Famed actor Bryan Cranston recently tried psilocybin for the first time in an attempt to give a more authentic performance in his latest role.
The Malcolm in the Middle and Breaking Bad star is playing the part of an eccentric entertainment executive in the film industry comedy The Studio. The character, Griffin Mill, eats mushroom chocolates during the series.
In yet another interview with Jimmy Kimmel, he explained that he gave microdosing a shot when him and his co-stars decided to attend a Grateful Dead concert at the Las Vegas venue The Sphere. Cranston is working alongside the famous marijuana smoking funny man Seth Rogen and Catherine O’Hara, who also ingested their low-dose psychoactive chocolates.
“We were in Las Vegas shooting this crazy show with Seth Rogen and we all decided to go to the Sphere to see the Grateful Dead,” Cranston told Kimmel. “If God wasn’t telling me to do microdosing, what was he telling me?!” he exclaimed with his hands in the air as the audience giggled.
This interview with Kimmel marked his ninth appearance on the talk show since its debut in the early 2000s.
Despite working up the courage to experiment with the substance when he saw a band known for its psychedelic sound, Cranston was left disappointed when the microdose was insufficient to provide him with a memorable trip.
“It felt like maybe I took three sips of wine,” he explained to Kimmel before the talk show host responded by saying “You felt no effect?”
“NOTHING!” Cranston said angrily.
Cranston won an Emmy award earlier this month for being an Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series after his season one portrayal of Mill. Although his attempt to experience the conciousness-altering effects of magic mushrooms failed, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences still deemed his psychonaut performance to be award-worthy.
He is more renowned for being associated with blue-tinted crystal methamphetamine than psychedelic fungi.
Production of The Studio’s second season is currently underway. The premiere is anticipated in late 2026.
Bryan Cranston recalls getting advice from Seth Rogen on how to act high on mushrooms for #TheStudio
Deadline x @AppleTV+ ‘The Studio’ FYC Event pic.twitter.com/7GTbbYXhi5
— Deadline (@DEADLINE) August 16, 2025
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