Jack Nicholson’s On-Set Vomit Scene and a Child’s Path into Film

One summer in 1986, seven-year-old Australian extra Sassica Francis-Bruce was on a church set for *The Witches of Eastwick* in Cohasset, Massachusetts, about 20 miles from Boston. Jack Nicholson, playing the devil, burst into the aisle, launched a profanity-laden tirade and deliberately vomited on the front row. The director shouted “cut,” Nicholson grinned, and the costume department quickly wiped the “cherry pulp and juice ‘vomit’” from the children’s clothes. Francis-Bruce received $100 for the take.

The Guardian

*The Witches of Eastwick* was shot in summer 1986 with Jack Nicholson, Cher, Michelle Pfeiffer and Susan Sarandon. The unnamed director oversaw the scene; the costume department handled the cleanup. Sassica Francis-Bruce’s father, a film editor, accompanied the family and later introduced her to post-production work.

The Guardian

• Summer 1986 – Vomit scene on *The Witches of Eastwick*.

The Guardian

• Late 1980s–early 1990s – Correspondence school; assisted father in a cutting room, manually syncing 35 mm picture and sound.

The Guardian

• Mid-1990s – Visited sets for *Dead Calm*, *Air Force One*, *The Perfect Storm* and *The Shawshank Redemption*.

The Guardian

• 1999–2000 – Production assistant on *Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone*.

The Guardian

Francis-Bruce was paid $100 for the take; the set lay 20 miles from Boston. Craft service offered candy, pastries, chips and sodas (Cherry Coke, 7-Up, Sprite, Ginger Ale, Dr Pepper) that could be taken “whenever you wanted, without asking.” The early on-set exposure fostered a preference for detailed, solitary tasks and ultimately led to a production-assistant role on a major franchise.

The Guardian

The child recalled Nicholson’s sudden “boop” to her nose, the director’s abrupt “cut,” and the costume crew’s rapid cleanup of the simulated vomit. She described the craft-service table as a “magical” source of sweets that felt like “heaven” compared with her usual school lunches.

The Guardian

The article offers no statements from the production company, child-labor regulators, or the director about safety protocols for child extras, leaving oversight and parental-consent procedures undocumented. No production notes or union records were cited, leaving the extent of child-actor supervision unclear.

The Guardian

• “I clearly remember the first time I had a soda because it was the same day Jack Nicholson threw up on me.” — Sassica Francis-Bruce, former extra

The Guardian

• “His eyes were abnormally alert, his hair wild and uncombed and saliva dripped from his mouth like a Neapolitan mastiff.” — Sassica Francis-Bruce

The Guardian

• “The costume department immediately descended on the congregation, wiping the cherry pulp and juice “vomit” off our clothes to reset the scene.” — Sassica Francis-Bruce

The Guardian

• “You could take whatever you wanted, whenever you wanted, without asking.” — Sassica Francis-Bruce, describing the craft service table

The Guardian