The Bear (TV series)

The Bear is an American comedy-drama television series created by Christopher Storer for FX on Hulu. Jeremy Allen White stars as Carmy Berzatto, an award-winning chef who returns to his hometown of Chicago to manage the chaotic kitchen at his deceased brother's sandwich shop. The supporting cast includes Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, Abby Elliott and Matty Matheson.

All episodes of the first season were released on FX on Hulu on June 23, 2022, and the second season was released in its entirety on June 22, 2023. In November 2023, the series was renewed for a third season, which will be released in June 2024. Ahead of the third season premiere, the show was renewed for a fourth season, which will film back-to-back with the third season.

The series has received critical acclaim, particularly for its writing, directing, acting, and production values, as well as its examination of its subject matter. The first season received ten Primetime Emmy Awards including Outstanding Comedy Series and acting wins for White, Moss-Bachrach, and Edebiri. The Bear has also won four Golden Globe Awards, with acting wins for White and Edebiri and the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy in 2024.

Premise

A young chef, Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, inherits his family's Italian beef sandwich shop after the suicide of his older brother. He comes home to Chicago to run it, leaving behind his world of working in Michelin-starred restaurants. He is left to deal with his brother's unresolved debts, a rundown kitchen, and an unruly staff, while dealing with his own pain and family trauma.

Cast

Main

• Jeremy Allen White as Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, an award-winning New York City chef de cuisine, who returns to his hometown of Chicago to run his late brother Michael's failing restaurant, The Beef.
• Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Richard "Richie" Jerimovich, Michael's best friend and the de facto manager of the restaurant.
• Ayo Edebiri as Sydney Adamu, a talented young chef who joins The Beef as its new sous-chef under Carmy.
• Lionel Boyce as Marcus Brooks, The Beef's bread baker-turned-pastry chef, spurred on by Carmy's mentoring.
• Liza Colón-Zayas as Tina Marrero, an acerbic and stubborn veteran line cook who embraces the opportunity to train professionally.
• Abby Elliott as Natalie "Sugar" Berzatto, Carmy and Michael's sister, the reluctant co-owner of The Beef.
• Matty Matheson as Neil Fak (season 2–present, recurring season 1), a childhood friend of the Berzattos, and sometimes-handyman for the restaurant.

Recurring

• Edwin Lee Gibson as Ebraheim, a Somali veteran line cook at The Beef who is close with Tina.
• Corey Hendrix as Gary "Sweeps" Woods, a runner at The Beef.
• Oliver Platt as Jimmy "Cicero" Kalinowski, the best friend of the late father of the Berzatto siblings, whom everyone affectionately refers to as "Uncle", and the restaurant's key investor.
• José Cervantes as Angel, a dishwasher at The Beef.
• Richard Esteras as Manny, a dishwasher at The Beef.
• Chris Witaske as Pete, Natalie's earnest and naive husband whom most of the family dislikes.
• Robert Townsend as Emmanuel Adamu (season 2), Sydney's loving and supportive father who nevertheless has trouble accepting Sydney's choice to follow an inherently risky culinary career.
• Molly Gordon as Claire (season 2), a childhood friend of the Berzattos, on whom Carmy harbored a crush as a teenager.

Guest stars

• Amy Morton as Nancy Chore, a scrupulous health inspector (season 1, "Hands")
• Molly Ringwald as the meeting leader at the Al-Anon meetings that Carmy attends. (season 1, "Brigade")
• Jon Bernthal as Michael "Mikey" Berzatto, Carmy and Natalie's late brother, who struggled with drug addiction before dying by suicide four months before the events of the series.
• Joel McHale as Carmy's executive chef in New York City, who was verbally abusive and dismissive.
• Carmen Christopher as Chester, the roommate and close friend of Marcus who often visits the restaurant.
• Jamie Lee Curtis as Donna Berzatto (season 2), the troubled mother of the Berzatto siblings.
• Gillian Jacobs as Tiffany Jerimovich (season 2; uncredited guest, season 1), Richie's ex-wife with whom he shares a daughter, Eva.
• Ricky Staffieri as Theodore Fak (season 2), Neil's brother.
• Alex Moffat as Josh (season 2), a line cook hired by The Bear.
• Mitra Jouhari as Kelly (season 2), Claire's friend.
• Maura Kidwell as Carol (season 2), Cicero's partner.
• Will Poulter as Luca, a dessert chef who trains Marcus while he is in Copenhagen (season 2, "Honeydew")
• Bob Odenkirk as "Uncle" Lee Lane, Donna's scheming on-and-off boyfriend and business partner of Cicero (season 2, "Fishes")
• Sarah Paulson as Michelle Berzatto, cousin of Michael, Carmy and Natalie. (season 2, "Fishes")
• John Mulaney as Stevie, Michelle's boyfriend (season 2, "Fishes")
• Olivia Colman as Chef Terry, the British executive chef at Ever, the fine dining restaurant where Richie stages. (season 2, "Forks")
• Sarah Ramos as Jessica, the maître d'hôtel at Ever (season 2, "Forks")
• Rene Gube as the GM of Ever (season 2, "Forks")

Episodes

Season 1 (2022)

Season 2 (2023)

Production

Development

FX ordered a pilot for The Bear in March 2021, to be written and directed by series creator Christopher Storer. FX then greenlit the series in October 2021 for a 2022 premiere date. The sandwich shop interior is copied from the Chicago shop Mr. Beef on Orleans Street, in River North. Storer was a frequent patron and a friend of the owner's son.

In July 2022, it was renewed for a ten-episode second season. In November 2023, the series was renewed for a third season. In March 2024, the series was renewed for a fourth season, which will be filmed back-to-back with the third season.

Music

The Bear has a soundtrack of 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s alternative and mainstream rock classics, chosen by the show's creator Christopher Storer and executive producer Josh Senior. Some of the songs featured on the show include Chicago-based Wilco with "Spiders (Kidsmoke)", "Impossible Germany", "Via Chicago", and "Handshake Drugs", Radiohead's "Let Down", Van Morrison's "Saint Dominic's Preview", Pearl Jam's "Animal" and "Come Back", Sufjan Stevens' "Chicago", John Mayer's "Last Train Home", Refused's "New Noise", The Breeders' "Saints", Erasure's "A Little Respect", The Replacements' "Bastards of Young", Counting Crows' "Have You Seen Me Lately?", Genesis' "In Too Deep", John Mellencamp's "Check It Out", R.E.M.'s "Oh My Heart" and "Strange Currencies", Weezer's "The Christmas Song", and Taylor Swift's "Love Story".

Release

The Bear premiered on FX on Hulu in the United States on June 23, 2022. It is available internationally in the Star hub on Disney+. The 10-episode second season was released on June 22, 2023. The third season will be released in June 2024.

Reception

Audience viewership

Season 1

According to the streaming aggregator Reelgood, The Bear was the second-most-watched program across all platforms during the week of July 13, 2022, the most watched program during the week of July 22, 2022, and the seventh-most-watched program during the week of July 27, 2022. According to the streaming aggregator JustWatch, The Bear was the second most streamed television series across all platforms in the United States during the week ending July 3, 2022, the second during the week ending July 17, 2022, According to FX, the first season was the most-watched comedy series in the network's history.

Season 2

According to the streaming aggregator Reelgood, The Bear was the second most watched program across all platforms in the United States during the week of June 22, 2023, and the most during the week of June 29, 2023. According to JustWatch, The Bear was the most streamed television series across all platforms in the United States during the week ending June 25, 2023. According to FX, the second season was the most-watched season premiere in the network's history. According to Whip Media's viewership tracking app TV Time, The Bear was the eighth most-watched streaming original television series of 2023.

Critical response

Both seasons of The Bear have received critical acclaim. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the overall series holds a 99% approval rating. On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the overall series has received a score of 90 out of 100.

Season 1

For the first season, the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 100% with an average rating of 8.7/10, based on 79 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Like an expertly confected sandwich, The Bear assembles a perfect melange of ingredients and stacks them for optimal satisfaction—and thankfully keeps the crust-iness for extra flavor." Metacritic gave it a weighted average score of 88 out of 100 based on 24 critic reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

The American Film Institute named it one of the ten best television programs of the year. The Guardian named it number one of the best 100 TV shows of 2022 and described it as "the best workplace drama since Mad Men". The Bear appeared in the top ten on numerous publications' "Best of 2022" lists, including first for The A.V. Club, BBC, People, and TVLine, among others.

Season 2

On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds an approval rating of 99% with an average rating of 9.3/10, based on 108 critic reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "Instead of reinventing the menu, The Bear's second season wisely opts to toss its lovable characters into another frying pan of adversity, lets 'em cook, and serves up yet another supremely satisfying dish." Metacritic assigned it a weighted average score of 92 out of 100 based on 42 critic reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

For the second year in a row, the American Film Institute named The Bear one of the ten best television programs of the year. The Bear appeared on many publications' lists of the best TV shows of 2023, including Rolling Stone, The New York Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and People, among others.

Accolades

The classification of The Bear as a comedy in certain award ceremonies, specifically the Primetime Emmys, has attracted some controversy, given its dramatic style and focus on heavy topics like family trauma, suicide and drug use.

Notes

References

External links

• The Bear at FX
• The Bear at Hulu
• The Bear at IMDb