Giancarlo Esposito cries “every time” at a particular scene in It’s A Wonderful Life because it reminds him of when he was bankrupt.
The actor — who is best known for playing Gus Fring in the AMC crime drama series “Breaking Bad” and its prequel series “Better Call Saul” — lost all his money following the 2008 financial crisis When the same happens to George Bailey (James Stewart) in the 1946 classic Christmas supernatural drama, it sets Esposito off.
“It’s A Wonderful Life. It’s always the moment where [George Bailey] realizes that the money’s gone. It gets me in my heart. It hit me on a very personal note before I went bankrupt [in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis], and then it resounded more afterward. I have a poster in my closet that my daughter made [with] the words of Gustavo Fring to remind me: ‘You are a wealthy man now. And one must learn to be rich. To be poor, anyone can manage’,” he told the April issue of Empire.
The “The Mandalorian” star also revealed Arnold Schwarzenegger has weirdly become his gym mate.
“Schwarzenegger! Without a doubt! I met him at the gym in Los Angeles. I was on the bicycle,” Esposito replied after being asked to pick between the Terminator star and Rocky star Sylvester Stallone.
“I got off, I wiped the whole bike down. Arnold looks at me and he goes, ‘Oh wow, you remind me of someone I know.’ I said, ‘Who?’ ‘Joe Morton. He’s a good actor. But I tell you why I like you — I like you because you wipe every machine.’ I see him every few years in some awkward, weird situation and he always remembers me,” he added.
