By Marie-Louise Gumuchian
LONDON (Reuters) -Stanley Tucci is no stranger to hosting a television series, but when asked how it compares to acting, the Oscar nominee is clear: “Hosting is harder because you have to be yourself.
“And the reason actors become actors is they probably don’t want to be themselves all the time,” he said, laughing.
Known for films like “Conclave”, “Julie & Julia”, “The Devil Wears Prada” and “The Hunger Games”, Tucci embarks on a culinary journey across Italy in his new show, “Tucci in Italy”.
From sampling traditional knödel in Trentino Alto-Adige to tucking into succulent porchetta in Lazio, the five-episode series sees him talking to chefs, farmers, shopkeepers and everyday Italians about their food and traditions.
He describes it as “an exploration of what makes up Italy through the prism of food”.
“(Italians) live to eat and everybody else eats to live… You can talk to a cab driver and you can talk to someone of the aristocracy…and they’ll talk about food in the same way,” Tucci said in an interview with Reuters.
“And were they to meet, they would talk about food in the same way and they would talk in-depth about it. I don’t know another culture that would do that, where it just breaks down all boundaries.”
In the show, Tucci travels to five regions – Tuscany, Lombardy, Trentino Alto-Adige, Lazio and Abruzzo.
While not a fan of spice, Tucci said he was willing to try anything: “I sort of did, I think, on this trip. There was lots of offal, which I love.””When I was watching the episodes again, I was like, there really is a lot of offal in these episodes…but that’s just a part of what Italy is and that’s what they eat.”
Tucci, the author of several cookbooks, has Italian origins and has lived as well as visited the country before – including for his previous travel and food show, “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy”.
“The more I travel through Italy, the more I see…reminders of people in my childhood,” he said.
“You might see somebody who looks like your aunt or your great aunt or your grandfather…and it makes you feel connected to the people that you’ve lost.”
“Tucci in Italy” streams on Disney+ from May 19 and premieres on National Geographic on May 21.
(Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Ros Russell)
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