The script for Tony is being written by Todd Bartels and Lou Howe. Set in 1976 in Provincetown, Massachusetts, the film describes how the young Bourdain had what Variety called a “life-changing” experience that eventually propelled him to travel the worldin search of culinary excellence.

In 1978, Bourdain enrolled in culinary school and became executive chef at the prestigious Brasserie Les Halles in New York City. He recounted many anecdotes of his restaurant career in his 2000 memoir, Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly  In Bourdain died, a suicide, in France and won a posthumous Emmy for No Reservations and Parts Unknown. In the latter film, Bourdain traveled the globe in search of the cultures and cuisines of out-of-the-way places. The series won twelve Primetime Emmy awards out of 31 nominations and also captured a Peabody award in 2013.

A24 is co-financing and co-producing the movie together with Star Thrower and Zapruder Films. Howe and Bartels will serve as executive producers along with Kimberly Witherspoon, Chris Stinson, Amy Greene, and Emily Rose.

Johnson’s credits include the director’s slot for Blackberry, The Dirties, and Avalanche. His film Nirvana the Band and Show the Movie was a time-travel mockumentaty that premiered at the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival in 2025.  It’s been reported that Johnson will be directing Magic: The Gathering for Legendary Entertainment and Hasbro Entertainment, but nothing has yet been officially confirmed.

A release date for the Tony biopic has not yet been announced, though filming is expected to begin within a few weeks.

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