Dominic Sessa says portraying a young Anthony Bourdain in “Tony” was made easier by the film’s focus on an obscure period of his life rather than recreating the famous chef and television host at the height of his career. The fictional biopic follows Bourdain at 19 during a formative 1975 summer, using his lies and uncertainty to explore traits that foreshadow later personal struggles.

Set in Provincetown, Massachusetts, the film depicts Tony following an older crush after falsely claiming to have won a writing fellowship, then finding work in a seafood kitchen. Directed by Matt Johnson, it is described as more of a coming-of-age film than a conventional biopic and is the first fictional dramatisation of Bourdain’s life; it also gives Sessa, known for “The Holdovers”, his first leading role.