Tan France is a very nice man but soon you’ll be seeing him in an entirely different light.
Don’t worry, he hasn’t suddenly had a personality transplant, instead, he is trying out a new avenue – acting.
The 41-year-old is swapping his day job on the reality show Queer Eye for playing fictional baddie Zubair in the Disney Plus series, Deli Boys. The intriguing character is described as ‘a British Pakistani gang leader who is smart, intimidating and dressed to kill.’
Tan may have had no professional acting experience, but he credits his lifelong obsession with one soap as a tremendous help.
‘I was an EastEnders kid. I’ve lived in EastEnders my entire life, sometimes even now I watch EastEnders in the US on a VPN,’ he excitedly blurted out to Metro.
‘I loved it, and I used to take the p**s out of Barbara Windsor, Babs’ accent,’ he recalled. The late Windsor played Peggy Mitchell in the long-running BBC show for over 20 years. ‘I used to put the accent on. That’s why I did an okay job with the accent in Deli Boys because I’ve been doing it for so long in my private life.’
Despite the years of practice, he’s still nervous for the Brits to hear his Cockney accent.
‘They might rip me apart because you can hear an English accent. I’ve lived in America for 17 years.’ Tan resides in Utah with his husband Rob France and their sons Ismail and Isaac.
‘I don’t know the exact nuance of a Cockney accent anymore, but I think it’s passable,’ he concluded hopefully.
This isn’t the first time Tan has been asked to join a TV show, but he declined until now because producers only wanted him to play a version of himself. This wasn’t of interest.
‘Mostly I say no, or actually almost every time I’ve said no,’ he stated.
When Tan read the ‘profound’ script for Deli Boys he was all in, especially as the project feels like a step forward for Pakistani representation.
‘Deli Boys is a story about brown people, South Asian people, but told in a way I’ve never seen before. They are fully formed characters. Brown people are funny, we are entertainers. It’s also violent,dramatic and layered. I just thought it was so beautifully done,’ he explained.
‘It’s a show I’ve never seen before so when I found out they were considering me I couldn’t believe it. I need you to know they put me through the wringer. It wasn’t a, “Hey, do you want to do this job?” It was, “Would you audition for this?”
Tan experienced the audition process for the first time and endured four gruelling rounds. ‘I tried so hard because even though it was a one-episode arc I so desperately wanted to be part of something that I thought was possibly going to change the world.’
Deli Boys centres on Raj (Saagar Shaikh) and Mir Dar (Asif Ali), a pair of spoiled Pakistani American brothers, who find out that their recently deceased father was a drug lord rather than a deli tycoon as they believed.
‘The freaked-out boys are ushered kicking and screaming (literally) into the underworld by their Lucky Auntie and her nemesis Ahmad Uncle. As Raj and Mir fumble from one ridiculous catastrophe to the next, every move they make is life or death. Because when your trust fund is gone, so is the luxury of screwing up,’ the synopsis teases.
Rather than shy away from playing someone evil, Tan found great joy in it.
‘I’m usually walking sunshine like a smiley, giggly person, and it was so nice to not be myself,’ he unexpectedly admitted.
‘I loved being the complete opposite of me. Even though it’s a dark comedy, there’s nothing comedic about my role. I’m just aggressive and violent – I loved that. I’m hoping the audience is completely shocked.’
It also allowed Tan to utilise his boxing skills, something he’s been practising since he was a small child. When producers asked how he felt about walking more aggressively or participating in stunt scenes, Tan was game: ‘That part is easy. The stunt guy was like “Oh, I can tell you fight.”
‘That’s a part of me that I don’t usually share with the audience because they need me to be sunshine.’
Sweetness and light are exactly what is required in the Netflix reality series Queer Eye, in which Tan alongside Jonathan van Ness, Antoni Porowski, Karamo Brown and Jeremiah Brent, meet people who need a little help with life. While fashion expert Tan’s job is officially styling the ‘heroes’, the series, which was rebooted in 2018, is much more than that. Rather than being just about superficial changes, the emotionally charged scenes usually involve heartfelt conversations on important subjects covering everything from body confidence to accepting everyone.
Tan has also gone on to co-present Next in Fashion with Alexa Chung, and Say Yes to the Dress. Acting was never really part of his plan, despite taking classes for the past eight years.
A career in the industry wasn’t the motivation behind the hobby, instead, Tan started attending in hopes it would help him tackle the crippling nerves he felt before interviews. He enjoyed participating so much that he continued long after conquering the fear.
‘I’ve been taking classes for ages thinking it is just for fun, I’m never going to turn this into anything. I never thought I would action this skill, but then this came along,’ he told us.
Asked whether any of his reality TV background has helped him in this new realm, Tan summarised that it’s made him more comfortable.
‘Queer Eye is obviously massive, so being on a set isn’t intimidating. I think if I’d never done that, and this was my first job ever I would be bricking it.’
He continued: ‘If I screw up something, it doesn’t scare me. I pick up, I dust myself off and I continue. That is a real talent on set, to tune out all the noise. It makes for a better performance.’
Tan has now fully caught the acting bug. ‘I pray that I get to do it again because it was the greatest week of my adult life,’ he summarised.
His next goal? ‘You know what I would totally do EastEnders,’ he shared with a laugh.
Deli Boys will be streaming on Disney Plus from March 6
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
