A rumor that circulated online in July 2025 claimed a video authentically showed actor Paul Rudd reacting to sustaining burn injuries after someone spilled hot coffee on his face. The clip, recorded on a New York City street, showed paramedics loading Rudd, writhing in pain, onto a stretcher and into an ambulance.
For example, on July 10, comedian and podcaster Rick Glassman posted (archived) the clip on TikTok. The video displayed the caption, "Paul Rudd injured while recording a podcast." Glassman also shared on Instagram, in a collaborative post (archived) with his "Take Your Shoes Off w/ Rick Glassman" podcast's account, "Paul Rudd injured from Dunkin' Donuts hot black coffee while filming @shoesoffpod ep 311."
Snopes also received searches and email about this matter, with one person asking, "Can you fact check if Paul Rudd actually got burned in the face by hot coffee during a podcast filming?"
Some users commenting on Glassman's posts showed genuine concern for the actor. One asked how someone sustains an injury while participating in a podcast. Two other users alleged the man in the clip was not Rudd but someone else. A different person also asked for people, including the person recording the video, to give the actor some privacy.
However, as many in-the-know commenters noted with their various jokes — including several users praising Rudd for committing to the bit — the video showed a staged moment from one of Glassman's recent podcast episodes. For any users who viewed only the brief video: No, Rudd did not sustain any real burn injuries. Searches of Bing, DuckDuckGo, Google and Yahoo showed no entertainment-focused or other news media outlets confirming Rudd as experiencing burn injuries. Prominent outlets would have widely reported this rumor, if true.
Instead, an examination of the full podcast video found numerous moments containing hints of an entirely staged episode, all as promotion for Rudd's film "Friendship," as well as Glassman's podcast, online store and stand-up tour dates.
Snopes contacted representatives for both Glassman and Rudd to ask about the video, including inquiring if they could provide an official statement confirming they staged the episode. We will update this story if we receive more information.
Full episode provides hints it's all a bit
The full podcast episode, posted to the Rick Glassman YouTube channel on July 9, begins with Rudd tripping over a cable on the floor. Rudd then shares an awkward moment with Glassman, admitting he has never listened to his podcast.
A person named "Duncan," portrayed by fellow comedic actor Michael Cera, introduces himself as Glassman's assistant. Rudd, playing along with the bit during the nearly 81-minute episode, greets "Duncan" and eventually accepts his offer for a cup of coffee. Rudd and Cera previously acted in several of the same films, including "Year One" and "This Is the End," as well as the animated movie "Sausage Party."
Minutes later, "Duncan" returns into the room with a cup of Dunkin' Donuts coffee. He tells Rudd, "Got your coffee, Paul. This is extremely hot, so I took the lid off." Seconds later, "Duncan" trips and spills the supposedly hot coffee on Rudd's face. Glassman then pours iced coffee on Rudd's face in an attempt to help, and says he's calling an ambulance.
The next sequence shows Glassman carrying Rudd outside, hitting Rudd's head on a door and then dropping him on the sidewalk. Paramedics then load Rudd onto a stretcher and into an ambulance.
At the 34:40 mark in the YouTube video, Glassman begins promoting his stand-up tour dates when Rudd reenters the room with bandages and supposed burn marks all over his face and neck. Regarding those burn marks, while the text description under the clip did not contain any disclaimers about the staged nature of the video, it did include a credit for a make-up artist named Izzi Galindo.
The podcast later ends with Glassman telling Rudd that he defecated in his pants. The video's text description also featured the name A.J. Paratore, credited in many projects as a stunt performer. One stunt shown at the end of the video depicts Rudd as falling down the stairs with a brown stain visible on his pants — a task Paratore potentially performed while wearing similar clothing.
For further reading, another fact check about Rudd previously examined a rumor he pranked actor Seth Rogen by sneaking in and pretending to be his masseuse while Rogen was getting a massage in a Las Vegas hotel. A different article also investigated a satirical claim playing on how some people view Rudd as never visibly aging, alleging he was the same age as actor Gloria Stuart, best known as the elderly depiction of the character Rose in "Titanic," when she filmed the 1997 film.