Bryan Cranston heads back to the small screen with Amazon's 'Sneaky Pete'

The Amazon series “Sneaky Pete” has debuted, with the new TV program featuring the return of acclaimed actor Bryan Cranston to live-action episodic television following his turn as the protagonist in AMC’s “Breaking Bad,” one of the most well-reviewed shows of all time. 

“Pete” stars Giovanni Ribisi as a man who has just left jail after hearing stories about his cellmate’s family. He now tries to become a part of that family while also working to resolve a debt with a criminal (Mr. Cranston). Margo Martindale and Michael Drayer co-star.

The offering is the newest TV show from Amazon, which, like other streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu, began releasing programming of their own over the last several years. Some of the most acclaimed offerings from Amazon have been the TV show “Transparent,” for which Jeffrey Tambor won the Emmy Award for best actor in a comedy series, among other prizes won by the show, and “Mozart in the Jungle,” which won the Golden Globe for best comedy.

Cranston has appeared in TV productions like the HBO film version of “All the Way,” a play about Lyndon B. Johnson, and stars in the animated Crackle show "SuperMansion," but this is his first steady appearance on a live-action TV production since his starring role in “Breaking Bad,” often called one of the best TV shows of all time. 

“Breaking" tells the story of a high school teacher and his former student who begin making and selling drugs to try and secure his family's financial future. The show won multiple awards, including the Emmy for outstanding lead actor in a drama series (Cranston), outstanding supporting actor in a drama series (co-star Aaron Paul), oustanding supporting actress in a drama series (Anna Gunn), outstanding writing for a drama series (Moira Walley-Beckett), and outstanding drama series.

Following Amazon’s usual model, the full first season of Cranston’s new show “Pete” are all now available.