Aaron Paul went from driving a 1982 Corolla to LA with $6,000 to winning three Emmys on Breaking Bad. He shares his rules for success: choose roles carefully, study scripts deeply, and don't take rejection personally. His mother told him "the strong survive" when he asked his parents for rent money right before landing the role that changed everything.
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He's an actor and producer best known for playing Jesse Pinkman in the Breaking Bad series. At 19, he drove to LA in his 1982 Toyota Corolla with $6,000 in savings and his mother to follow his Hollywood dream. He's the only actor to ever win the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series 3 times. He's Aaron Paul, and here are his top 10 rules for success.
For longevity, if you want longevity, you got to be picky with the roles you choose. And it's all about— it has to be on the page, you know. If it's not written properly, then you have nothing. So if you get a script sent your way that they're interested in you and it's really solid on the page, then you have something to work with. But other than that, then no. I had so many ups and downs, so many struggles, so much rejection, but to me, I never saw myself going home. And to be honest, the first time I ever asked my parents for any sort of financial help, which was so hard for me to ask them for, because this is my dream, it's not their dream. Of course they want their, you know, they want to see their son succeed in their dreams, but First time I asked them for any sort of help was right before booking Breaking Bad. I was like, "Could you help me with my rent?" And they paid my rent 3 months in a row, which was so hard for me to allow them to do. So, and it was so hard for them to do it, you know, they had nothing. And then I booked Breaking Bad and, you know, the rest is history. When I first moved here, they're like, "Listen, all you gotta know is the strong survive. And if you're strong enough, you'll survive." And so I've always remembered that. Times where I was like, wow, this is really hard, you know, this is really hard. I mean, just the ups and downs and where I'm like, wow, you know, I'll get like back-to-back jobs, I'm like, my career is like really taking off, and then they'll just be a standstill. And it's just like, you know, just roll with the punches and just deal with the rejection. And it took a minute to understand that that's such a huge part of this business, and now I just don't take it personally. I just like, you know what, there was someone better for the role, and you know, there's another job out there. I was doing like church plays since I was like literally baby. I was the baby Jesus. I don't know if I knew then, but I think around like 8 or 9 when I was doing like kind of like the leading roles, I was obsessed with it, and I kind of just ran with it. When I get the script, I just kind of dissect. I read it. Just front to back, and then I start really dissecting each scene and kind of understanding why he's in this particular situation, why he's feeling these sort of things. It's all so much on the page, and so I just— how I dive into a particular scene, I just try and live those moments as if I were Jesse. I don't try and have certain triggers or think about some sort of torture that I personally have went through, you know, in my past. I just try and really live and breathe through this particular person's skin. And with Jesse, he's— it's a constant— it's a constant struggle. And so it's, uh, it's a little rough at times, but, um, it's such a blast. I always tend to gravitate towards, um, the more complex side of things, uh, just complicated characters, uh, just because for me that's just— it's just more interesting to play. A lot of roles are coming my way where I'm playing like the, uh, the lovable like drug addict, but, uh, what I want to do is do something completely opposite. Just do something that is different than, uh, something I've ever done. Something that's kind of terrifying and scary to me, but, um, that's what it's about. Gravitate towards just such, um, just different kind of roles, you know, like, uh, I try to do stuff that's always kind of terrifying, you know, not terrifying as a story, but, uh, it just terrifies me as an actor to play. Embrace every moment, you know, because it flies by. Just embrace everything. And I've really taken that to heart, and I've, I've, you know, embraced everything.
Most of us have recovered enough to go on. Rod, who's our next player? Well, let's see what we can do for Aaron Sturtevant. Come on down, Aaron. You're the next contestant on The Price Is Right. You're the man, Bob!
Oh my, you're my idol!
I have the horrible feeling I have another one. Here's the next item up for bid: an elegant flat-top desk. Aaron, what do you bid on that?
$1,200. $1,200.
Michelle? $775, Bob. $775. Charlotta? $800. $800. Tracy?
$850.
Her bid is $850. Actual retail price, $1,797. Aaron wins! Aaron is the winner. Let's get him over here. Right here, Aaron. Congratulations. A marker!
Yeah!
Oh! Aaron. Yes? Aaron, believe it or not, I have another one of these. A new car! All right, we're going to play the dice game. Light up the first number in the price of the car, please. Here are the dice. Now, remember, there are no zeros in the price of the car. There are no numbers higher than 6. Roll, and let's hope it's the second number in the prize. The first number is 1. Now you've rolled a 1. Is that the second number? No. Is the second number higher or lower than 1?
Higher.
Higher, of course. It has to be. Okay, next number in the price of the car. Is it 6? No. Is it higher, lower than 6? Roll, Aaron. We're on a hot streak. Street? Is it 3? No. Is it higher or lower than 3? Higher. Higher than 3. All right, roll that last number. Is it 4? No. Is it higher or lower than 4? Lower than 4. Let's find out, does Aaron win the car? Light up the second number, please. Light up the third number, please. Give us a number higher than 3. Yes! Give us a number lower than 4. Oh! Aaron, I'm sorry. No! I get to spin the wheel, right? That's right. He'll spin the wheel. We'll be back after this.
Thank you so much for watching. I made this video because Orion Dark Knight asked me to. So if there's a famous entrepreneur that you want me to profile next, Leave it in the comments below and I'll see what I can do. I'd also love to know which of Aaron Paul's top 10 rules resonated the most with you. Leave it below. I'm going to join in the discussion. Thank you for watching. I'll see you soon.
