The A24 biopic "Tony," which opened in limited release this weekend, traces one formative period in the life of the late chef and television host Anthony Bourdain rather than telling a full life story. Written by Todd Bartels and Lou Howe, the film focuses on the years Bourdain spent as a young dishwasher-turned-line-cook in Provincetown, Massachusetts, drawing on chapters of his memoir "Kitchen Confidential" and on research trips the writers made to the seaside town, including visits to his favourite dive bar, Old Colony Tap.

Directed by Matt Johnson, the film stars Dominic Sessa, known for "The Holdovers," as the young Bourdain, alongside Leo Woodall. Bartels and Howe, who previously wrote the Black List-recognised Dolly Parton script "Dumb Blonde," pitched the coming-of-age concept to Bourdain's estate—his literary agent Kimberly Witherspoon and widow Ottavia Busia—before fleshing out the story into a full spec script during the 2023 WGA strike. Bourdain, who died in 2018, once described his younger self as "a spoiled, miserable, narcissistic, self-destructive and thoughtless young lout."