‘Widow’s Bay’ Episode 5: Matthew Rhys Shares The Secret To Making Tom’s Psychedelic Shrooms Tour

Last week, Kate O’Flynn wowed as her character Patricia became the life of the party Widow’s Bay brilliant Episode 4. And this week, Matthew Rhys delivers a brilliant performance when his character Tom accidentally takes the shrooms Episode 5.

Spoilers for Widow’s Bay Episode 5 ahead.

“What to Expect on Your Trip,” the fifth episode of Katie Dippold’s horror comedy, opens with a mysterious figure crawling through the snow, pulling black mushrooms from the ground, and devouring them. After a curious cold snap, Tom, Patricia (O’Flynn), and Wyck (Stephen Root) desperately try to understand what led to the gruesome death of Pastor Bryce (Toby Huss). As they search his office for clues, they find the same mushrooms seen earlier in the episode and track down his shaman/drug dealer Todd O’Connor (Chris Fleming) to learn more about the mind-altering drug.

Todd describes shrooms as “a mushroom that blows me away.” He explains that they only grow on the island and compares their side effects to “getting LASIK in your third eye.” Hoping to see whatever Reverend Bryce encounters on his travels, Wyck agrees to take the shrooms, but when Tom accidentally eats them instead, Rhys steps up to do an incredibly high-profile job right there with Ted McGinley’s “Stoneed Derek” on. It is decreasing.

After trying and failing to cleanse the shrooms, Tom prepares for a sinister, terrifying journey full of darkness, sensory distortion, and mood swings. Widow’s BayClever use of sound and cinematography helps viewers feel like they’re seeing the world from Tom’s point of view. But the episode wouldn’t have hit as hard without Rhys’ comedic timing, Emmy-worthy facial expressions, and dedicated commitment to his character’s conflict and inner conflict. The actor has mastered the art of playing a grown man who feels like he is facing every facet of life for the first time. From the random cries and active brows to the blue eyes and flawless body, Rhys’ well-crafted portrayal of Tom is just so much fun. Widow’s Bay working at the moment.

When chatting with Decider, Widow’s Bay star Stephen Root took a moment to shout out Rhys for bringing “one of the most beautiful faces I’ve ever seen.” His secret to playing Tom in shrooms? “Very strong, very strong minds. I took factory prices of LSD, which helped, surprisingly. But it had the effect I wanted,” Rhys joked, adding, “No, just a good Montrachet with a mineral will get you there. Like two and a half bottles and I was on my way.”

The real trick? YouTube.

“YouTube is a great tool for actors these days. You can research anything, so I just researched faces to pull,” Widow’s Bay explained the star. “It’s hard, but thankfully we had these amazing directors that you could give yourself to with such confidence, and they’d say, ‘No. Let’s slow it down. And they were our barometers.'”

In a great episode of Episode 5, Rhys had me on the phone from laughing so hard. But with minutes to spare, as Tom has an emotional fight with his son Evan (Kingston Rumi Southwick) and confronts his past traumas in the bathroom, the haunting memories and palpable grief he brings bring honest tears to my eyes. And in fact Widow’s Bay fashion, the show sent shivers down my spine before the end credits rolled.

When the Emmys’ eligibility window closes on May 31, Widow’s Bay will be airing seven of the ten episodes of Season 1, so at least we can get a better look at the series’ award-winning performances and stellar performances from O’Flynn and Rhys. Episode 5 was another surprise winner, and we can’t wait to see what next week’s rare two-episode drop will bring.

Stay tuned for more Widow’s Bay Information from the Decider.