Jeremy Strong Says He Actually Drank That Gross Smoothie In The “Succession” Finale

HBO’s Succession is officially over, and as much as I enjoyed the show, I won’t miss the weekly assault on my poor, frayed nerves. For all 89 minutes of the series finale, I fully expected Kendall to die (drowning, murder, hurling himself off the top of an office building, etc.). And, because Jeremy Strong takes acting so seriously, I was also worried about his safety. When you die in Method Acting, you die in real life! Deadline reports that, in the official post-finale podcast, 44-year-old Jeremy discussed his method acting ways, including whether or not he actually drank that gross smoothie (duh, of course, he did). Obviously, SPOILERS abound in this post…

In the podcast, Jeremy chatted about the finale with host Kara Swisher and co-star Alexander Skarsgård. He says the final scene he filmed was the sibling kitchen scene in Barbados. That’s where Shiv (new mother Sarah Snook) and Roman (Kieran Culkin) concoct a disgusting drink for Kendall, aka “a meal fit for a King” after they agree to support him becoming CEO. Shiv uses a blender to mix milk, bread crusts, raw eggs, Tabasco sauce, and pickle juice and then tops the smoothie off with her own spit. Kendall takes a gulp of the mixture before Roman pours the entire drink on his brother’s head. Here’s what Jeremy said. via Deadline:

“We did it only a few times and then I went outside and retched and jumped in the ocean, and washed it off my hair,” Strong says in the podcast. “Yeah, I did drink it, yeah.”

“I wouldn’t know how not to drink it,” says the ever-committed Strong. “He wants it that badly, that he’s going to drink whatever that is. But it was disgusting.”

Drinking your co-star’s spit probably isn’t COVID-regulation friendly. Where’s Tom Cruise when you need him?! Jeremy also talked about his character’s final scene. In the end, Kendall loses his dad’s company to Matsson and Tom (Matthew Macfadyen). He’s last seen sitting on a bench in Battery Park, staring out into the New York Harbour, probably wishing he was dead. On the podcast, Jeremy reveals that he used one of his takes to actually climb onto the barrier separating land from ocean, and Scott Nicholson, the actor who played his bodyguard, had to stop him:

“I looked at these waves and it was so windy that day and so cold and there was some piece of metal clanging and it was this terrible sound and I sort of couldn’t bear it. I stood up and walked slowly to the barrier that was set up there and climbed over it,” Strong says. “I didn’t really know what I planned to do, and the actor playing Colin saw me and ran and stopped me from doing it.”

“I’m sure Jesse’s choice is better,” he says, “and in a way I think you see the intentionality in the character.”

Wait, did the guy who played Colin straight-up save Jeremy’s life? And would our enjoyment of the final season have been affected if Jeremy actually drowned? Hmmm. Something to chew on. Here’s the podcast:

Dear Jeremy Strong’s agent: for his next role, please find this poor bastard a character who goes to therapy every single day.

Pic: HBO