Dean Norris

Dean Norris plays Hank Schrader, Walter White's DEA-agent brother-in-law, in Breaking Bad. Hank's expansive manner and loud humour make an immediate impression. Norris gives him enough weight underneath the performance of confidence that he remains interesting when the jokes stop.

A long-established character actor, Norris appeared in films including Total Recall and Terminator 2: Judgment Day before Breaking Bad. His familiarity in uniforms and authority roles gives Hank an easy credibility, while the family scenes let him be more than the officer arriving to ask questions.

His subsequent television work includes Big Jim Rennie in Under the Dome and Uncle Daddy in Claws. These are very different personalities, but they make use of his ability to occupy a room. In Breaking Bad, the contrast between Hank's outward ease and Walter's stiffness is an especially useful source of both comedy and pressure.