The Bear (TV series)

The Bear (TV series)
The Bear is an American comedy-drama television series created by Christopher Storer. It premiered on Hulu on June 23, 2022, and stars Jeremy Allen White as a young, 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. In July 2022, it was renewed for a ten-episode second season, which was released on June 22, 2023.
The sandwich shop interior is copied from the real-life Chicago shop Mr. Beef on Orleans, in River North. The creator was a frequent patron and a friend of the owner's son.
The series has received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its writing, directing, acting, and production values, as well as its examination of its subject matter. The first season received 13 Emmy nominations including Outstanding Comedy Series and acting nominations for White, Moss-Bachrach, Edebiri, Jon Bernthal and Oliver Platt.
Synopsis
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 a Michelin star restaurant. 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.
Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Richard "Richie" Jerimovich, the de facto manager of the restaurant and Michael's best friend.
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.
Abby Elliott as Natalie "Sugar" Rose Berzatto, Carmy and Michael's sister and reluctant co-owner of The Beef.
Matty Matheson as Neil Fak (season 2, recurring season 1), a childhood friend of the Berzattos, and sometimes-handyman for the restaurant.
Recurring
Edwin Lee Gibson as Ebraheim, a 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 a major investor in the restaurant.
Jon Bernthal as Michael "Mikey" Berzatto, Carmy and Sugar's late brother, who struggled with drug addiction before committing suicide four months before the events of the series.
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.
Carmen Christopher as Chester, the roommate and close friend of Marcus who often visits the restaurant.
Joel McHale as Carmy's old executive chef in New York City, who was verbally abusive and dismissive.
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
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.
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
Guest stars
Amy Morton as Nancy Chore, a scrupulous health inspector (season 1, "Hands")
Molly Ringwald as the meeting moderator of the Al-Anon meetings that Carmy attends. (season 1, "Brigade")
Will Poulter as Luca, a Copenhagen-based dessert chef who trains Marcus (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 executive chef at Ever, the fine dining restaurant where Richie stages. (season 2, "Forks")
Sarah Ramos as Jessica, the maître d' at Ever (season 2, "Forks")
Andrew Lopez as Garrett, a waiter and Richie's mentor at Ever. (season 2, "Forks")
Rene Gube as the GM of Ever (season 2, "Forks")
Adam Shapiro as the chef de cuisine of Ever (season 2, "Forks")
Episodes
Season 1 (2022)
Season 2 (2023)
Release
The Bear premiered 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.
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", 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".
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.
Critical response
Both seasons of The Bear have received widespread critical acclaim. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the overall series holds a 99% approval rating. Meanwhile, 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 78 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 92 critic reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "Instead of reinventing the menu, The Bears 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".
Accolades
Notes
References
External links
The Bear at FX
The Bear at Hulu
2020s American comedy-drama television series
2022 American television series debuts
English-language television shows
FX on Hulu original programming
Television shows set in Chicago
Television series set in restaurants