American actor Stanley Tucci has been an all-round success on stage, television, and film. His versatility is evident in his numerous roles, from sophisticated to menacing. The multi-talented actor also has credits offscreen as a screenwriter, producer, and director.
Stanley Tucci is well-recognized as a character actor and has had tremendous success and accolades for his performances. His friendly nature has also made him one of the easiest actors to work with, whether as a colleague or filmmaker. Here are 9 things you didn’t know about Stanley Tucci.
Stanley Tucci Was Born And Raised In New York
The actor joins the list of Hollywood stars born on the East Coast in New York. Stanley Tucci was born Stanley Oliver Tucci Jr. in Peekskill, New York, on November 11, 1960. His father, Stanley Tucci Sr., was an art teacher, while his mother, Joan Tucci (née Tropiano), was a secretary and writer. As the family’s first child, Tucci was his parent’s pride and joy. The actor has two younger siblings. Although born in Peekskill, Stanley Tucci was raised in Katonah, New York. Tucci attended New York’s John Jay High School and the State University of New York at Purchase (SUNY Purchase).
Stanley Tucci Is Italian Descent
If the last name wasn’t obvious enough, Stanley Tucci is of Italian descent from both parents. His family is from the town of Marzi in Calabria, South Italy. Even from his maternal side, as far back as his great-grandmother, Tucci has Italian ancestry. His great-grandmother, Angela Albanese, was also from Calabria.
He Had An Early Passion For Acting
Stanley Tucci was generally an active child, playing sports in High School. He was part of John Jay High School’s baseball and soccer teams. However, Tucci’s joy came from being in and participating in the drama club. As a natural talent, Tucci stood out quickly with his acting performances in his school plays. Tucci was close friends with actor Campbell Scott, who wasn’t only a High School mate but were both proudly in the drama club.
Like Tucci, Scott also received praise for his fantastic acting talents. Scott came from a family of actors, as the fifth child of actor and filmmaker George C. Scott and Canadian-American actress Colleen Dewhurst’s second and last child. Unsurprisingly, when the time came for college, Stanley Tucci studied Acting at the State University of New York at Purchase, graduating in 1982.
Stanley Tucci And Ving Rhames Were Classmates
Actor Ving Rhames was also born in New York (New York City) and attended SUNY Purchase. Interestingly, Stanley Tucci and Ving Rhames were classmates. Rhames was born Irving Rameses Rhames and credits Tucci for giving him the nickname “Ving” while at the University. Ving Rhames is famously known for his roles as a kingpin in Pulp Fiction (1994) and as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the Mission: Impossible films.
Stanley Tucci Began His Acting Career On Broadway
Poised for a career as an actor, Stanley Tucci was open for opportunities to kickstart his acting career. Luckily, with help from Campbell Scott’s mother, actress Colleen Dewhurst, Tucci landed his first professional acting role on Broadway. Colleen Dewhurst arranged for her son and Tucci to play the roles of soldiers in The Queen and the Rebels, in which she was also cast. The Queen and the Rebels premiered on September 30, 1982, which gives an exact date for the start of Stanley Tucci’s acting career. Tucci made his screen debut later in 1985, playing a soldier in John Huston’s black crime comedy Prizzi’s Honor.
He Made His Directorial Debut In 1996
At the time, Stanley Tucci had worked for over a decade in film and television. With the knowledge acquired, he made his feature directorial debut in 1996 with the comedy-drama Big Night. Tucci co-directed the movie with his longtime friend Campbell Scott. Tucci co-wrote the screenplay with his cousin, screenwriter Joseph Tropiano. Stanley Tucci co-starred alongside Tony Shalhoub, who played his on-screen brother. Besides being nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, Big Night was a critical and commercial success. It grossed $14.2 million on a $4.1 million budget.
Stanley Tucci Has Starred In Several Box Office Hits
Although Stanley Tucci had starred in top films like The Pelican Brief (1993) and Road to Perdition (2002), his international break came in 2006 with The Devil Wears Prada. Cast as Nigel Kipling, a loyal confidant of Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), it was one of his first major roles on the big screen. The Devil Wears Prada grossed $326.7 million at the Box Office. Known for his ability to change his voice and appearance to adapt to a role, Tucci accepted portraying Abraham Erskine in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) because it allowed him to use a German accent. Captain America: The First Avenger’s Box Office success of $370.6 million quickly became Tucci’s highest-grossing movie.
The next year, he was cast to portray the Master of Ceremonies and commentator for the Hunger Games, Caesar Flickerman, in The Hunger Games (2012). He reprised the role in all three sequels in Katniss Everdeen’s (Jennifer Lawrence) timeline. All four movies, The Hunger Games, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 (2014), and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (2015), collectively grossed over $2.9 billion at the Box Office.
Stanley Tucci joined the cast of the Percy Jackson film series in its second and final installment, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013), as Mr. D/Dionysus. The movie grossed $200.9 million on a $90 million budget. In Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014), which grossed $1.104 billion, Tucci played the ambitious, arrogant businessman and the head of KSI, Joshua Joyce. Transformers: Age of Extinction is currently Stanley Tucci’s highest-grossing movie. Although cast in the sequel, Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), Tucci did not reprise his role as Joshua Joyce, but was instead cast as the Wizard Merlin. Transformers: The Last Knight failed to outperform its predecessor, grossing only $605.4 million at the Box Office.
Stanley Tucci Is Married To Actress Emily Blunt’s Older Sister
Stanley Tucci co-starred with British actress Emily Blunt in the 2006 The Devil Wears Prada. However, although they stayed as friends, it wasn’t until Blunt’s wedding to actor John Krasinski in 2010, that she introduced Tucci to her older sister, Felicity Blunt. Tucci had been married to Kathryn Spath before. His first marriage lasted for 14 years before Kathryn Spath’s death from breast cancer in 2009. Tucci engaged Felicity Blunt in 2011, a year after they were introduced at Emily Blunt’s wedding. Stanley Tucci and Felicity Blunt married on September 29, 2012. The couple, who have had two children, live together in London.
He’s A Published Author
Besides being a screenwriter, Stanley Tucci is also a published, best-selling author. Tucci had always stated his love for food and cooking. His first cookbook, The Tucci Cookbook, was published on October 9, 2012. He co-wrote his next cookbook, The Tucci Table: Cooking With Family and Friends (2014), with his wife, Felicity Blunt. Tucci’s third book, Taste: My Life Through Food, published on October 5, 2021, was a New York Times bestseller. Besides his cookbooks, Tucci hosted a food and travel documentary series, Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy, on CNN from 2021 to 2022. If you enjoyed reading about the things you didn’t know about Stanley Tucci, read why does Emily Blunt spend so much time with Stanley Tucci?
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