You likely name an iconic movie scene where someone smokes a cigar. Whether it’s James Bond, Wolverine, or a biopic of Sir Winston Churchill, some characters are famous for lighting up at every opportunity.

But do actors really smoke in movies, or is it all Hollywood magic? In older flicks, the cigars and cigarettes would have been real, but do modern-day guidelines allow the use of real tobacco on set?

In this article, we’ll look at the history of smoking in the movie industry, current SAG-AFTRA guidelines, clever alternatives, and special effects. So, do actors really smoke on set? Let’s find out.

On-screen smoking dates back to the very beginning of the movie industry. In the 1920s-30s, sponsorship by the big tobacco companies ensured their cigarettes got plenty of screen time, leading many audience members to pick up the habit.

A cigarette or cigar in an actor’s hand can be an excellent prop. Taking a puff can add a pause to a dramatic scene while waving it around can add energy or a sense of mania.

But do actors really smoke cigarettes in movies? That can depend on the movie, the actor, and the scene.

Some actors prefer the authenticity of using real cigars. Even in recent movies like Darkest Hour (2017), Gary Oldman reportedly smoked $40,000 of Romeo y Julieta cigars (Churchill’s real-life favorites, so much so that the company went on to name a vitola after him).

But smoking 10-12 cigars a day for three months might not appeal to actors who aren’t as ‘method’ as Oldman, which is why substitutes like e-cigars and even CGI smoke are sometimes used.

The long history of smoking in movies has seen several landmark rulings restrict the depiction of tobacco on-screen. In the 1970s, a ban on broadcast advertising of tobacco led to a rise in sponsorship and product placement.

But 1998’s Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement stopped paid product placements in TV, movies, live theater, and even in music and video games. So, where are we now?

The actors’ labor union SAG-AFTRA has several guidelines in place for filming scenes where a performer is required to smoke or be present in a smoky environment.

For example, in a 1999 Safety Bulletin, SAG-AFTRA advised that tobacco smoke should not be used as a source of artificial smoke for special effects, and should only appear on film as a result of an actor smoking in a scene.

Actors (including background characters and extras) should be notified at the audition stage if they will be performing in a smoky environment and may refuse to participate in such scenes if this advance warning isn’t given.

There is also a pay increase in SAG-AFTRA’s standard contract for performers who are asked to undertake “work in smoke”. This adds just over $50 to the day rate for extras and also applies to work done in wet, dusty, or snowy conditions.

With these various restrictions in place, more production studios are choosing to use alternatives to real cigarettes and cigars. Luckily, modern technology is helping to make this easier to do.

Nowadays, it’s not just a question of “Do actors really smoke on set,” it’s increasingly a question of “What do actors smoke on set?”

Herbal cigars

Tobacco-free herbal cigars can take the place of the real thing if actors need to smoke a lot during filming. This removes the intake of nicotine, but they’ll still have to act in a smoky environment, raising production costs.

British brand Honeyrose London is one manufacturer of smokeable prop cigars. The wrapper is a real tobacco leaf, but the filler is a blend of marshmallow leaves, rose petals, red clover flowers, fruit juices, and honey.

E-cigars

Electronic cigars, also known as e-cigars or ‘cigar vapes’ can be surprisingly convincing. A realistic-looking wrapper can disguise the plastic case and the cloud of vape smoke means no need to add it in post-production.

Different vape liquids can be used to achieve different effects (e.g. if less smoke is desired during a long scene). There are options for zero-nicotine fluids, too.

Fake cigars

Where e-cigars are a substitute for smoking, fake cigars are purely a visual prop. To promote realism, they are wrapped in real tobacco leaves or a convincing artificial alternative.

Some fake cigars have a mechanism to create smoke that doesn’t require the actor to inhale anything. Others are not functional and simulated smoke must be added to complete the effect, either practically or digitally.

If the prop itself can’t produce smoke, the director and visual effects (VFX) department must find a solution. That can be a practical effect achieved in vision or a digital process added later.

Practical smoke

In some scenes, it may be more important for a smoky atmosphere rather than for the individual cigars to produce smoke.

This can be achieved with a normal fog machine. A special fluid is pumped into a fan, which blows it into the air as a fine cloud. It’s safe to act in for long periods and it doesn’t need any special post-production work, making it great for authenticity or movies with minimal use of computer-generated imagery (CGI).

Digital smoke

It’s not easy to create realistic smoke using CGI. Smoke acts like a fluid, which is incredibly difficult for computers to simulate because of its complex physics. All the microscopic particles in a smoke cloud plus the inherent transparency of smoke make it a tough add.

However, modern VFX techniques have created increasingly convincing software to do this. With the SAG-AFTRA guidelines on filming in smoky environments (regardless of whether the smoke is from a cigar or cigarette), it’s understandable that even some low-budget movies now find it cheaper to add the smoke in post-production than create it on set.

Sometimes art imitates life, and sometimes life imitates art. Cigar-smoking characters like James Bond and Scarface have inspired generations of movie lovers to try cigars for the first time through legendary cigar-smoking scenes.

Ian Fleming’s secret agent has been linked with several cigar studios, and it was Roger Moore who started this character trait. The preference for Montecristos came from the actor, not the source material.

By the Brosnan years, 007 was smoking Romeo y Julieta cigars and inadvertently invented a new category of cigars. Brosnan’s Bond visits a cigar factory and asks for the ‘Delectados,’ a code word for meeting his contact.

It’s no surprise that real-world cigar studios started to produce cigars called ‘Delectados’ in response to this, including one made by long-time Davidoff cigars master blender Eladio Diaz.

Aside from Bond, there are plenty of scenes from iconic movies that have influenced viewers by demonstrating the celebration and sophistication of cigar smoking. Whether it’s the smoking scene of the five families in The Godfather(1972) or Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cigar moments in Predator (1987), each shows cigar smoking for the art that it is.

So, “do actors really smoke cigars in movies?” Yes, but not all the time. With so many alternatives (and good safety/budget reasons to use them), often your favorite cigar-toting character might really be smoking a herbal stogie, or not even smoking at all.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy your favorite cigar at home, especially with the fantastic prices on singles and boxes at JR Cigars!