"The hardest part was really trying to pretend to be straight," Tan France said of his new role in the new darkly comedic Hulu series "Deli Boys," where he plays a Cockney gangster with a flair for violence. Yet, the "Queer Eye" star is also talking about the first several years of his life.

Growing up in a Pakistani family in Yorkshire and as a gay man in a Muslim community, he told me on "Salon Talks," he was "constantly reminded that you must code-switch at every turn, but it was great training," he added. "It put me in a position to be able to navigate any situation I'm in." Nevertheless, when it came time to play a straight character for comedy, "it doesn't come naturally," he said. "I tried for 17 years of my life."

After launching his fashion career in the UK, France eventually landed in the United States and, with the encouragement of his husband, wound up becoming one of the Emmy Award-winning Fab Five back in 2018. Over the years, he has turned down acting offers that he felt were too close to his real life persona. Instead, he auditioned four times for the colorful "Deli Boys" role of Zubair.

"I saw the outline of the show, and I just thought [series creator] Abdullah Saeed was so brave in wanting to depict a South Asian community this way," France said. "I really wanted this." Then he added, "I did vomit before my final audition." The effort and the nerves paid off. "Nothing about Zubair should be identifiable as Tan France," he admits.

During our conversation, France also opened up about why he feels safer raising his family in Utah than anywhere else in the world. "I can't handle what's happening in our country right now," he said. And France promises he’s not judging your outfit. "I don't really care what anyone's wearing. If you feel good, that's all that matters."

Watch my "Salon Talks" with Tan France here on YouTube, or read below, to learn more about how France became close with his "Deli Boys" cast, the story behind his new hairstyle, and why he's been studying acting for years.

The following conversation has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

Tell me about your character in "Deli Boys." You come in halfway through the season, you get called “dapper” and are still dressed to the nines, however, you and your character are different in many ways.

There's a wardrobe designer or a costume designer on the show who's wonderful. She was quite nervous when I was coming in because I do this for a living also. She was like, "I'm really worried. I want to make sure you are happy." I was like, "It's not about me. I'm not playing myself. I'm playing a guy called Zubair." So she said, "Okay, great, that makes it easier. Here are the looks we've got for you." I put the look on and I was like, "Yes, it's very nice for a straight man, this is the look we should go for." I personally hate it, but for a straight man, this suit is perfect. It is very dapper for a straight man, but it couldn't be more boring for Tan France.

What was the biggest challenge in this? Is it doing your Cockney accent? Is it beating someone up?

There was so much that was difficult. It's not natural for me to be on a scripted set. I've become so used to being on an unscripted set where I just get to be myself, I say what I want, even when I'm doing “Next in Fashion” because there's a script, but it's me. I work on the script with them to make sure it's my voice. The hard thing with this is it's not just that I'm playing a different role, it's a character actor's job, which means my accent is different, my voice is different and the way I move is different. Nothing about Zubair should be identifiable as Tan France, and I would like to believe that we achieved that.

The hardest part wasn't necessarily the accent. I would never suggest I'm method because I'm not that kind of an actor. This is my first acting role, but I did try and stay with the accent the entire time I was on set and even a few days beforehand, and it's a Cockney accent. The hardest part was really trying to pretend to be straight. It doesn't come naturally. I tried for 17 years of my life and I was really good at it, and then finally at 17 I was like, “Okay, I can be free.” I am who I naturally am, which is a lot swishier. Now it's funny to play a straight person again.

You've also been taking acting lessons for years?

I have. I didn't expect to do an acting job ever. I was taking acting classes to make me feel more comfortable, not necessarily on camera [for] “Queer Eye," but doing talk shows.

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