CNN Hopes to Gain Sustenance From Tony Shalhoub’s ‘Breaking Bread’
Tony Shaloub is offering a twist on a familiar recipe at CNN.
The actor, known for memorable turns in series such as “Wings,” “Monk” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” is trying his hand at a decidedly different role. In “Tony Shalhoub Breaking Bread,” the latest in CNN’s signature food-and-travel documentary series, Shalhoub examines the way bread plays a central role in diets everywhere from Japan to Brazil. and tries sourdough pizza, bread made from cassava flour and more.
“Bread is so tied to memory,” says the actor, during a recent interview, noting that he and producers discovered during their travels that many people eat the way they do because they can recall “memories of when they were a child. ‘I had a mother or grandfather who did this, made this thing, ate this with butter, with cheese, with jam.’ These memories are so ingrained and they just live inside of someone forever.”
The six-part series, “Tony Shalhoub Breaking Bread,” will debut this fall and marks CNN’s latest effort to captivate audiences with original documentary programming featuring an interesting personality traveling the globe to analyze food and culture. The tradition kicked off with Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown” in 2013, and has continued with “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy,” “Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico” and a follow-up, “Eva Longoria: Searching for Spain.” The Tucci series proved popular enough that Disney’s National Geographic network picked up a successor series with the actor after he and CNN parted ways.
“CNN Original Series has a rich legacy of narratives driven through food and travel, and the brilliant Tony Shalhoub is a distinguished addition to our lineup of dynamic and curious storytellers at the helm of our signature programming,” said Amy Entelis, executive vice president of talent, CNN Originals and creative development for CNN Worldwide, in a statement.
Shalhoub says he’s learning about himself as he finds out new things about focaccia and baguettes. “For 45 years, I’ve been doing scripted material. Tell me the words, tell me what face to make and I’m very comfortable,” he says. In the new series, however, he’s exploring new people and new environments and ideas,” and discovering who he is “out of my sphere as an actor.”
As Shalhoub journeys with viewers to different parts of the world, they learn “how bread connects to history and to culture and, especially, to other foods.” He thinks they will be willing to travel along with him because “I don’t pretend to be an expert baker. I don’t pretend to be that knowledgeable about bread. I am curious and I’m with the audience, and I’m doing this exploration.”
The actor may have some relevant experience. He has become an investor in two Italian restaurants in New York City, and he’s gone behind the scenes of a kitchen, at least on film. In 1996, he was one of the stars — interestingly enough with Stanley Tucci — in the movie “Big Night” about two brothers who hope to use a special dinner to gain enough notice to keep their restaurant open for business.
The idea behind the series has been on his mind for years. He credits a nephew for coming up with the seed of a concept for the show, having Shalhoub explore breads in different countries. After all, the actor says, “it has very few ingredients, but it is done differently all over the world.” Tamara Weiss, an executive producer on the show who is also one of Shalhoub’s friends, was enthusiastic about the idea and kept after him to try and develop it further. The series is produced by Lionsgate Alternative Television and originates from its Blackfin label.
Shalhoub hopes CNN viewers develop a taste for the new show. “I’m just hoping people will get into it, and that it sparks some interest and curiosity.”
