Former "Breaking Bad" actor Giancarlo Esposito feels like he's "just beginning." Today, he is getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The actor's career catapulted when he landed the role of Gustavo "Gus" Fring on AMC's wildly popular drama about meth cooking. According to Esposito, the show is responsible for "bringing me back from the dead."

"Things were dry, and I worried I wouldn't be able to support my family," Esposito told Variety. "But the real problem I should have recognized was that I wouldn't be able to support my spirit. I still get this great joy from delivering something real and honest and truthful in helping to tell a story. There's just nothing like it in my life."

Esposito, 56, was certainly not new to the acting game when he landed the role. In fact, he was on Broadway at the mere age of 8; he had a role in the musical "Maggie Flynn." At 22, he appeared in his first movie, "Taps." Thus, Esposito had no problem finding inspiration to embody who is arguably one of the most heartless drug kingpins television has ever seen.

"I remember seeing James Cagney in 'White Heat' and realizing you could love a villain if he's played in a way where you can relate to him," Esposito explained. "That's what I tried to do with Gus. And I saw some of those features in Tom in 'Revolution' that also appealed to me."

Since leaving "Breaking Bad," Esposito has been offered additional villain roles but hasn't taken them. He has, however, appeared as Sidney Glass ABC's "Once Upon a Time" as the magic mirror of the Evil Queen from "Snow White." Currently, he plays Tom Neville in NBC's "Revolution," which is in its second season. According to Variety, Esposito is waiting to learn whether or not "Revolution" will see season 3.

Meanwhile, Esposito has his sights on directing "John Brown: Patriotic Treason" by the end of the summer. Esposito said he's "deeply ensconced in the film" based off the 2006 book by Evan Carton, "Patriotic Treason: John Brown and the Soul of America." Esposito himself will play Frederick Douglass.

"The most important part is to keep creating," Esposito said. "I'm excited to be on this trajectory; I think I'm right where I'm supposed to be."

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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @SH____4.

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