Actor RJ Mitte Talks 'Who's Driving Doug' Movie & 'Breaking Bad!' [EXCLUSIVE]

FilmBuff puts audiences on a distinct road trip in the coming-of-age indie drama, Who's Driving Doug. In an exclusive interview with MStars News, actor RJ Mitte talks about playing the title role in the movie and continuing his own journey after being recognized as Walter White Jr. in the popular crime drama, Breaking Bad.

In this must-see coming-of-age drama, Doug (Mitte) happens to be an intelligent young man, but he lives a very sheltered lifestyle. Wanting to break free from his loving but controlling mother, Alison (Daphne Zuniga), Doug hires an underachieving driver Scott (Ray William Johnson) to help him break free. Joined by Scott and Stephanie (Paloma Kwiatkowski), Doug finds himself on a spontaneous road trip that takes many twists and turns.

Before Who's Driving Doug arrives in theaters on February 26, the Breaking Bad actor discusses playing the lead role, portraying a character in a wheelchair, and his thoughts on Better Call Saul.

MStars News: Were you interested in the project because you are a leading man in the story?

RJ Mitte: I think that always helps. I think what interests me the most is how relatable the character is, what the character is trying to do. and the story the writer was trying to tell. I think that's what really drew me in and that's what really captured me. I think it's a very interesting story.

MS: Tell me what interested you about the script.

RJ: Who's Driving Doug is about a character with muscular dystrophy. He wants to live his own life and step out of the shadow. But he doesn't really understand how to do that. He doesn't know how to live his life. He doesn't know how to be independent. I think for such a long time this character was co-dependent on someone but he wants his freedom. He wants to be himself. He wants to live his life.

I think this story is a great coming-of-age story of a person that needs to find a voice and find that he is free. But he has to take the step and he has to make the risk. You know, we're not born to follow. We're all born leaders we're not born to sit around and do nothing. We're born to get out there and make a change, be a person and live in this world and have an impact. We choose not to. I think this story shows that and hopefully it shows that.

MS: Tell me about being part of an ensemble cast.

RJ: We had a lot of fun. I starred in it. We have an amazing cast and crew of people, Ray William Johnson and Paloma Kwiatkowski are amazing in it! We had so much fun doing it and being a part of it and creating a story. We were lucky to have that. My character is actually loosely based on a real person and the writer actually has MS. It's kind of based on his life to a degree, what he's seen and what he's felt. Hopefully we captured that for him and we created a story he enjoys.

MS: Tell me about being confined to a wheelchair throughout the whole movie.

RJ: It's interesting! It's weird you know. I walk. I don't have any problem walking. I don't use crutches. I don't use braces anymore. But you have to play a character and that's his life and that's his will. You have to make it an extension of yourself and who you are because that is what that chair is. It is an extension of that person.

So it was tricky but I just tried to live in it as much as possible and be a part of it, be a part of me, and just go, hoping for the best. I think it looks realistic and it's a little scary actually playing a character with a different disability of someone else's. Because I don't know how that person feels or how that feels on my body. My body feels completely different than yours and vice versa. I just tried to live in that moment as much as possible and create a character that was real and that was my own entity. But at the same time, this character in itself yearned someone else. I had to bring those two sides to create it.

MS: Tell me about your sex scene with Elation, played by Shanti Lowry.

RJ: She was amazing! We had a very interesting day. She was so lovely and we had fun. It was definitely weird but we had a really great group of people and an amazing crew. We just really had so much fun doing it. Everyone felt comfortable and everyone enjoyed it. When you have a good group of people to come together to make art and everyone is there to be present, it helps.

But it's weird to do a sex scene because there's 10 people in the room. You've got your camera, your boom, your directors are all watching and you're like, "Hey there's a camera and she has to grind on me? This is going to be interesting!" It was definitely something alright but it was fun! I can't complain!

MS: 3 years have passed since Breaking Bad ended and people are still talking about it. Does that still surprise you?

RJ: You know, it is and it isn't. It's crazy to see that people still love and watch the show. People are still into the show. That just makes me happy because it makes me so relevant. I'm lucky I've been able to be part of an amazing show. They really gave me a career in what I'm doing in my life. I'm very blessed to have had Breaking Bad. I'm still happy people are still enjoying the show, people are still tuning in, and supporting it. Because we really did have fun and it was a big chunk of our lives.

MS: Have you followed the spinoff, Better Call Saul?

RJ: I have! I've seen it. I'm not fully caught up but it looks amazing! I'm excited to see what happens in the new season. I think people are really going to like it. I hope people enjoy and keep enjoying Better Call Saul as much as we enjoyed Breaking Bad.

MS: If the opportunity arose and there was a way to bring your character back, would you jump on to Better Call Saul?

RJ: I don't really know if it's right for it. If it was in the story, somehow I would, but I don't think my character is really in that world. I don't really see how that world effects my character. It would be nice to have a regular job again, but I don't think that I really fit in that world, in that category.

MS: What are you working on now?

RJ: I have a few projects coming out, I have one called Triumph. We have two days of filming left; it's about wrestling. I have a movie on demand called Dixie Land. I have another more House of Last Things. I think it's still on Netflix.

I possibly have another movie that will be coming out, that I will be filming within the next couple months and just audition, audition, audition. I've got some modeling stuff coming up. Just trying to stay fit, just doing the circuit, just trying to get some press for Who's Driving Doug and trying to get that out there. Just get people interested and see what they think. Hopefully they enjoy what we did. At the end of the day, trying to keep the lights on!

Who's Driving Doug hits select theaters and on VOD on Friday, Feb. 26, 2016.