Who Is The Actor Playing Anthony Bourdain In The Tony Movie?

Anthony Bourdain may have been a household name for many familiar with his culinary prowess, food tourism shows, and books, but who is the actor playing him in the biopic "Tony"? Dominic Sessa plays a young Bourdain in the film adaptation of Bourdain's "Kitchen Confidential". In it, Bourdain navigates the grubby and chaotic Provincetown, Massachusetts, restaurant scene in the 1970s when he discovered his passion for cooking.

Interestingly, Sessa also landed in Massachusetts, albeit the opposite side of the spectrum; an expensive boarding school in Deerfield. It was also there where casting directors plucked him straight out of the drama program and into the role of Angus Tully, opposite Paul Giamatti, in the 2023 Focus Features film "The Holdovers." A testament to his talent, that breakout role earned Sessa a slew of nominations and awards, including a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Since then, Sessa has played a pro bono lawyer in "Tow," a magician in "Now You See Me: Now You Don't," and Michelle Pfeiffer's character's son in the holiday movie "Oh. What. Fun." With all the buzz around "Tony," though, it's safe to say this may be his most important role yet. After all, Sessa is stepping into the shoes of one of the most influential celebrity chefs of all time. Yet, in "Tony," Sessa gets to explore the untold truth of Bourdain before the fame, when he was still a restless 19-year-old trying to find his place in the world — a situation not unlike the one Sessa is facing as an up-and-coming actor.

Dominic Sessa may have more in common with Anthony Bourdain than most people realize. Both Bourdain and Sessa grew up in New Jersey and spent summers at the Jersey Shore. In an interview with The Guardian, Sessa recounted working early shifts at a bakery and partying on the beach until the cops came. Although he didn't know much about Bourdain going into the role, he came to see plenty of himself in the former chef. "Reading about the way Tony described his time in Provincetown, I was like, 'Yeah, I get that. I understand,'" Sessa told The Guardian.

Still, not everyone was immediately sold on Sessa's casting — or even a Bourdain biopic altogether. When the first images of "Tony" surfaced, some Redditors were definitely excited by Sessa's resemblance to Bourdain, while others thought he looked nothing like him and Bourdain would hate the film. Yet as far as his potential for depicting Bourdain well, some Instagram users mentioned Sessa's performance in "The Holdovers" as proof of his acting chops and wondered about a possible Oscar nomination.

As for how Sessa feels about the role, it wasn't really much of a stretch for him. "I found it pretty accessible," he told People Magazine. Director Matt Johnson spoke about how confident he was in Sessa's ability to play Bourdain to the point he didn't want him to do any preparation. In the end, Sessa did his due diligence in researching the role, but only time (and reviews) will tell whether it paid off for the 23-year-old actor.