Prop makers frequently have to make props that aren’t just handled, but consumed by an actor. Food stylists like Melissa McSorley have to replicate an object’s true properties while making something safe to eat. Typical prop blood can be safe to put around an actor’s mouth is small qualities, but in HBO’s “True Blood,” the characters had to consume a lot of blood, meaning her concoction had to go far beyond red juice. She also found ways to replicate the viscosity of blood. McSorley used cleverly disguised dates to imitate a live cockroach for “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” and made edible maggots from scratch for Netflix’s “Daybreak,” so she wouldn’t harm any actual live maggots.
