Paul Giamatti.Photo:Araya Doheny/GettyForPaul Giamatti, Christmas just isn’t Christmas without a good panettone.In a December interview with PEOPLE,The Holdoversactor, 56, shares that while he doesn’t have many Christmas traditions, securing a loaf of the Italian sweet bread — a type of fruit cake most often found during the holiday season — is always a must.“Well, I’m Italian, so we had a panettone every year,” Giamatti says. “That’s the only thing I still do, which is an Italian breakfast cake you eat on Christmas.“Giamatti,who is nominated for a 2024 Golden Globefor best actor in a comedy for his role inThe Holdovers —a movie set in a 1970s-era boarding school over the Christmas season — is no stranger to holiday films. In 2007,he suited up as Santa Claushimself in the filmFred Claus, which he starred in alongsideVince Vaughn, who played Santa’s slacker older brother, Fred.Paul Giamatti (center) as Santa Claus inFred Claus.Warner Bros/Kobal/ShutterstockBut despite having two festive films under his belt, the father of one — Samuel Paul Giamatti, 21 — says he had “a standard sort of Christmas growing up.” Still, he did recall one year being memorable for all the wrong reasons.“One year the tree fell over and caught on fire,” he shares. “I remember that. Everything was okay, but that was probably the worst one.“If the tree catching fire is his worst Christmas memory, the Oscar nominee’s best holiday memory is one involving an unforgettable present.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.“I remember — when I was probably about age 7 — getting a plastic castle set,” Giamatti says. “That was probably the greatest thing I’d ever gotten that I remember.”
Paul Giamatti.Photo:Araya Doheny/Getty
Araya Doheny/Getty
ForPaul Giamatti, Christmas just isn’t Christmas without a good panettone.In a December interview with PEOPLE,The Holdoversactor, 56, shares that while he doesn’t have many Christmas traditions, securing a loaf of the Italian sweet bread — a type of fruit cake most often found during the holiday season — is always a must.“Well, I’m Italian, so we had a panettone every year,” Giamatti says. “That’s the only thing I still do, which is an Italian breakfast cake you eat on Christmas.“Giamatti,who is nominated for a 2024 Golden Globefor best actor in a comedy for his role inThe Holdovers —a movie set in a 1970s-era boarding school over the Christmas season — is no stranger to holiday films. In 2007,he suited up as Santa Claushimself in the filmFred Claus, which he starred in alongsideVince Vaughn, who played Santa’s slacker older brother, Fred.Paul Giamatti (center) as Santa Claus inFred Claus.Warner Bros/Kobal/ShutterstockBut despite having two festive films under his belt, the father of one — Samuel Paul Giamatti, 21 — says he had “a standard sort of Christmas growing up.” Still, he did recall one year being memorable for all the wrong reasons.“One year the tree fell over and caught on fire,” he shares. “I remember that. Everything was okay, but that was probably the worst one.“If the tree catching fire is his worst Christmas memory, the Oscar nominee’s best holiday memory is one involving an unforgettable present.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.“I remember — when I was probably about age 7 — getting a plastic castle set,” Giamatti says. “That was probably the greatest thing I’d ever gotten that I remember.”
ForPaul Giamatti, Christmas just isn’t Christmas without a good panettone.
In a December interview with PEOPLE,The Holdoversactor, 56, shares that while he doesn’t have many Christmas traditions, securing a loaf of the Italian sweet bread — a type of fruit cake most often found during the holiday season — is always a must.
“Well, I’m Italian, so we had a panettone every year,” Giamatti says. “That’s the only thing I still do, which is an Italian breakfast cake you eat on Christmas.”
Giamatti,who is nominated for a 2024 Golden Globefor best actor in a comedy for his role inThe Holdovers —a movie set in a 1970s-era boarding school over the Christmas season — is no stranger to holiday films. In 2007,he suited up as Santa Claushimself in the filmFred Claus, which he starred in alongsideVince Vaughn, who played Santa’s slacker older brother, Fred.
Paul Giamatti (center) as Santa Claus inFred Claus.Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
But despite having two festive films under his belt, the father of one — Samuel Paul Giamatti, 21 — says he had “a standard sort of Christmas growing up.” Still, he did recall one year being memorable for all the wrong reasons.
“One year the tree fell over and caught on fire,” he shares. “I remember that. Everything was okay, but that was probably the worst one.”
If the tree catching fire is his worst Christmas memory, the Oscar nominee’s best holiday memory is one involving an unforgettable present.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“I remember — when I was probably about age 7 — getting a plastic castle set,” Giamatti says. “That was probably the greatest thing I’d ever gotten that I remember.”
source: people.com
