In today’s episode of Bingeworthy, our TV and streaming podcast, co-host Mike DeAngelo cooks his way through FX and Hulu’s buzzy series, “The Bear,” which stars Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri, Abby Elliot, and many more. The intense, frantic show follows a young chef, Carmen’ Carmy’ Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White), as he returns home after working at one of the best restaurants in the world to take on saving his family’s fledgling Chicago sandwich shop. What he finds, however, is a kitchen that’s as emotionally dysfunctional as it is logistically chaotic. Battling many of his own personal demons, including the death of his older brother, who committed suicide and then bequeathed the restaurant to him, it’s easily one of the year’s best new series and has taken the internet by storm over the past month.
READ MORE: The Best TV Of 2022… So Far, ‘The Bear’ & More
“The Bear” series star Jeremy Allen White stopped by the Bingeworthy podcast to discuss getting involved with the series despite his reluctance to start another Chicago-based, family-centric series after his eleven-year stint on the hit Showtime series “Shameless.”
“When I first got a call before I read the script, I got a call from my agents, and they were like, ‘Chris [Storer] has this show, and it’s really great.’ And I was like, ‘OK, I don’t know about another show like right away [after Shameless].’ White admitted. “And then they were like, ‘It’s in Chicago.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, I definitely don’t know about that.’ But then I read the script, and, at the end of the day, I’m not in a position to pass on something that’s just that good. No matter what…And I’m so glad I didn’t. I’d really be kicking myself if I let this one slip.”
The show features an anxiety-fueled, high-wire performance from White, which, surprisingly, is right in his comfort zone.
“I feel like I take a lot of comfort in that space, for some reason,” White explained. “I put a lot of pressure on myself to perform for Chris [Storer] and for Jo [Calo]. Like it’s a story, he’s had this idea for ten years. And I think that maybe bled over a little bit into Carmy, which is a good thing. For me, I wanted Carmen to feel like the whole time, it was life and death, almost. You know? Like he was really walking a tightrope. Anything can set him off at any time, but I always wanted him to be on a simmer if you could excuse the pun.”
The series was just renewed for a well-deserved second season, and White is already thinking about where he wants to see Carmy go in the future.
“What would be something exciting for me to explore is Carmy kind of getting what he wants, you know?” White shared. “Let’s say they open ‘The Bear’ and it’s really excellent, and he gets his flowers, so to speak. What’s next? Is Carmy just miserable, or is the situation making him miserable? Like, how deep is his pain? And, at the end of the day, does success truly help?”
The entire first season of “The Bear” is now available to stream on Hulu. You can listen to the entire podcast below, which touches on his “Shameless” days, his aversion to superhero roles, and actually working as a chef in fine dining restaurants:
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