We’ve all seen it a thousand times – an actor mimes balancing a tray of hot coffee while rushing into an office set, only for us to see when they go to take a sip that the paper cups are empty.
And that’s if we’re lucky. Sometimes we see actors swinging cups at 45-degree angles as they talk, or passing takeaway cups to each other like they’re ping-pong balls.
We’ve already shared at HuffPost UK why actors don’t really eat the food on set. But surely simply holding a container full of liquid can’t ruin your bladder ― so what’s going on?
There are loads of practical considerations
Actor Bridget Regan told TVLine: “I have worked with some absolutely above-and-beyond props men and women that have offered to fill my mug with Americanos, almond milk lattes, etcetera — and topped me up throughout filming until I am so jacked up on caffeine, I’m dancing around the set like a high squirrel.”
Producer Shawn Ryan said in the same interview: “As more people complain about obviously empty cups, I and others have insisted on having liquids in cups onscreen.”
But in general, the empty cup remains a telly constant.
On their behind-the-scenes showbiz podcast The Rest Is Entertainment, telly legend Richard Osman and journalist Marina Hyde said that “if you can see through the cup, it affects continuity [if the water levels change]… so they do usually have coffee cups.”
Plus, the wardrobe department “would hate you” if you spill on their outfits. So, like it or not, the empty TV cup does make sense.
Most people are in the ‘not’ camp, though
In a Reddit post about the topic, a poster to r/television, said it “drives me nuts,” adding: “It would only take two seconds to put some water in it so it looks more realistic!”
“The empty cup is less odd to me than the fake drinking. Drinking from a coffee cup with a lid, or a bottle, [when] nothing [comes] out is pretty obvious,” replied another user.
“Cups don’t bother me. It’s when milk cartons are obviously empty, when walls wobble, or no one in the scene shuts the damn door to the house,” another Redditor said.
And while we already know why actors don’t always say “goodbye” when hanging up on-screen, the door thing? Well, that’s an issue for another piece…
