A Guide To The Many Surprising Cameos In The Bear Season 3
Spoilers for "The Bear" season 3 follow.
"The Bear" has always featured surprise cameos and guest stars. In season 1, it was a little shocking when Jon Bernthal showed up in a flashback as Mikey Berzatto, the late brother of main character Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White). Molly Ringwald also appeared in one scene during an AA meeting. Then, season 2 kicked things up a notch with the episode "Fishes," which featured a cavalcade of guest stars playing members of the extended Berzatto family.
Now, "The Bear" season 3 is streaming on Hulu (you can read our review here), and once again, a roster of cameos and guest stars have arrived to spice things up in the kitchen. Some of these guest stars are returning faces from season 2, but there are a few new names on the menu as well. Let's take a look at who is who as we break down the cameos of "The Bear" season 3.
New guest stars and cameos on The Bear season 3
In regards to new faces, "The Bear" season 3 introduces us to Frank, the new fiance of Tiff, ex-wife of Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). Frank is played by Josh Hartnett, who has been experiencing a bit of a comeback lately. He was in "Oppenheimer" last year, and he'll star M. Night Shyamalan's "Trap" this year. As seen in "The Bear," Frank seems like a pretty nice guy in the one scene he shares with Richie. It's clear Richie would rather just hate his ex-wife's new fiance, but he kind of likes him despite himself.
Perhaps the most surprising cameo of the season comes from John Cena, the wrestler-turned-actor who plays Sammy Fak, brother of Neil Fak (Matty Matheson). As we're told, there are a lot of Fak siblings, which suggests "The Bear" can just keep dropping new Faks every season. As for Sammy, he's predictably chaotic, smoking a cigarette while he buffs the floors of The Bear and "haunting" his siblings Neil and Theodore (Ricky Staffieri).
David Zayas, who played Batista on "Dexter," appears in season 3 as Tina's husband David, a doorman who has been waiting for a promotion for years. And Brian Koppelman, showrunner of "Billions," also pops up playing a character known as The Computer, who is brought in to help with The Bear's ever-growing expenses.
Returning guest stars and cameos on The Bear season 3
And now let's look at the returning players. Jamie Lee Curtis is back as Carmy's troubled mother Donna, and she gets to share a nice episode with Carmy's sister Natalie (Abby Elliott). I'd argue that Curtis is doing some of the best work of her career on this show, honestly. Olivia Colman returns in an extended role as Chef Andrea Terry, who has decided to close down her restaurant, Ever. Robert Townsend is also back as Emmanuel, father of Sydney (Ayo Edebiri, who makes her directorial debut this season). And of course, Jon Bernthal returns as Mikey, getting a wonderful scene with Liza Colón-Zayas' Tina.
Will Poulter's dessert chef character Luca, introduced in season 2, comes back and reveals himself to be extremely awkward. Richie's ex-wife Tiff, played by Gillian Jacobs, is also briefly back. As is John Mulaney as Stevie, boyfriend to Carmy's cousin Michelle (Michelle, played by Sarah Paulson in season 2, only appears via a clip from that season). And finally, Joel McHale returns as Carmy's abusive former boss, David Fields (he actually didn't have a name in the previous season, we finally learn his name this time). Carmy has a big confrontation with Fields that doesn't go the way Carmy was probably expecting.
The chef cameos in The Bear season 3
Finally, a whole bunch of real-life chefs and restaurateurs show up this season, particularly in the final episode. I'm not really a foodie, so I don't know who most of these folks are, in all honesty. Thomas Keller gets perhaps the most notable moment, shown in a flashback with Carmy. Then there's also Grant Achatz, Kevin Boehm, Wylie Dufresne, Will Guidara, Genie Kwon, Malcolm Livingston II, Anna Posey, Rosio Sanchez, and Christina Tosi.
"The Bear" season 3 is now streaming on Hulu.