspirator Jesse Pinkman in AMC's *Breaking Bad,* which wrapped up its fifth and final season on Sunday.

Walter White and Jesse Pinkman have moved from the small screen to your neighborhood toy store. And some people aren't happy about that at all.

A line of action figures based on the characters from the award-winning AMC show Breaking Bad have been seen on Toys R Us shelves and on ToysRUs.com. One mother, Susan Schrivjer of Ft. Myers, Fla., didn't want her children exposed to the toys, which are based on a high school chemistry teacher turned crystal meth dealer and his druggie sidekick. (The Walter White character at Toys R Us even comes complete with a bag of crystal meth.)

Schrivjer started a change.org petition. She wrote:

Become a KPBS sponsor

"Parents and grandparents around the world shop at Toys R Us, online and in stories, with their children and should not be forced to explain why a certain toy comes with a bag of highly dangerous and illegal drugs or why someone who sells those drugs deserves to be made into an action figure."Please sign to join me in asking Toys R Us to stop selling the Breaking Bad dolls and return to the family focused atmosphere for which they are known."

As of Tuesday, the petition had over 7,000 signatures.

Schrivjer also made an appearance on Ft. Myers Fox affiliate, Fox4Now. She had harsh words for the toys, but actually admitted she was a fan of the show:

"'Knowing those are the items one needs to make meth I just think that it's wrong.' Schrivjer says.... 'Kids mimic their action figures, if you will." Schrivjer tells FOX 4 "Do you want your child in an orange jumpsuit?'

NBC says Toys R Us defended the action figures:

"In a statement, Toys 'R Us told NBC News that 'the product packaging clearly notes that the items are intended for ages 15 and up' and 'are located in the adult action figure area of our stores.'

Breaking Bad action figures did not show up on the Toys R Us website during a search by NPR Tuesday. And Toys R Us has not responded to our request for comment. But, Walmart, eBay and Barnes and Noble all had the toys for sale online.

Meanwhile, Breaking Bad's star, Bryan Cranston, is taking all of this news in stride:

Become a KPBS sponsor