Warning: This article contains spoilers
A newly released deleted scene from The Menu offers fans a glimmer of insight into the history of Ralph Fiennes' chef character.
From the moment the hungry restaurant customers arrive at Hawthorne, chef Julian Slowik evokes an air of intrigue, mystery and determination.
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He's clearly unhappy at the unexpected arrival of Margot (Anya Taylor-Joy), and is dead set on ensuring his guests enjoy every second of their tasting experience - even if what he serves is entirely conceptual.
Viewers slowly learn more about Slowik throughout the movie, but even as Margot goes exploring and learns about his burger-flipping past, the exact steps that led him from fast-food worker to 'let's end the night with some human s'mores' remain a mystery.
Of course, we can assume that Slowik has become disheartened over time by the showmanship that now goes into cooking, with experiences muddied by Instagram photos and the need to be ever-more enticing and outrageous.
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That much becomes clear when he calls out Tyler (Nicholas Hoult) - and basically anyone else who likes to snap a photo of their food - and challenges the man who claims to know about every spice in Slowik's menu to actually present him with a dish.
Tyler completes the challenge, but fans of the film will know that he absolutely does not do it well.
Still, that's not necessarily a reason to send your restaurant up in flames. The film itself largely leaves the reason behind Slowik's choices up to the imagination, but a deleted scene does offer up a stepping stone as to how he got there.
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See the scene below:
The scene takes place towards the start of the film, as the customers travel on the boat to Slowik's island.
As they get to know each other we hear food critic Lillian (Janet McTeer) boasting about how she basically discovered Slowik, recalling how she stumbled upon him at a Korean taco truck.
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"It is like the Platonic ideal of a Korean taco and I peak inside this truck, and guess who is manning the grill? Julian f**king Slowik," she says.
The journalist gets Slowik to agree to an interview, and 'soon every foodie investor is hounding him', after which Slowik gets offered the island on which he builds Hawthorne.
Would he ever have served up incriminating tortillas or bread without bread if he'd just been left alone to make his Korean tacos? Maybe not, but as the film goes to show, we'll never know for sure.
Topics: Film and TV, Celebrity
Emily Brown