Hollywood Gets High: 10 Times Weed Stole the Show in Pop Culture

Smoke Screens: How Hollywood Has Lit Up Cannabis Culture

• Reefer Madness
• Half Baked
• Hemp For Victory
• Pineapple Express
• Broad City
• The Simpsons
• The Big Lebowski
• Midsommar
• Disjointed
• How High

At TheCannaCompany.com, we primarily focus on CBD, CBG, and THCa. That said, we’ve all smoked our fair share of weed throughout the years. Today, we reflect on some of our favorite moments that Hollywood Got High.

Lights, camera, cannabis. Weed has played everything from villain to sidekick to unexpected hero in the movies and shows we love. From government propaganda to stoner comedies to subtle nods in animated sitcoms, cannabis has been a scene-stealer for decades. Whether it’s hemp’s practical power or THC’s psychedelic punchline, marijuana keeps popping up in pop culture in ways that say a lot about how we’ve viewed it—seriously, stupidly, or somewhere in between.

Here are 10 moments where weed made its mark on the screen.

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Reefer Madness (1936)
Originally released as a cautionary tale, Reefer Madness is now an unintentional comedy cult classic. The film warned audiences that marijuana would lead to jazz music, dancing, and total moral collapse. In a way, they weren’t wrong—jazz and dancing are rad.

Favorite moment: The guy playing piano while absolutely losing his mind, smoke curling around him like he’s summoning demons. It’s so bad, it loops back around to genius.

Half Baked (1998)
This stoner staple gave us the perfect crew of lovable potheads, including Dave Chappelle’s iconic line: “I’m here today because I’m addicted… to marijuana.” The courtroom silence that follows is pure gold. It’s satire, it’s ridiculous, and it’s a love letter to getting high and helping friends.

Favorite moment: When Scarface quits his job mid-shift with a profanity-laced mic drop: “Fck you, fck you, you’re cool, and f*ck you—I’m out!” Iconic.

Hemp for Victory (1942)
Yes, this is real. During WWII, the U.S. government actually encouraged farmers to grow hemp to help support the war effort—ropes, parachutes, and other military supplies depended on it. The film was buried for decades and denied by the government until VHS copies surfaced in the ‘80s. It wasn’t on my radar until I got into the hemp industry, but now I bring it up in casual conversation like an old-school conspiracy theory.

Favorite moment: Just hearing the narrator’s serious 1940s voice say “Hemp for Victory” while showing hemp rope swinging from Navy ships is surreal.

Pineapple Express (2008)
Seth Rogen and James Franco gave us the world’s first cannabis-fueled action movie. A rare strain, a murder witness, and a lot of gunfire—all brought together by weed. It’s part buddy comedy, part chase thriller, and all doobie-fueled chaos. I saw this in theaters with a crew of friends the summer it came out. We pre-gamed hard, got popcorn, and laughed our asses off the entire time. The mix of absurd violence and stoner logic is weirdly perfect.

Favorite moment: Franco in his pajamas, stuck in the forest, eating a sandwich mid-chase. Just peak chaos energy.

Broad City (2014–2019)
Ilana and Abbi normalize everyday weed use with hilarious, chaotic energy. It’s not the focus of the show—it’s just part of life. And that’s exactly what makes it groundbreaking. This show hit during a time when weed had become part of my everyday life. Seeing Ilana light up during brunch or pre-party like it’s nothing felt refreshingly normal. It wasn’t “look at these wacky stoners!”—it was just life.

Favorite moment: The episode where Ilana has weed hidden all over her apartment in elaborate compartments and forgets where she put her stash. Relatable content.

The Simpsons – “Weekend at Burnsie’s” (2002)
After a crow attack (classic Homer), he gets prescribed medical marijuana and starts seeing the world in technicolor. The episode somehow critiques and celebrates weed all at once, making it a surprisingly nuanced look at legalization debates before they were mainstream. I watched this one live when it aired and remember being shocked that The Simpsons went there. Homer using medical marijuana? In 2002?! Wild. And the trippy animation sequence still holds up.

Favorite moment: When Homer sees Flanders’ head as a sunflower and just starts giggling. Perfect blend of weed humor and classic Simpson absurdity.

The Big Lebowski (1998)
The Dude abides, man. This film doesn’t make weed its centerpiece, but it flavors everything—from the dialogue to the pace to the attitude. It’s not about being a stoner. It’s about being chill while the world unravels around you. This was a college dorm discovery for me. We passed a joint around and let The Dude take us for a ride. It’s not about weed, but it is—because weed is the Dude. Chill, a little lost, always in a bathrobe.

Favorite moment: The dream sequence with bowling pins, a Viking lady, and Kenny Rogers playing in the background. What even is that? I love it.

Midsommar (2019)
Not a stoner comedy. Far from it. But the use of psychedelics and herbal concoctions (plus a dash of paranoia) show how cannabis-adjacent rituals appear in dark, twisted narratives. It’s a trip—literally and figuratively. I wouldn’t call this a “fun” movie, but I’ll never forget seeing it in theaters and feeling like I’d accidentally taken shrooms. It’s unnerving, lush, and full of ritualistic herbal references.

Favorite moment: When the characters drink that psychedelic tea before the May Queen ceremony and everything starts pulsing just slightly. If you’ve tripped before, you know that vibe.

Disjointed (2017–2018)
Kathy Bates plays a cannabis dispensary owner in this short-lived sitcom that blends humor, politics, and plenty of smoke. It didn’t last long, but it gave us a peek into the post-legalization retail world with a sitcom twist. Honestly, this show didn’t totally work—but I still enjoyed it. Watching Kathy Bates run a dispensary felt like sitcom wish-fulfillment. I binged it while working on hemp branding, and some of the sketches hit harder than expected.

Favorite moment: The animated sequences that dive into a character’s inner weed thoughts. They’re trippy, smart, and kind of beautiful.

How High (2001)
Two stoners (Method Man and Redman) use the ashes of a dead friend to grow magical weed that gets them into Harvard. It’s dumb in all the right ways, and underneath the jokes is a sly commentary on academic elitism and access. This was the college dorm classic. I didn’t even like the movie that much at first, but I loved watching it high. It’s so dumb it’s brilliant, and Redman and Method Man’s chemistry is unmatched.

Favorite moment: The Harvard interview scene where they accidentally impress the professors with nonsense. I laughed so hard I spilled bong water on the floor. No regrets.

Closing Thoughts

Weed in pop culture is like the friend who shows up uninvited and still makes the party better. Whether it’s propaganda, parody, or poetic realism, cannabis has helped shape our cultural imagination—and I love that it’s evolving alongside the real-life plant.

Like I mentioned at the top, at The Canna Company, we love our weed. Whether you’re looking for CBD to chill, THCa to lift you, or CBG to balance your day, we’re here for the highs and the healing.

Drop your favorite weed moments in the comments—and if you’re feeling inspired, check out our blog for more cannabis culture and science.