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Naomi Watts as Barbara “Babe” Paley and Tom Hollander as Truman Capote in “Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans.”
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Tom Hollander He’s just the latest actor to play the late writer Truman Capote, and that legacy practically turned up the pressure.
Hollander told CNN in a recent interview that he was more than familiar with Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s Oscar-winning portrayal of the writer in the 2005 film “Capote,” as well as Toby Jones in 2006’s “Infamous.”
In fact, Hollander said, he had auditioned for the role that Jones ended up returning to mid-decade, and he rewatched some of Jones and Hoffman’s performances “to make sure I could, that there was something.” I still have to do.”
“I realized that (my performance) would be different. I would be doing my own version,” Hollander said. “I guess one of (Capote’s) legacies is being such an extraordinary character that different actors can play him at different times. Because there are different ways to tell his story.”
The diminutive Capote, with his distinctive voice and penchant for gossip, is at the center of The FX anthology series “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans which airs its final episode on Thursday.
“This is a story, Truman and the Swans, that hasn’t been told before,” the “White Lotus” actor said. “And so we were dealing with different things than any of those movies.”
“Feud” tells the story of “In Cold Blood” writer Capote and the socialites in his life who he called his “swans” in 1960s New York City.
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Tom Hollander as Truman Capote in “Feud: Capote vs. the Swans.”
Ryan Murphy, who is behind the fashion and style project, brought on some major actors for the series, from Gus Van Sant directing six episodes to an all-star cast that included Chloë Sevigny, Diane Lane, Calista Flockhart, Molly Ringwald, Demi Moore, Naomi Watts and the belated treat williams.
Hollander declined to name his “favorite swan,” instead praising all the women for their performances as the group that turned on Capote after he revealed their secrets in a thinly disguised roman à clef.
But he did say that he and Watts have become close given the many scenes they shared that portray the incredibly involved, and at times toxic, relationship between Capote and Watts’ character, Babe Paley.
“We had to do it because, like Babe and Truman, we were very close and that’s a very important part of the story,” Hollander said. “So we spent time together before filming. “She was incredibly welcoming and kind and invited me over before we started filming.”
Another cast member for whom Hollander developed a deep affection was Treat Williams.
In June 2023 Williams. was hit while riding a motorcycle in his home state of Vermont. He was 71 years old.
Hollander called the accident “a senseless life tragedy where you just think, well, why does that have to happen to a man who was the warmest, the most generous and the most charming?”
Williams was delighted with the role of media mogul William S. Paley, his co-star said.
“He had been doing things that didn’t particularly satisfy him,” Hollander said. “He loved (the role of Bill Paley), a great role, which he played brilliantly.”
Such richness of character is something Hollander has also enjoyed in “Feud.”
His Capote is someone who is spiraling from both alcoholism and the loss of the friendships that had meant so much to him. Hollander works hard in every scene, from Capote delivering the sharpest wit the writer used to knock down more than a few, to cooking in his Manhattan apartment.
So what would Hollander, known for his real-life cooking talent, cook for Capote if he could?
The question elicits a smile and a chuckle from the actor.
“I like to cook for my family and for friends when they come,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to cook for a famous and difficult drunk writer who could change at any moment.”
Sounds like wise advice.
“Feud: Capote vs. The Swans” is streaming on Hulu.