Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul has announced he is taking a break from social media.
The US actor, who appeared alongside Bryan Cranston in the crime drama series, told his 2.7 million Twitter followers he needed time to “focus on work and family”.
Paul is the latest star to steer clear of social media, with celebrities including Selena Gomez, Millie Bobby Brown and Armie Hammer taking breaks.
I have decided to take a break from all things social media. Keeping my head up and phone down for a little while. Need some time to focus on work and family. Can’t thank you all enough for the love and support. Much love to you all.🖤
— Aaron Paul (@aaronpaul_8) December 18, 2018
Announcing the move on Monday, Paul said: “I have decided to take a break from all things social media. Keeping my head up and phone down for a little while.
“Need some time to focus on work and family. Can’t thank you all enough for the love and support. Much love to you all.”
Paul’s decision to quit social media comes just days after police in New York carried out a welfare check on Saturday Night Live (SNL) comedian Pete Davidson following a worrying Instagram post.
Davidson, who recently split from popstar Ariana Grande, wrote: “I’m doing my best to stay here for you but I actually don’t know how much longer I can last. All I’ve ever tried to do was help people. Just remember I told you so.”
The 25-year-old made a brief appearance on SNL hours later and has since deleted his Instagram account.
US singer and actress Gomez, 26, announced she was taking a break from social media in September, reminding her 143 million Instagram followers that “negative comments can hurt anybody’s feelings”.
British star of Stranger Things Brown, 14, quit Twitter in June after trolls targeted her with homophobic memes.
Hammer, who starred in Call Me By Your Name, took a break after becoming embroiled in a row with a journalist who wrote a negative story about him.
Explaining his decision, he said: “I just have no impulse control. So if somebody says something stupid, I couldn’t help but say something back, and then it just exploded. This is a toxic environment, and my life is way better off.
“It’s so funny — people are so addicted and into Twitter, it seems crazy that someone could walk away from it. They’re like, wait, he deleted it? It was actually really easy.”
Kanye West also moved away from social media from May 2017 to April 2018, though has since returned, with controversial results.