The Menu unfolds in the hyper-exclusive restaurant Hawthorne, located on a remote, private island. Celebrity chef Julian Slowik (Ralph Fiennes) presides over the upscale establishment and serves up super-sophisticated, succulent, and pretentious dishes to his pompous and privileged clientele. On this particular night, his patrons include a chef wannabe, his date Margot, food critic Lillian, her editor Ted, a trio of techies, and an unnamed, washed-up movie star, played by John Leguizamo. These entitled foodies and their underappreciation of Slowik's culinary masterpieces have left a bad taste in the chef's mouth for the last time. Soon enough, things turn sinister.

Leguizamo recently spoke with CBR about The Menu's social commentary. The actor dove into filming ensemble sequences with the star-studded cast, chowing down on set, and the difference between his Menu and Violent Night characters.

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CBR: The Menu has been described as twisted and disturbing. What were some of the themes or messages in the narrative that compelled you to be part of this project?

John Leguizamo: I love any movie that takes down the entitled and the rich and the privileged. How can I not want to be a part of that, especially now with all these billionaires thinking they can manipulate our democracy, take over Twitter, stop unions and just interfere in our lives that are just disgusting? I think this movie is something that speaks of our time. At the same time, it was funny, and what a great cast. The chef's kiss of a cast and a thriller. It's really a thriller, like Dante's Inferno but with food.

If you were sitting down for your last meal, what would be on the menu?

It would have to be Omakase sushi. That's my jam. And make it a 50-course that can kill me over a couple of days.

Nobody ever eats just a few sushi rolls...

In New York, Omakase is just one piece at a time. I can maybe stretch that out for a month before they execute me.

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When you were filming this movie, how much was real food on the table? Did you get to try stuff as opposed to a food stylist coming in and presenting everything on plates?

It was a little half-and-half. It was long days. We all had to be there all the time. I've never really done movies like that when you are on set all the time. Even when your character isn't talking, you have to be in the background pretending to be your character. I was hungry. We were all hungry. They were bringing snacks now and then, but I am not a snacker. If they put a good piece of set food out, I was going to eat it. I would go, "I am in character. That's why I ate everything on the plate." Then, they would go, "John, we only have a few left." I went, "Well, I have to eat. It's part of my character."

Some of it was incredible. Some of it was just for decoration and beautifully done. They showed us the real version of it, but for it to last for hours, you have to put fake stuff on it. Some of it was edible. Oh my god, the edible stuff was good. The chef was one of the greats from a restaurant in San Francisco, Dominique Crenn. She oversaw the preparation, trained the staff, and some of the extras were actual chefs because you can't fake that. The food was all prepared specifically for the movie, for the dialogue, for the descriptions.

Switching gears, your film Violent Night hits theaters in a few weeks. What places your character, Ben, and your Menu character on the naughty list?

For The Menu, it's narcissism and vanity. For Violent Night, I would say bitterness. The guy is greedy and bitter. Gotta get over your shit, basically. We all had a tough childhood. Get over it.

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What's it like playing someone in-your-face like Ben and then someone more subtle and reactive like the Movie Star?

The amount of thought that goes into it is a lot. Your action movie is only as good as your villain. I had to make sure Ben was really intelligent. You didn't have to like me... and they aren't going to... because I am trying to kill Santa and destroy Christmas forever, but I wanted them to respect me. That was the big task. How can I still be funny and dangerous and keep the tension going throughout the movie? I did tell the writers and the director, Tommy Wirkola, that I did want to be understood a little bit, so the backstory was a big deal for me. Then, being funny... I wanted to be funny. I couldn't be silly or clownish. I had to be witty because that keeps me dangerous and clever. That's how we keep the tension throughout an entire movie.

For The Menu, it's a much more realistic role, much more naturalistic. It was more about creating a specific backstory for myself, so I could be free on camera and be able to improvise. There was a lot of improvisation. It was a matter of that with a really specific backstory. I studied with Lee Strasberg and Herbert Berghof. The school was all about backstory... Write a whole bio about your character. Lee Strasberg said, "Bring yourself to the character. Don't just be an empty shell. You have to bring yourself into the piece, as well." That's what I try and do with my work.

The Menu premieres in theaters Nov. 18.