If you're a fan of The Bear, FX's award-winning kitchen drama, then we've got some great news for you. With season two already streaming on Hulu and Disney Plus and a third season of the show coming in June 2024, the fourth season has already reportedly been greenlit.
I think The Bear is the best Disney Plus show, and the second season was pretty much a masterpiece. So if you haven't already caught the adventures of Carmy, Richie and Sydney, I honestly think it justifies the cost of your streaming sub. And of course there's much more to stream including the Oscar-winning Poor Things.
Although The Bear picked up most of its awards in the comedy category, it's not a comedy: people say funny things, but it's a drama that at heart is about grief, loss and obsession. And the season two episode Fishes may not be a laugh riot, but it's one of the most extraordinary episodes I've ever seen.
The Bear Season 4: what we know so far
Let's be honest, we don't know anything. The fourth season hasn't been officially confirmed by its maker FX, although Deadline is very confident that its story is correct. Season four is apparently going to be filmed back to back with the currently shooting The Bear season three, which again is set in Chicago.
One reason for the back-to-back filming is that the Disney Plus show's stars are in demand. Both Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebri's phones are ringing non-stop with tasty offers, and creator and showrunner Christopher Storer's star is in the ascendant too. By filming back to back The Bear can get the show in the can without having to work around their increasingly busy diaries.
Given the critical love and endless awards the show has garnered so far, expect to see more celebrity cameos like the ones in season two, which featured Jamie Lee Curtis, Bob Odenkirk and Olivia Coleman in memorable roles. There's lots of speculation that Curtis may be coming back for season three.
One bit of speculation I'm not so keen on is that season four could be the final outing for the show. It's important to note that that's purely speculation, and Deadline says that a fifth season "remains a possibility". But there's precedent here: Atlanta, another critically acclaimed FX show, ended after shooting its third and fourth seasons back to back.
I hope the speculation is wrong, but then again as any fine diner knows, it's possible to have too much of a good thing: as a huge fan of the show I'd rather have four perfect seasons than a longer run of lesser episodes that ends up leaving a bad taste.
