YOU ARE CORDIALLY invited to a Roy-family gathering at a 13-bedroom 17th-century Tuscan villa. The house is the color of cream silk with an imposing entrance that seems to demand a suitable 23andMe result for one to be allowed in. It sits in the middle of a garden lined with shrubs and dotted with Baroque sculptures. Past a 300-meter stretch of cypress trees, a trio of long banquet tables have been set for the event’s 120 guests. Off the main house, there’s a chapel, a limonaia turned games room, a few assorted outbuildings: casitas—is that the word? This detail I’m maybe making up because I’m simply not rich enough to know.
Jesse Armstrong, the creator of Succession, an HBO series about a family of billionaires, seems mildly disgusted with himself for bringing his cast and crew to one of the world’s most beautiful countrysides; he has never wanted to fetishize the Roys’ wealth. Still, they would go somewhere stupid gorgeous for an opulent party, so here we are at the Villa Cetinale in Sovicille, a tiny town an hour south of Florence, as June inches toward July. With a tape recorder and a fistful of used Shiseido blotting papers—and sworn by an HBO blood oath not to reveal any spoilers—I’m trailing them around Tuscany for two weeks as they film the final episodes of the long-delayed third season. We’re in Siena for the first half, driving the 30 minutes from the city to Sovicille. The following week, we’ll travel throughout the Val d’Orcia region, with shoots in Pienza and Cortona. (You quickly realize you’re taking long car rides from one tiny town with great cheese to another.)
This story is from the August 30 - September 12, 2021 edition of New York magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the August 30 - September 12, 2021 edition of New York magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Indecent Exposure
Jerrod Carmichael's reality series attempts to excavate his deepest flaws.
Grave Mysteries
Josh O'Connor searches for the afterlife as a sad-eyed tomb raider.
Not Her First Rodeo
Beyoncé's country album is a history lesson, a rallying cry, and a missed opportunity.
How'd You Make That?
Three masterpieces, from glimmer through struggle to breakthrough.
In the Belly of the Barbz
Fear them. Cheer them. Nicki Minaj fans are sticking by their queen.
At the Altar of Korean Fried Chicken
Coqodaq's owner calls it a cathedral. It feels more like a club.
WHO ATE WHERE
119 YEARS of PUNK BREAKFASTS, UPTOWN LUNCHES, DRUNKEN DEALMAKING, and IMPOSSIBLE RESERVATIONS
Arizona's Split Reality
Ground zero for the rigged-election conspiracy, the border state could decide both the fate of the Senate and the presidency.
98 MINUTES WITH...The Lavery Family
Beloved literary couple Daniel and Grace Lavery and their partner, Lily Woodruff, are all living and working full time in their Brooklyn apartment. Now, they have to find space for a baby.
Neighborhood News: Patrolling With the Rat Czar
On a smokeout with Vermin Enemy No. 1.