Published in Hispanic Executive April/May/June 2014
Jeremiah Bitsui is always trying to empty his pockets.
Literally and figuratively, he does so much like an athlete, with about 50 percent superstition and 50 percent strategy. “It probably goes back to an audition where I had my phone in my pocket and the anxiety it caused,” says the actor best known for his portrayal of Victor on AMC’s Breaking Bad. Whether he’s mentally preparing for a character read, sizing up a construction project, or penning scenes for his next screenplay, the actor-entrepreneur makes a conscious effort to assess every opportunity without preconceptions, to clean his slate.
Bitsui is recognized on the street for his role on the award-winning AMC series full of drugs, drama, and dastardly types, of which Bitsui’s character was one. Coming from a college-educated rodeo family, Bitsui’s less-publicized business includes BITCO Corporation, a construction firm he operates with his father dedicated to improving communities with its projects and business practices. When he was just 18 years old, Bitsui started his first business, Youth Impacting Youth (YIY), a soft-skills training program aimed at teens preparing for college.
Every endeavor Bitsui has pursued has been a self-made opportunity. It’s a reality that is both freeing and potentially paralyzing. When you are the coach, competitor, and keeper of the score, how do you measure progress? Bitsui answers these questions with a few of his own, and if you listen to the way he poses them with the unassuming tone of an actor aware of the ephemeral nature of fame and still trying, just as hard as the next person, to figure it all out …
A Growing Body of Work 