‘Mad Men’ Fans Spot Fake Vomit Machine Operator in HBO Max Release Blunder

The newly released 4K version of “Mad Men” on HBO Max was meant to give fans a better look at their favorite series. However, viewers quickly noticed a strange mistake in one of the early episodes.

In the Season 1 episode “Red in the Face,” fans spotted a crew member operating a fake vomit machine in plain sight during a scene where Roger Sterling (John Slattery) gets sick. When Roger starts vomiting, you can clearly see the crew member behind him, holding a hose and pumping out fake vomit. At one point, another person’s hand even rests on the operator’s shoulder.

Fans took to social media to share the mistake, with some finding humor in the situation. Many were surprised that such a glaring error made it into the final release without being caught earlier.

But that wasn’t the only mishap in the 4K release. In Season 2, Episode 4, Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss) is seen walking by ads for SIM cards and a Mexican restaurant in LA, despite the show being set in 1960s New York City.

Experts in remastering processes suggested that the issue likely occurred during the conversion of the show filmed on 35mm film to higher resolution formats. This process can sometimes reveal parts of the image that were originally cropped out of the broadcast version.

On top of these errors, some episodes of Season 1 appeared mislabeled or out of order during the rollout. Users reported clicking on one title only to find the contents of a different episode, though the issue has since been resolved.

It turns out that Lionsgate delivered the wrong 4K files to HBO Max, and they are working on getting the correct files to the streaming service. Despite these technical hiccups, “Mad Men” remains a beloved series with a strong fan base.

The show originally aired on AMC from 2007 to 2015, winning numerous awards and nominations during its seven-season run. Hopefully, the issues with the 4K release will be fixed soon so fans can enjoy the series in all its glory.