The story of Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto and his journey to turn a loose beef sandwich shop into a fine dining experience while transforming its staff from kitchen cooks into sous chefs, pastry experts, maître d's, and sommeliers has struck a nerve with audiences and critics alike: The Bear is a massive hit. Racking up awards galore for its cast and crew, the drama following the internal struggles behind crafting a top-tier restaurant and crew from scratch has nabbed the attention of audiences, critics, and even other actors. By the second season, the sheer amount of guest stars crammed into each episode was astounding.
Here is a look at the star power yielded by The Bear. Please vote up your favorite guest stars to ever take a bite out of The Bear.
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Where And When? Season 2, episode 6, “Fishes,” and episode 10, "The Bear"; Season 3, episode 1, “Tomorrow” and episode 8, “Ice Chips”
What Is Her Role In The Show? The mentally ill matriarch of the Berzatto clan known for her cooking, drinking, and driving.
What Makes Her Memorable? The mother of Carmy, Michael, and Natalie, Donna is an alcoholic with narcissistic personality disorder and a martyr complex whose inability to cope with stress and desperation to make every situation about herself has practically debilitated her children.
During one memorable Christmas, Donna spends hours in the kitchen cooking the annual Feast of the Seven Fishes while steadily drinking, becoming more and more unhinged as the minutes tick by. Feeling unappreciated for all her hard work, Donna suffers an emotional outburst when she doesn't receive the validation she craves. As a result, she leaves dinner and drives her car through the wall of the house.
At the end of Season 2, Donna is invited to the opening of The Bear, but refuses to go in. She discovers her daughter Natalie is pregnant but does not tell her.
In Season 3, when Natalie goes into labor and cannot get a hold of her husband Pete or brother Carmy, she reaches out to Donna, who runs to be at her daughter's side. During their time together in the hospital, the two hashed things out, and while their relationship still needs work, the Berzatto women were able to support on each other when they both needed it most.
Why Does She Look So Familiar? Jamie Lee Curtis has been steadily acting since she was a teen, become a scream queen for the horror scene of the '70s thanks to films like Halloween, Prom Night, and Terror Train. In the '80s, she emerged as a comedy queen thanks to roles in Trading Places, A Fish Called Wanda, and True Lies.
More recently, Curtis has been lauded for her performances in Knives Out, Blumhouse's new Halloween franchise, and Everything Everywhere All at Once, for which she won an Oscar.
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Where And When? Season 2, episode 7, "Forks" and Season 3, episode 1, “Tomorrow” and episode 10, “Forever”
What Is Her Role In The Show? Chef Andrea Terry is the executive chef at Ever, the Chicago restaurant where Richie learns about fine dining and staging. Her love of standards and respect for the importance of time was passed to Carmy and is a major theme of the season.
What Makes Her Memorable? A quiet yet powerful figure behind one of the greatest restaurants in the country, Chef Terry inherited a love of standards and a healthy respect for time from her father who was in the military. Terry's high standards even when performing the most simple of tasks impress both her customers and Richie, who takes all he's learned to heart and makes a change for the better regarding his future.
She was a mentor for chefs Carmy and Luca, as well as the current exec chef at her restaurant. She sent Carmy to Copenhagen to train and is responsible for his high set of standards.
In season three, she closes shop on Ever and holds a funeral for the restaurant, bringing together the best chefs in the country to say goodbye.
Why Does She Look So Familiar? Olivia Colman was a familiar face of Brit TV for a good decade before she won critical acclaim for her turn on Broadchurch. In 2018, she won an Oscar for her performance as Queen Anne in The Favourite and has since earned global recognition thanks to her roles in Fleabag, Great Expectations, The Crown, and Wonka.
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Where And When? Season 1, episode 6, "Ceres," and episode 8, "Braciole"; and Season 2, episode 6, "Fishes" and Season 3, episode 1, “Tomorrow” and episode 6, “Napkins”
What Is His Role In The Show? Mikey Berzatto is the deceased older brother of Carmy who took his own life and left the struggling sandwich shop Original Beef of Chicagoland to his younger brother in the first season... along with $300,000 hidden in tomato cans.
What Makes Him Memorable? Like his mother Donna, Mikey struggled with mental health problems that made day-to-day living for him a chore. Charismatic and charming, Mikey was also chaotic and manic, struggling with his addictions and unable to keep afloat on his responsibilities, such as his business loans or payroll.
Mikey shot himself on the State Street Bridge. His last words to Carmy were in a goodbye note that read: "I love you dude. Let it rip."
Why Does He Look So Familiar? Jon Bernthal is best known to audiences through his role as Shane on The Walking Dead. He also played The Punisher in Netflix's take on the Marvel series. He's also had starring roles in American Giglo, We Own This City, and The Many Saints of Newark, and returns to the role of Frank Castle, AKA The Punisher, in the new Daredevil series.
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Where And When? Season 2, episode 4, "Honeydew" and Season 3, episode 1, “Tomorrow” and episode 10, “Forever”
What Is His Role In The Show? A Copenhagen-based chef who takes Marcus under his wing to teach him about high-end desserts.
What Makes Him Memorable? To get Marcus ready for the new restaurant, Carmy sends the burgeoning dessert chef to Copenhagen to train with Luca, with whom Carmy had worked with under Chef Terry.
While working together, Luca tells Marcus of how he got to be good at his profession. While working for Chef Terry, he thought he was the best in his field, until he met another young chef who was much, much better than him. He then realized he could never compete with the man, and it would be a task just to keep up with the skilled chef rather than compete with him. As a result, in Luca's attempt to keep up with his “rival,” he got better than he ever thought he could be. For this he is grateful to both Carmy and Chef Terry, and teaches all he learned to Marcus.
In season three, viewers watch in flashback as both Carmy and Luca train under Chef Andrea Terry and learn the stricts set of standards they both abide by. Gentle yet strict with her discipline, she sets both men with a trouble past on the correct path.
Why Does He Look So Familiar? After supporting roles in Meet the Millers, The Maze Runner, and The Revenant, Will Poulter joined the upper tier of Tinseltown thanks to lead roles in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Midsommar.
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Where And When? Season 2, episode 2, “Pasta,” episode 8, “Bolognese,” episode 9, “Omelette,” and episode 10, "The Bear"; Season 3, episode 2, “Next”
What Is His Role In The Show? He plays Chef Sydney Adamu's father, who loves his daughter even though he doesn't quite understand why she is so passionate about low-paying work.
What Makes Him Memorable? Loving and supportive of his daughter, Adamu is concerned about Sydney's choices and mindset regarding The Bear, such as going without pay and working grueling hours. He even states that if she ever needs a job at Boeing, her cousin can hook her up. Regardless, he stands by his daughter and is always there for her. They have a close bond and it is obvious they have learned to support each other after the death of Sydney's mother from lupus.
Why Does He Look So Familiar? Writer, director, and actor Robert Townsend is a legend in the industry for his work in the '80s on Hollywood Shuffle, Eddie Murphy's Raw, The Five Heartbeats, and BAPS, as well as his writing on the legendary Comic Relief specials of yesteryear.
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Where And When? Season 1, episode 2, “Hands,” episode 3, “Brigade,” and episode 8, “Braciole”; and Season 2, episode 10, "The Bear" and Season 3, episode 1, “Tomorrow” and episode 10, “Forever”
What Is His Role In The Show? He is Carmy's sleep paralysis demon, but he happens to appear while Carmy is awake and working in the kitchen.
What Makes Him Memorable? His surly demeanor and the abusive manner in which he spoke to Carmy gave the chef post-traumatic stress disorder. Though his job at the upscale New York kitchen is far behind him, Carmy still has nightmarish visions of David Fields, the disquieting and atrocious culinary artist who made his own kitchen a nightmarish hellscape. Carmy continues to be haunted by the man, envisioning him judging him, even on opening night of The Bear.
Thought abrasive and harsh in his manner, Fields is not without his lessons, good and bad. In season three, audiences learn that though his attitude is horrific, there is method behind the madness. Fields's abuse allows Carmy to create some of the best and most creative dishes ever assembled, including one of the best meals Sydney ever ate in her entire life. But his abuse could have a lasting effect on Carmy and how he treats his staff.
Why Does He Look So Familiar? Joel McHale is best known for playing Jeff Winger, the fast-talking former attorney with no formal schooling who finds himself starting from scratch at Greendale Community College in the show Community. McHale also had a long-standing gig hosting The Soup and currently stars in Animal Control.
Great guest star?
