The Bear’s biggest cameos ranked, from Olivia Colman to Jamie Lee Curtis
Lydia Spencer-Elliott takes a look at the Emmy-winning show’s guest appearances across its three seasons
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Yes chef, after 12 long months of waiting, the most wholesome yet panic attack-inducing show on television,The Bear, is finally back for season three.
A year ago, we left Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) locked in The Bear’s freezer, pounding on the door in rage, while Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) and Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) thrived on the other side. After missing his own restaurant’s opening night, the youngest Berzatto sibling was then broken up with by his girlfriend Claire (Molly Gordon) through the stainless steel. It was not a good day at work.
Alongside turbulent career setbacks, life-saving omelettes and Taylor Swift-soundtracked character arcs, The Bear has gifted viewers many guest star appearances from award-winning actors including Olivia Colman and Jamie Lee Curtis.
So, as the series returns for a further 10 episodes, scroll through The Bear’s biggest cameos, with the best saved for last.
10. Gillian Jacobs as Tiffany
Featuring in season two episodes “Fishes” and “Forks”, Gillian Jacobs – best known for her role as Britta in Community – plays Richie’s ex-wife Tiffany, who has long been exasperated by his erratic behaviour. The actor (who happens to be the real-life spouse of The Bear’s writer and creator, Christopher Storer) gives a bruising performance that reflects the double-edged sword of Richie’s kind nature and brash decision making. But when we hear Tiff confess that she’s marrying someone else, it’s Richie’s heartbreak that steals the scene.
9. John Mulaney as Stevie
Big Mouth comedian John Mulaney shocked viewers when he popped up in “Fishes” in season two of The Bear. Playing Michelle’s (Sarah Paulson) long term partner, he awkwardly interjects in the Berzatto’s family fights before giving one of the most awkward grace speeches of all time.
8. Sarah Paulson as Michelle
In “Fishes” (yes, there were a lot of cameos in that episode) we discover Cousin Michelle (Paulson) is essentially responsible for Carmy becoming a chef as it was she who invited him to New York to escape the Berzatto family chaos. A successful restaurant owner who wears the pants in her relationship (to such an extent that her relatives assume Stevie is gay), Michelle is played by Paulson with eye-watering compassion and plenty of cursing.
7. Bob Odenkirk as Lee
It takes a skilled performance to make an audience see Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad) as an a***hole. But that’s what the actor achieves in his role as Uncle Lee, in “Fishes”, when Odenkirk’s character comes to blows with Mikey – calling him “nothing” and a “loser” due to his failed business, drug use, and inability to move out of his mother’s house. Oh, how he made our blood boil.
6. Josh Hartnett as Frank
New for season three, Josh Hartnett appears as Tiff’s fiancé. The Virgin Suicides star manages to make the cause of Richie’s heartache intensley likeable as he flounders to apologise for not coming to him first before popping the question to his ex wife and mother of his child. The pair’s doorway-lingering conversation is painful and stilted, but there’s no escaping the annoying fact that Frank seems like a really good guy.
5. Will Poulter as Luca
Fans went into meltdown on Twitter when Will Poulter appeared tanned and tattooed in the “Honeydew” episode of The Bear season two. A critical but kind pastry chef, Luca guides Marcus (Lionel Boyce)when he arrives in Copenhagen to research desert recipes to take back to Chicago. Poulter plays Luca with an easy confidence that inspires Marcus to take culinary risks. After they part, his presence lingers for the rest of the season when, on the day of The Bear’s opening, Luca sends Marcus a note that reads “every second counts”. He also makes fleeting flashback appearances in season three.
4. John Cena as Sammy
Storming onto the screen for season three’s fifth episode “Children”, John Cena plays the third Fak family brother Sammy, who terrorises his sibling Ted (Ricky Staffieri) for stealing an SD card. From smoking inside the restaurant to yelling at the top of his lungs, the WWE star turned actor brings unignorably ferocious energy to The Bear’s third season.
3. Jon Bernthal as Michael
Arguably one of the most significant cameos in the show, Jon Bernthal portrays Carmy’s late brother Michael as someone who is magnetically charismatic, yet petty and troubled. When Carmy shows him a drawing of the restaurant he wants them to open together, he breaks down crying. Yet this vulnerability turns to rage when provoked by his judgemental uncle Lee. In season three’s “Napkins”, we see a re-emergence of Michael’s caring energy when he offers a crying and unemployed Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas) a lifeline job at The Beef sandwhich shop.
2. Olivia Colman as Chef Terry
Emerging as the mushroom-peeling mother figure nobody knew they needed, Olivia Colman inspired gasps when she was revealed to be the mysterious but esteemed Chef Terry in the seventh episode of The Bear season two. Colman was only in one scene in that season, but she spread a palpable warmth through the “Forks” episode as shetold Richie about the past failures that led to her huge success. Thankfully, she’s back in flashback scenes for season three.
1. Jamie Lee Curtis as Donna
From screaming at everyone to get out of her kitchen to driving a car through the front of her own house, Jamie Lee Curtis’s character Donna brought the drama for The Bear season two. Fresh off the back of her Oscar win for Everything Everywhere All At Once, Curtis delivered a terrifyingly frenzied performance with moments of vulnerability that left viewers praying for a resolution between Donna, Carmy and Sugar by the season’s 10th episode. In season three, we see those hopes come to fruition. Brace for emotional impact.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments