New York native and national treasure, Stanley Tucci, has been active in the film industry for 40 years. Beginning as a Broadway actor (and after an appearance in a Levi’s commercial), he moved onto the Hollywood scene with his debut in the 1985 film “Prizzi’s Honor.” He made his directorial debut in 1996 with the comedy “Big Night,” in which he also starred alongside Tony Shalhoub. He enjoys being behind the camera because “as a director, [he] also [gets] to sit and watch actors and learn from them in a way that [he doesn’t] get to do when [he’s] just acting.” 

After thirteen more years of massive success in films such as Devil Wears Prada and the on-screen adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Tucci was nominated for the 2009 Oscars Best Supporting Actor Award for his role as George Harvey in The Lovely Bones. 

The following year, he reconnected with Felicity Blunt at her sister, Emily Blunt’s, wedding to John Krasinski. Tucci and Blunt married in 2012 and have two children together, Matteo and Emilia, who would be brother and sister to Isabel, Camilla, and Nicolo, with whom Tucci had with his late first wife, Kate.

Though Stanley Tucci has always been a well-known name, he reached new audiences amidst the times of COVID quarantine. His unexpected skillset in mixology left him trending on Twitter for a few days in 2020. Tucci trended once again in November of 2022 when he celebrated his 62nd birthday with a more unconventional “cake”, or, rather, a wheel of cheese.

The actor has also published two cookbooks since 2012, as well as a memoir in 2021, in which he tells of his life outside of the kitchen alongside recipes attached to the memories. In his memoir, Tase: My Life Through Food, the actor reveals that he had tongue cancer in 2017. For a moment, his sense of smell disappeared and everyone seemed to taste horrible. He underwent a seven-week chemotherapy treatment to rid the tumor that was too large to remove surgically. Luckily, his smell and taste have since returned, and he notes that they are even better than before. 

Tucci takes on a role closer to home in his 6-part series Stanley Tucci: Searching For Italy, where he explores the beauty of Italian cuisine. Though he was born in New York, he has always been in touch with his Italian roots. When he was young, he lived in Florence for a year, tagging alongside his dad, who was taking a year off of his regular work as a teacher to travel.

His latest role was in a 2022 Netflix drama called The Inside Man. Without revealing any spoilers, he plays a criminologist on death row who is working with the police to find the remains of his murdered wife. In twisted ways, his story connects with that of a British vicar played by David Tennant. The four-part series is a must-watch.

Barrientos, Selena. “The Incredible Way Stanley Tucci Found Love with Felicity Blunt after His First Wife’s Death.” Good Housekeeping, Good Housekeeping, 4 Sept. 2021, https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/a37396086/stanley-tucci-wife-felicity-blunt-marriage-kids/.

“Stanley Tucci Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/stanley_tucci_260556.

Truffaut-Wong, Olivia. “11 Surprising Facts about Stanley Tucci.” Mental Floss, Mental Floss, 1 Feb. 2021, https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/639873/stanley-tucci-actor-facts.