NEWSMackenzie Phillips Recalls Being Told to 'Pee in a Cup' for Surprise Drug Test Before 'One Day at a Time' Firing
Mackenzie Phillips revealed the surprise drug test she was mandated to take while filming 'One Day at a Time' that led to her being fired from the show.
July 20 2026, Updated 6:33 a.m. ET
Mackenzie Phillips is opening up about the circumstances that led to her firing from One Day at a Time at the height of the show's success.
The actress made an appearance at Fanboy Expo Knoxville on July 10, where she gave insight into what really went on behind the scenes of the hit sitcom.
She revealed that it all came down to the violation of her contract with the show's creators, per People.
Mackenzie Phillips said she was told to 'pee in a cup' for a surprise drug test on the set of 'One Day at a Time.'
According to Phillips, her contract entailed that if anybody suspected her of being intoxicated while on set, she would have to go "to a doctor for urinalysis" immediately.
She recalled that the day she got caught was much like any other day on set.
She explained that "everybody would just take a little nap" during the lunch break, and she was doing the same, lying on the couch.
"And [co-executive producer] Patricia Fass Palmer, who I hated for years and now we’re very good friends, she came up to me, and she said, ‘Mac, wake up. Wake up. We’re gonna take you to the doctor and have you pee in a cup," she said.
Mackenzie Phillips Recalled Being Fired From 'One Day at a Time'
Mackenzie Phillips said she was told to leave 'One Day at a Time' on the spot after resisting her drug test.
However, Phillips resisted at the time, thinking that "cocaine runs through your system so quickly," but that only seemed to raise more alarm and made Palmer more determined in her decision.
"She said, ‘No, we’re not waiting until tomorrow.’ And I said, ‘Okay, well,’" the actress recalled of that fateful day.
"She said, ‘All right, Mac. Grab your stuff and get it together. Get all your stuff. And leave.’ So that’s what I did. And that was that," the sitcom star concluded.
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
Mackenzie Phillips Previously Opened Up About Using Drugs on the Set of 'One Day at a Time'
Mackenzie Phillips has been candid about her past drug abuse for years.
This is not the first time the American Graffiti star has opened up about her past drug usage on the set of One Day at a Time.
A couple of months ago, she spoke to Fox News Digital, recalling how she and her costar Valerie Bertinelli, who played her onscreen sister, would sneak off to get high while filming the show.
"So this might surprise you that during lunch break, Valerie and I would drive to my house, get in the pool, drink wine, and snort coke," she said.
Mackenzie Phillips previously said she and costar Valerie Bertinelli would 'snort cocaine' while filming 'One Day at a Time.'
"But Valerie talks about it openly, so it’s not like I’m pulling her covers or anything," she continued.
"The thing was that I was the — Valerie didn’t have the kind of addiction that I had. She didn’t have [an] addiction," the 66-year-old actress acknowledged.
"I just happened to be the one that got caught. And thank God I got caught, you know?" Phillips said in conclusion.
