Succession’s Jeremy Strong says method acting made him drink retch-inducing smoothie in series finale

Jeremy Strong has revealed that he really drank the disgusting smoothie that featured in the series finale of Succession.

The acclaimed HBO drama, which was released on Sky and NOW in the UK, reached its dramatic conclusion in the early hours of Monday (29 May) morning.

Spoilers follow for the series finale of Succession...

In the episode, Kendall Roy (Strong) is poised to become the boss of Waystar RoyCo after his sister Shiv (Sarah Snook) agrees to back him.

Along with fellow sibling Roman (Kieran Culkin), Shiv prepares a revolting drink in a blender, which Kendall is then made to drink in a scene of light-hearted hazing.

Described as a “meal fit for a king”, the concoction contains a number of pungent ingredients, including raw eggs, Tabasco sauce, milk, bread crusts, cocoa powder, out-of-date pickles, and his sister’s spit.

Speaking on the Succession podcast following the airing of the finale, Strong, a well-known method actor, revealed that he drank the smoothie for real.

“We did it only a few times and I went outside and retched and jumped in the ocean and washed it off my hair,” the 44-year-old actor said.

“And yeah, I did drink it. I wouldn’t know how not to drink it. He wants it that badly that he’s gonna drink whatever that is, right, but it was disgusting.”

You can read The Independent’s review and recap of the feature-length finale here.

Succession creator Jesse Armstrong gave an interview after the final episode explaining why the unexpected ending for the series was the “right” one.

For a breakdown of what exactly the ending meant, you can find an explainer about Succession’s haunting final scenes here.

After the episode aired, Snook also shared a tribute to her fellow cast members in a heartfelt Instagram post.

“It’s hard to express what this show has meant to me. The places I got to go, the immense talent I got to work with… it breaks my heart that it is all over,” she wrote.