“I had the pleasure of going down and meeting him”: Nonnas star Vince Vaughn on meeting the man who inspired the movie

Vince Vaughn stars in Nonnas, Netflix's latest hit dramedy that revolves around a true story. It follows Vaughn as Italian-American restauranter Jody "Joe" Scaravella, who decided to honor his deceased mother's memories by opening an Italian restaurant. He brought in actual grandmothers as chefs to offer an authentic experience and to share the joy of their family recipes.

The Vince Vaughn starrer comes from a similar place, full of love and gratitude to celebrate these women instead of using them. It also shows Joe Scaravella making a cameo appearance. So, during a recent interview, Screerant asked Vaughn about meeting the real-life inspiration in person. Vaughn said,

"I had the pleasure of going down and meeting him. I was really impressed with him. He is a real artist. He loved creating the experience. He was focused on the idea of it."

Vaughn further added how director Stephen Chbosky's wife and screenwriter Liz Maccie led them to work on this heartwarming project.

"It really came from Stephen's wife, Liz, who wrote the story inspired by this. When they came to it, I connected to so many elements of it."

However, Vaughn met the real-life inspiration for his character even before sharing the screen with him.

Nonnas stars Vince Vaughn and Joe Manganiello share the experience of dining at the Enoteca Maria

Nonnas follows Joe Scaravella's journey of starting the Enoteca Maria restaurant in Staten Island with actual grandmothers. Joe Manganiello plays Scaravella's best friend and contractor, Bruno. So, while working on the Netflix film, Manganiello and Vince Vaughn went to experience dining at the actual restaurant. That's when they met the real-life restaurateur.

During a conversation with Mashable, Manganiello spoke about this experience.

"Vince and I went to the real Enoteca Maria to meet Joe [Scaravella] and Bruno. We had dinner and the nonnas served us. There's [also] a Puerto Rican nonna now and there's a Japanese nonna. We had this gigantic meal that just wouldn't end. It was just endless."

Manganiello had nothing but good things to say about his wholesome experience. Vaughn was also overwhelmed by their generosity and hospitality. When asked about his connection to the real-life inspiration as an actor, Vaughn told Mashable,

"I was really taken by how committed he was to the experience he was creating for people. He was already on to other ideas, but it was less for him for how he was making profits. He was focused on really creating experiences. I think, there's something in cooking with that."

Vaughn further spoke about a parallel he noticed between cooking and filmmaking.

"When you take so much time and you're putting so much effort and love into that. And part of the fun is the see others enjoy it. The filmmaking process can be like that. You spend so much time on that in creating something and the joy of it is really to share it with other people and share those feelings and the different moments that you're investigating."

Susan Sarandon, the Oscar-winning actress from Thelma & Louise and Dead Man Walking, who stars as one of the nonnas, also spoke about the grandmothers that serve as the inspiration for the film.

"These women, who didn't have a shot for whatever reason to have an outside job or hobbies or find their artistic pursuits, found it in the delicacies of what they cooked. So, it wasn't just a duty. I think it was also a way of their expression and that's why they kept their recipes very secret and everything else."

Nonnas is currently streaming on Netflix.

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Also read: Nonnas: Release date news, streaming details, cast details and more

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