This week, HBO Max found itself at the center of a comedic blunder with the release of the new 4K remaster of Mad Men. The debut was marred by a series of conspicuous errors that should have been identified before the episodes were made available to viewers. Among the mishaps were incorrect episode titles and, more embarrassingly, shots that included production crew members who should have remained out of sight. These issues were traced back to Lionsgate Television, the original production house for Mad Men, which accidentally sent the wrong set of files for streaming.

One of the most glaring oversights was in the remastered version of the episode “Red in the Face,” where viewers could clearly see Mad Men‘s special effects foreman, Shannon Thompson. In a recent conversation, Thompson, whose portfolio boasts credits such as The Mask, From Dusk Till Dawn, American History X, Dune: Part One, and the latest Matlock reboot, admitted he hadn’t had the chance to view HBO’s remaster. Yet, he vividly recalled working on that particular episode, highlighting it as a prime example of the subtle but significant special effects work that makes everyday TV magic feel genuine.

How did you get into special effects work?

Thompson shared that his journey into special effects stemmed from a longstanding passion for creative and mechanical tasks, such as pyrotechnics. His career began in props, which often overlaps with special effects. Meeting two fellow effects enthusiasts who became his mentors was a pivotal moment, leading to a fulfilling 33-year career in the industry.

Your IMDb page lists numerous major sci-fi and fantasy projects. What kind of special effects work did you do on Mad Men?

On a series like Mad Men, Thompson explained, the focus was predominantly on atmospheric effects. This included creating snow, steam, and rain—elements that appear to move naturally on screen without actor interaction. One of his primary responsibilities was handling the faux elevator doors, a recurring feature in the show. Thompson humorously noted that he often hid behind walls, ready for his cue, mastering the art of making these seemingly mundane effects appear effortlessly real.

What all goes into creating juicy projectile vomit that looks believable and not too ridiculous?

[laughing] Honestly, you spend a lot of time studying and researching the real thing. I had to watch a lot of videos of people vomiting, but then there was the process of testing out how to make that effect, practically. We have this thing called a pressure pot that we fill up whatever liquid they want the vomit to look like in the final shot. You study how that liquid comes out of the hose normally. But then sometimes you have to manipulate the opening on the hose to make the liquid look like it’s actually coming out of someone’s mouth.

If you just have a straight tube, it’ll look like it’s coming out of a tube, so you have to change it and consider what’s in a person’s mouth normally like the teeth and uvula that makes a believable vomiting shape. And then the director will tell you what consistency they want, and you have to ask stuff like, “well, what were they eating? Why are they sick? Is it because they’re drunk or because, they have a virus?”

For “Red in the Face,” do you remember what kinds of conversations you had about the vomit’s consistency?

For that, they actually wanted Roger Sterling to have been eating oysters, and [producer] Matt Weiner was like “it needs to be clam chowder-ish.” So…I wound up using clam chowder, and figuring out how to get it spewing everywhere.

What do you think might have gone wrong in the remastering process that led to you being left in the shot that everyone has seen now?

I guess just not knowing what the future held, you know? Every time we did an effect, we needed to be as close as possible while being just out of the frame.

When you were originally shooting this, was the assumption that you would just be cropped out?

Yeah. Back then, we always tried to camouflage ourselves as much as possible, but these days they tend to just say “we’ll erase it in post.” Only this time, apparently they didn’t erase us.