Jeremy Allen White: ‘Deep-dish pizza is disgusting… it’s so doughy’

Jeremy Allen White was profiled in a recent issue of InStyle. The photos are HOT. Like, I totally understand why people are thirsting for JAW right now. The man has that I-know-it-when-I-see-it sexual charisma. These days, people are all about JAW because of The Bear, the FX/Hulu series where he plays a hot, damaged, grieving chef who takes over his late brother’s sandwich shop in Chicago. The phrase “sexually competent dirtbag” has been thrown around a lot, although JAW’s lead character is not banging anyone (yet). Some highlights from his InStyle profile:

He’s not paying attention to all of the online thirst: “I don’t have a lot of online presence. I have Instagram. I don’t have Twitter. I don’t have any Google alerts set on anything or anybody, certainly not myself.”

He’s fine with the attention: “I am grateful. I love to act. I’m so lucky I get to do it as often as I do. I know that people watching your work is an important part of continuing to get to act, but it was never really a goal of mine to have a really big following.”

His character isn’t a scumbag: “I’m trying to differentiate: Who do people think Carmy is, and who do people think Carmy looks like? Because I’ve seen a lot of this scumbag stuff, but I don’t think Carmy is a scumbag at all. My heart really broke for him. [Carmy]’s obviously gone through this really traumatic thing right before you meet him, which made him interesting. I realized that Carmy’s identity was just completely wrapped up in being a chef and being really successful at it. And, I don’t know, that made the rest of his life very lonely. He’s got tattoos, and his hair’s greasy, but I don’t think that necessarily makes a person a scumbag.”

His wife & two daughters: “I learn a lot from them. I feel like in a lot of ways, they’re teaching me all the time how to be better: how to be better to them; how to be better to my wife, my friends, my parents, my sister. I think I’ve been ready to domesticate for a long time, and I’m so happy to be in the house all the time with them.”

His hummingbird tattoo: “When I found out that my wife and I were pregnant…she called me because she wanted to just tell me right away. We had just moved into our house in Los Angeles, and I was sitting in the backyard to have a little rest. And there was this really old tree sitting in the corner, with a hummingbird nest in it. The tree was dead, but the nest looked like it had been there for a long time. As my wife was telling me we were pregnant, my eyes were just on this hummingbird darting around the whole time. So, I got a little hummingbird for Ezer, our oldest daughter.”

His celebrity crush: “Forever it’s been Natalie Portman.”

What he & his wife watch: “I think everything that we are into now is pure escape, like Million Dollar Listing, the Housewives, all that stuff. But we watched Severance, which was more highbrow, I guess, which we really loved.

Chicago-style hotdog or deep-dish pizza? “Deep-dish pizza is disgusting. That’s the easiest question I’ve ever been asked. It doesn’t make any sense. It’s so doughy. Get it out here. I don’t need it.”

[From InStyle]

Obviously, this interview was conducted before he and his wife split up. Knowing what we know now, it feels like he’s making an effort to sound “domesticated.” For an actor, I bet reality programming is nice because you just get to turn your brain off and watch mindless drama. And Severance was really good! Also: I don’t think people were saying that JAW’s character was or is a “scumbag.” Scumbag is not the same as dirtbag. “Scumbag” means a bad person. Someone can be a dirtbag and still have some redeeming qualities.

Photos courtesy of Instagram.

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50 Responses to “Jeremy Allen White: ‘Deep-dish pizza is disgusting… it’s so doughy’”

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  1. KASalvy says:

    Spoiler(?) his character does have a love interest this season….and you get a really good indication as to *why* he shouldn’t be in a relationship

  2. Beth says:

    He’s right and he should say it! Detroit style is where it’s at.

    • ME says:

      Detroit style, mmmm. Actually I’m good with any style of pizza lol.

      • Eurydice says:

        Same here. I love good pizza, but I’m also fine with spaghetti sauce on toast with whatever cheese I have melted on it.

    • TOM says:

      Yeah, you deep-dish haters best watch your backs in Chicago.

      • Ameerah M says:

        Nah – we Chicagoans truly don’t care lol. We are too busy eating Chicago thin crust while all the tourists are lined up for the deep dish. LOL

      • Athyrmose says:

        As a Chicagoan I agree. It’s on sight Jeremy!

        Like most I don’t eat it anymore, but you not about to slander it, lol.

      • Ameerah M says:

        @Athyrmose – lol. He can slander deep dish- he just better keep our Maxwell St. Polishes and Chicago Dogs out of his mouth – figuratively speaking lol.

      • Laura Devaney says:

        Deep dish is fine. Chicago Tavern style is where it’s at, however.

      • Beana says:

        Chicagoan here, I can also confirm that the deep dish is for the tourists. Give me thin crust or I’ll go find a Chicago dog!

      • Kristin says:

        Are y’all crazy, lol!?!? Life-long Chicagoan here and deep dish is freaking amazing! Of course it matters where you get it; Lou Malnati’s, Gino’s East, Giordano’s, Rosatis, etc! Detroit style is also pretty great and I do love a good thin crust. If you’re ever in the suburbs, Papa Saverio’s thin crust (welldone) is amazing!!

  3. Stef says:

    I agree, it’s gross and overrated.

    Was in Chicago for work last month and went to the “first deep dish pizza” restaurant and most of us got a personal deep dish. The majority of us were unimpressed.

    As an actor, I think he’s great. As a husband, his wife recently filed for divorce, yet he made no mention of that here. Interesting….

  4. Ameerah M says:

    Here’s the gag: MOST Chicagoans don’t eat deep-dish pizza. That’s a tourist thing. Deep dish is a once in awhile thing for people who live here. We have amazing thin crust pizza here in Chicago.

    • Erin says:

      True. That’s actually where I had thin crust for the first time growing up was when I would visit relatives in Chicago and I associate it with that. I’ve lived in and around Chicago my whole life and while I do like deep dish from certain places (I don’t know how people like all that cheese on giordano’s) it’s definitely not my go too but it’s not gross.

      • Ameerah M says:

        LOL. I actually love Giordano’s deep dish. But I like the spinach deep dish – not the cheese. They double the cheese for that one I think. Lou’s is okay – the crust is better than the pie IMO. I grew up on the South Side. Our go-to pizza was Italian Fiesta. A perfect thin crust pizza. Gino’s is pretty good as well.

      • Erin says:

        Ok ok, I think I’ve had the spinach once but yeah the plain cheese is like eating 50 melted string cheeses to me lol.

    • Charlotte says:

      Chicago gal here — Thin crust tavern style all the way.
      I’m with him, even as a kid I didn’t like deep dish. There’s just too much of … everything.

      • Ameerah M says:

        I was born and raised here and didn’t actually try deep dish until I was in my late teens. It just wasn’t a huge thing on the South Side. We always had thin crust. So while I don’t hate deep dish, it’s hardly ever my first choice.

    • tealily says:

      I think a “tavern style” pizza is the Mid-West’s best-kept secret. That is where it’s AT.

    • g says:

      The interview happened before she filed.

    • bus says:

      Hey now… I’m from Chicago and I love deep dish. Its not a thing you can have every day though. It’s so damn filling. Order a large deep dish and you’ve committed yourself to a weeks worth of lunches AND dinners. It’s a little disheartening knowing how much the thing weighed when you got it too … cause now you gained that much weight and it ain’t all coming off. I’ve had a hell of a time finding good pizza since I moved to NWI. Good pizza is only like, 10 miles away and its killing me!

      • Erin says:

        You are so true, I live in NWI now after living in IL for over a decade and I get little Cesar’s for my kids lol. I grew up in MI though so we have a soft spot for it and the price to feed a family is great. There are a couple of places by me but they are just ok.

    • Roan Inish says:

      I’m from Evanston and the northside of Chicago. We were into Lou’s deep dish for awhile until one time it just tasted like bread with barely anything on top. We are back to thin crust and doubt if we’ll ever have a deep dish again. My daughter got married in London/Wimbledon on the same day as the Trooping of the Colors and surprisingly we had a great wood fired pizza for lunch at the hotel venue a few days before the wedding.

  5. Jessica says:

    This is an ongoing debate in our house. I agree with him, too much dough ruins a pizza but half our house thinks eating pizza with thin crust is like pizza on a cracker.

    • Kirsten says:

      Same. My FIL always orders thin crust pizza and I hate it — SO crunchy. True Italian pizza is honestly the best: not too doughy, and not too overloaded with toppings either.

      • Jan90067 says:

        BEST pizza I ever had, hands down, was in Rome! lol OMG, amazing!

        Thin crust all the way, but *not* “crunchy. The perfect crust is a *bit* chewy at the edges, but “firm” enough to support the middle of the pie so toppings/cheese doesn’t slide off because it “sags” from being soggy.

      • Kirsten says:

        OMG Yes!! I think about the food in Rome all of the time — it’s so amazing.

    • North of Boston says:

      Thin crust pizza that is pretty much a big cracker with toppings should have a different food name … it’s not pizza . Like, you wouldn’t call a quesadilla a casserole or a double-crust pie, because it is not those things, even it may sometimes have similar ingredients.

      It’s so disappointing to try a new pizza place, order a pizza and get a cracker with stuff on it.

      Thin crust pizza should still have a dough based crust, even if it’s thin. There should be some give to it. IMO.

      Deep dish pizza has its time and place, as does Greek Pizza and beach pizza and Sicilian style tray pizza.

      But my go-to pizza is Neapolitan style- with a round doughy crust that’s thinner in the middle than the edges, edges with some rise, bubbles to them, and a deft hand on the toppings so it’s neither swimming nor dry. Sadly, that seems harder and harder to find as many places do the cracker thin-crust thing (likely easier- no rise & rest needed, and cheaper- smaller amount of raw ingredients, skill needed)

      All that said – a personal sized UNO’s deep dish at the mall was my favorite splurge meal when I was a kid. Might not have been authentic or healthy, but it was delicious.

  6. Lala11_7 says:

    Lifelong Chicagoan here….grew up on Gino’s East & Connie’s deep dish pizza & currently have a Lou Malnati’s Chicago deep dish classic sitting in the fridge…Those pizzas have the gravitas of having delicious fillings that counteract the deep dish crust…and the crust is ALWAYS 🔥 ❤️🔥…So naw…I don’t agree.

    • Erin says:

      I will eat a Lou’s crusty crust by itself, I love it. I have been known to snap off the back top crust off my husband’s pieces.

    • Ameerah M says:

      Malnati’s is overrated. The crust is good but the pie is just okay. Giordano’s has a better deep dish IMO.

    • pk says:

      I live in Canada and have heard of Lou Malnati’s deep dish pizza…that’s HOW famous it is. One day I hope to try it.

    • Aidee Kay says:

      Had one of my wedding events at Gino’s East!!!!

    • Bee says:

      I find almost all pizza is good pizza. You’ve got your thin crust slice on a paper plate from the tiny slice place, that you fold in half before eating, during a night out – so yummy! Deep dish is also delicious. You’ll probably have leftovers… which is not such a bad thing! Detroit style is a whole jam. IDK I just like pizza I guess. And what about calzone? The whole pizza is folded in half. So good and IME easier to eat.

      This discussion just came up in another online scene. I guess pizza is just hot right now! LOL! Sorry not sorry!

  7. girl_ninja says:

    I’m about that thin crust pizza life.

  8. HeyKay says:

    He is an interesting actor, I can’t watch The Bear bc I don’t pay for Hulu.
    He has very young children, and I’m sorry to hear he is divorcing.
    I know his wife said she feels like a single Mum bc he’s working all the time.
    But, actors and entertainers kind of have to work while they are “hot”.
    Take your foot off the gas or show gets cancelled, you can go a long time between jobs.

    Michael Caine had the right idea. He took damn near everything he was offered and when he got crap for doing lousy movies you famously said ” Yes, but you should see the lovely home that movie bought for my Mum.”

    Be nice to learn that the young couple could reunite, live in hope I guess.

    • ChickieBaby says:

      You’re right about actors working: if they’re not on a project, they are technically unemployed. Take the job offer and the money and move on to something bigger and better. A lot of big names did many rom-coms 20 years ago (you can figure out who) because those flicks paid good money and allowed them a nice life. The films may not be the greatest ever made, but helped build careers so they can be pickier later with their time.

  9. hangonamin says:

    i still don’t get the difference between scumbag and dirtbag? both seem like the same way to call someone an awful person? having watched the show i wouldn’t say Carmy is a scumbag or dirtbag, i just see him as someone that is so damaged that he’s self-absorbed with this one identity of being a chef and that makes it incredibly difficult for him to form any sort of real connection.

    • Bee says:

      Dirtbag is like someone who lives in a beat up sprinter van and spends as much time as possible climbing or hiking, or like a ski bum (tho skiing is so expensive they tend to be more well heeled from the beginning). But like full time outdoor people.

      Scumbag is just a bad person. I’ve been told it relates to (used) condoms. (Ew!)

      I would much rather be considered a dirtbag than a scumbag.

  10. HeyKay says:

    OK, but WHY is his hair always greasy? The character is a Chef, shampoo.

  11. Lens says:

    I understand why the hummingbird but What was his excuse for the name of his oldest daughter? So bad. I first came to notice him when I stumbled on the first season of The Bear (never saw the other TV show he was on) and although I think he’s a fine actor I can’t get gene wilder out of my mind when I look at him. Probably a generational thing but gene was always the funny guy never the hot guy for me.

  12. smee says:

    He’s not my type at.all. but he really does ooze sexiness or charisma or whatever you want to call it. Thin crust or NY pizza all the way.

  13. SpankyB says:

    I don’t get the sex appeal. I don’t watch Bear so I’m not seeing what he’s all about in that context, but I did like him Shameless and thought he was cute, but still no sex appeal.

    As for pizza crust, I like both deep dish and thin crust. I’ll usually eat thin crust just because I don’t want to over stuff myself with bread. I’m of the mind that there are no bad pizzas, it’s all good. Fancy California pizza, Indian curry pizza, NY style, Chicago style, I’ll eat any and all.

    Except for Papa John’s. I do have some taste.

    • hangonamin says:

      watch an episode of the bear and then report back. i’m collecting feedback after watching if ppl think he’s hot. personally i didn’t think he was hot and thought he was super hot after watching the bear. it’s the “yes chef” and like this intensity i think…that and the slightly thight white Tees?

  14. elizabeth says:

    I’ve seen the attraction and the charisma since he played Lip on Shameless. And that might part of the characterization. Lip was kinda a scumbag (but with a good heart). Carmy’s totally different, but also got that thing going on.

    Plus, with Carmy, it’s sexy to see someone who’s so good at something and can focus on it with such dedication.

  15. Nicegirl says:

    Getting that super craving for pizza 🍕 now

  16. Hello says:

    This InStyle article is from August 2022, so last summer.

  17. jferber says:

    I think he’s very unattractive. Just my opinion. Flexing his biceps is a turn-off to me. Like they say in basketball, he’s not HIM.

  18. canichangemyname says:

    Hahahaha!
    First, I’m on E4 of the 1st season, and this show is really growing on me. At first, I wasn’t feeling it at all, but it got such good reviews I kept at it (much like Schitt’s Creek tbh lol) and I’m starting to really love it. I think the acting is incredible.
    What I’m laughing about is his pizza comment. My aunt has livedn Chicago her entire adult life and when I went to visit her for the first time I wanted to try some and she was like, “Meh, it’s really overrated!” We went out to other places instead and WOW, Chicago is a great food city! Finally tried Chicago deep dish at some point, and I liked it because it was pizza but it wasn’t the orgasmic experience I was led to believe all these years LOL I also found it to be … too doughy.