While Jeremy Allen White has been consistently working for a long time now, there’s no question that he reached a new level of stardom because of The Bear. He plays Head Chef Carmy in the critically acclaimed FX dramedy, and he effortlessly leads an incredible ensemble of actors that make up his kitchen. Now, the actor has received award after award for his work on the show – most recently he was among 2024’s Golden Globe winners – and it has me thinking about what his co-star Ebon Moss-Bachrach told me about just how hard it is to play Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto.
I interviewed Ebon Moss-Bachrach – who received an Emmy nomination for playing Richie – back in June, right before Season 2 premiered. Now, that season has come and gone, Season 3 of The Bear is on its way, and the cast is up for many awards, with their leading man at the front of the pack.
And there’s a good reason for all the hype surrounding White, his role is not an easy one to play, and he makes it look easy. To this point, his co-star and on-screen Cousin said during an interview with CinemaBlend:
[What Jeremy does is] very, very, very hard. I don’t know if I could do it. Just for him to, I mean, he doesn't speak so much, and he's very much the heart of the show. He's just so compelling. I mean, I don't even know, I think that's almost like a physiological thing. Something about, the way that Jeremy’s eyes are or, you know, I mean, to have that kind of magnetism internally is really is pretty…it’s something.
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Carmy is very in his head, and he internalizes a lot of his emotions. That’s what causes him to explode in moments, and it’s also what makes him so contemplative in others. On top of that, he’s also an expert chef and those skills are on full display. Overall, White is juggling a lot while playing Carmy, and it makes sense why Moss-Bachrach thinks it’s “very, very, very hard.”
Jeremy Allen White’s performance as Carmy is masterful, and he’s been recognized for it. So far, the former Shameless star has won a Screen Actors Guild Award, two Golden Globes and a Critics Choice Award. This year, he’s also nominated again for both SAG and CCA, and he’s a frontrunner. On top of all this, he’s also up for an Emmy. Clearly, Carmy has made an impact, and White’s brilliant performance as this complex character is why.
While I was chatting with Ebon Moss-Bachrach, he told me about his adoration for Jeremy Allen White and Carmy. The Bear’s head chef is a totally unique man, and the Richie actor loves him and the actor behind him for it. He said:
I knew him a little bit before we started. And then, you know, I fell in love with him. He's an incredible, deep, lovely, lovely human being, and just obviously a phenomenal actor. He's a joy to work with and a joy to be around. So I mean, I like Jeremy a lot more than Richie likes Carmy – that's a much more fraught relationship. Carmy is a much weirder person than Jeremy [laughs]. I think there's a scene, I think maybe in episode six of the new season or episode five, where [Richie] says something like, ‘Yeah, he's a weird little dude,’ and Carmy is a strange guy and very inside.
There’s a lot of love in The Bear cast, and you can feel their care for each other and their characters on screen (even if they’re yelling at each other most of the time). And along with folks falling in love with this show, they’re also head over heels for the actors.
Jeremy Allen White is the prime example of how the cast has found even more success outside of their show. Along with The Bear, the actor starred in The Iron Claw with Zac Efron and Harris Dickinson. He’s also the current face of Calvin Klein underwear. So, overall, he’s thriving, and it’s in part thanks to the difficult role he plays on The Bear.
To see if Jeremy Allen White and Ebon Moss-Bachrach take home some of the biggest awards in television for The Bear, you can catch the telecast on January 15 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Then, make sure to check the 2024 TV schedule so you are up to date on when Season 3 will premiere, and to go back and see the actors in action as Carmy and Richie, you can stream the FX dramedy with a Hulu subscription.
