The world of adult animation is full of surprises, but few can match the story of Creed Bratton’s experience on the set of Smiling Friends.

As part of the show’s third and final season, Bratton was asked to paint himself fully green for an episode called ‘Le Voyage Incroyable de Monsieur Grenouille,’ which brought the show its first Emmy nomination.

According to the show’s co-creators, Zach Hadel and Michael Cusack, Bratton’s commitment to his art was unwavering, even if it meant dealing with the consequences of the paint for weeks to come.

As Hadel recalled during an appearance at Deadline’s Contenders Television: The Nominees Studio, ‘He was so good and really fun to work with. He was painted green fully all over the body.’

The paint, which was designed to last, had not completely come off even by the time Bratton finished filming the episode.

However, the real challenge came when Bratton had to film a movie the next day, still with some green paint on him.

As Cusack revealed, ‘He told our friend, the one that hired him, he said he went to the doctor a month later and they’re just doing a basic checkup. And he’s like, ‘Why is your skin slightly tinged green?’ And he’s like, ‘No, it’s not a health problem. I just painted myself with paint that never comes off, so it’s totally fine.’

The incident highlights the dedication of actors and artists in the entertainment industry, who often go to great lengths to bring their characters to life.

Smiling Friends is an absurdist, mixed-media comedy that stars Cusack and Hadel as Pim and Charlie, employees at a company whose job is to help make unhappy people smile.

The show’s Emmy nomination for Outstanding Animated Program is a testament to the creativity and hard work of the cast and crew.

As Cusack noted, ‘We feel very honored. Obviously, we grew up with all the shows that we’re against and respect them very much. We would’ve never thought in a million years that our little quarter-hour show that we did for Adult Swim would be in this league, so we feel very honored by it and it’s a very nice feeling.’

Despite the challenges of creating a 2D animated series, frame by frame, in 2026, the creators of Smiling Friends have proven that with dedication and creativity, anything is possible.