What to Know About ‘The Bear’ Season 4: From Carmy and Syd’s Fractured Relationship to More Cameos
Fans have a lot of questions about The Bear's future — and season 4 will hopefully answer at least some of them.
The FX series, which streams new episodes on Hulu, has explored the food industry through the lens of a talented chef named Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), who returned to Chicago shortly after his older brother Mikey's (Jon Bernthal) death to take over their family sandwich shop, The Beef. Carmy eventually closed down the local shop in favor of a more upscale restaurant, which he named The Bear.
Season 3 showcased the aftermath of Carmy, Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) and Richie's (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) efforts to open The Bear within three months. The employees found it tough adjusting to the higher caliber of service, which led to new rifts and challenges among the staff.
Carmy specifically found himself growing distant from Sydney, who was his partner since the show's first season. His evolution into an angry and controlling boss led Sydney to consider leaving The Bear for another opportunity.
Fans may not have to wait too long to see what follows since the third season ended with a "To Be Continued" message.
Keep scrolling for everything to know about season 4 of The Bear:
Has 'The Bear' Been Renewed for Season 4 — and When Will It Start Filming?
Before season 3 even aired, reports surfaced about FX quietly renewing The Bear for more episodes. Multiple outlets claimed the show filmed seasons 3 and 4 at the same time due to the busy schedules of cast members such as White, Edebiri and Moss-Bachrach.
Matty Matheson, who plays Fak, was asked about filming both seasons together. He admitted that it was hard to remember what scenes he could speak about since there is footage fans wouldn’t see yet when season 3 started streaming.
"We can’t talk about a bunch of stuff. But I kind of forget everything, which is perfect because I’m like, 'I don’t even know,'" he joked during an interview with Variety in June 2024. "I haven’t even watched the season, actually. I’ve seen some edits and some early episodes, but I’ve only seen episodes 1 through 4, really."
Moss-Bachrach confirmed in July 2024 that season 4 was already filmed. “When we went in to start season 3, we weren't going in to make season 3 and 4," he said during an episode of the "Talk Easy With Sam Fragoso" podcast. "But it swelled and our episodes got quite big — over an hour."
The extra footage allowed for them to start season 4 production immediately. "Some of these episodes were splitting [and we] are not making it into two seasons and now we are going to be making 15 or 16 episodes instead of 10. But we’re gonna do it all at the same time," the actor added. "I would come in at the beginning of the day and shoot a scene from late in season 4 and then shoot a scene from early season 4 and then shoot a scene late in season 3. Jeremy, Ayo and I are in a constant state of rereading through the seasons and trying to remember where your person is at."
Which Stars Will Come Back?
Based on the events of season 3, White, Edebiri, Moss-Bachrach, Abby Elliott, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, Edwin Lee Gibson and Matheson are expected to return. Oliver Platt, Chris Witaske, Molly Gordon, Ricky Staffieri, Gillian Jacobs and Jamie Lee Curtis were involved on a larger scale during the third season and are expected back.
The Bear has also continued to incorporate Bernthal's character through flashbacks from before Mikey's death.
Where Did Every Character End Up?
The short answer to how each character is doing is: Not well. Season 3 wrapped with Sydney having a panic attack as her issues with Carmy started to bubble up. She also received an offer from former Ever chef Adam Shapiro to be his new chef de cuisine, which Carmy still didn’t know about by the finale.
Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune’s review is out and is a major deciding factor for the restaurant’s future. A bad review means Cicero will shut down the establishment. Carmy was also spending too much money by attempting a new menu every night, making it impossible for The Bear to break even.
Richie, for his part, is figuring out how to balance his home and work life. He was invited to his ex’s wedding, but it isn't clear whether he will attend. Other employees from the kitchen such as Tina, Marcus, Sweeps and more didn't get enough screen time in season 3 for a clear picture of what’s next for their stories.
What Does Season 4 Mean for Sydney and Carmy?
In June 2024, White and Edebiri were asked at a press conference whether the writers' room discussed the "romantic implications" between their characters. Despite their denials, season 3 still inadvertently featured plenty of scenes that stood out to fans.
On a platonic level, Sydney and Carmy's partnership is not looking good. Sydney spent most of the season frustrated with how Carmy was running everything without including her in big decisions, which made Sydney reconsider whether she wanted to sign up to be a partner. It didn't help when Adam Shapiro offered her a position at his next business — and she didn't immediately decline.
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Will There Be More Guest Stars?
Some familiar faces such as John Mulaney, Sarah Ramos and Will Poulter returned to reprise their characters during season 3. New cameos came from John Cena, Josh Hartnett and a plethora of well-known chefs. Season 4 is expected to continue the tradition of surprising fans with A-list stars in fun roles.
How Does Claire Still Fit Into the Equation?
The season 2 finale featured Carmy going on a rant — which his then-girlfriend Claire (Gordon) overheard — about how he didn't want distractions in his life. They eventually broke up, but Claire was mentioned many times in the third season without crossing paths with Carmy. The season ended with Carmy still wondering whether he should make amends.
"I think Claire is so lovely and kind to Carmy. I think she deserves an apology, at the very least," White told TVLine in January 2024 about where the story should go. "So I hope there’s some version of that when I read the scripts."
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Was the Show Able to Avoid Leaks?
Matheson told Us Weekly about how the show handled leaks throughout filming, sharing in March 2024, "It's one of those things where we are in public sometimes and I think it's a little annoying. But we're in a city that we love and people happen to walk by. And they walk by the moment we are outside."
He concluded: "I think maybe we can be a little more secretive. Maybe not just stand outside all together. But we're all such good friends that it seems chill to be honest."
