‘The Bear’ Review: FX’s Gripping, Heartfelt Series Courses Out Its Smart Drama In Tasty Second Season

Selome Hailu “The Bear” became an overnight sensation when its first season debuted in 2022 because of its visceral honesty about how it looks and feels to work in a restaurant. Much of the credit for that belongs to Courtney Storer. Storer, sister of series creator Chris Storer, has worked in high-profile kitchens from Verjus in Paris to Jon & Vinny’s in L.A., but her most recent job has been to serve as “The Bear’s” culinary producer, getting the writers, cast and crew acclimated to the world the series takes place in. “In Season 1, it was it was a lot of storytelling with the writers, but also providing my journals and different training guides to give insight into the ethos of restaurants,” Storer says. “It’s bigger than the conflicts: It’s the decision-making, the structure, the procedures, the recipes.”

Emily Longeretta Just as it did in its first season, “The Bear” Season 2 created a powerful soundtrack, thanks to executive producers Josh Senior and Christopher Storer, who also oversee the series’ music. From Otis Redding and Pearl Jam, to R.E.M. and Taylor Swift, the duo were able to tell a story of itself through the needle drops — something that is just as important to them as the writing itself. When the writers room began, the group made a playlist and started sharing ideas with others on the team and even some of the actors, with Senior noting that Ayo Edebiri “is super helpful” in the entire process. “It’s the most fun thing we get to do on the show, in my opinion. It’s a blast,” says Senior. “Sometimes we take all the songs out and see if we miss them. Other times, we use the songs to syncopate the scenes and cut them really fast. It’s an integral part of the process. We don’t score the show after it’s cut.”

Selome Hailu Though production on Season 2 of “The Bear” was well underway before Ramy Youssef traveled to Copenhagen to direct the fourth episode, series creator Chris Storer was slow to bring him fully behind the curtain. “He didn’t let me watch anything they had shot [in the first three episodes]. He was like, ‘No, no. You can see it when you come back, but just make this what you think it should be,'” Youssef remembers. Youssef is the first and only person to serve as a director on “The Bear” besides Storer and his co-showrunner Joanna Calo. When a tight production timeline made it impossible for Storer or Calo to direct in Copenhagen on top of nine Chicago-set episodes, Youssef was Storer’s first choice. Storer has been a director and executive producer on Youssef’s Hulu series “Ramy” since its 2019 debut, and had bounced ideas for “The Bear” off of him since “way back when it was a movie idea.”

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who stars as Destiny in “The Idol” — Jocelyn’s (Lily-Rose Depp) manager — opens up on why co-creator Sam Levinson took over the much-discussed series and the likelihood of a second season.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International When the BBC revealed it was adapting hit British indie film “Boiling Point” into a TV show, it was applauded as one of the most forward-thinking orders made at the public broadcaster in years — demonstrating the kind of savvy seen at global streamers, which are always quick on the draw in commissioning adjacent programming for a hit title. This time, Britain’s public broadcaster had also capitalized on a local sensation. The four-time BAFTA-nominated “Boiling Point” centred on a stressed-out head chef, played by “Matilda” star Stephen Graham, who quickly loses the room in a fast-paced kitchen. The movie, which released in the U.K. in January 2022, used an anxiety-inducing one-shot technique for the entire feature, heightening the intensity of the frenzied kitchen scenes. It later drew comparisons to another claustrophobic kitchen drama, FX series “The Bear,” which premiered last summer.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Production is under way on a second season of lesbian drama “Fragrance of the First Flower,” an Asian drama series from Taiwan’s GagaOOLala. The first season, comprising six episodes that debuted in 2021, follows the life of Yi-Ming (portrayed by Lin ZaiZai), a married woman with a son, who finds herself reunited with Ting-Ting (played by Cheng Lyan), a girl from her past. Their encounter sparks a connection that opens the door to the possibility of escaping Yi-Ming’s monotonous married life. In season two, expanded to 12 episodes, Yi-Ming embarks on a new chapter as a newly divorced single mother and a career woman. This fresh start brings challenges as she navigates the hardships of single parenthood and societal pressures. Even though Taiwan has legalized same-sex marriage in 2019, this does not mean that LGBTQ+ relationships have been fully accepted in mainstream society. Yi-Ming grapples with whether she can truly follow her heart and pursue a life with Ting-Ting. The original cast will return and new characters will be introduced.

With “The Bear” doing gangbusters over at Hulu, all eyes are on Christopher Storer and what he might do next. Well, it appears he’s ready to trade in his stories about chefs for a new story about a hitman in the upcoming film, “The Winter of Frankie Machine.”  According to Deadline, Christopher Storer has signed on to direct a new crime drama, “The Winter of Frankie Machine,” which is based on the novel by Don Winslow.

EXCLUSIVE: As his series creation The Bear turned in record Season Two ratings for Hulu, Christopher Storer is set to direct at Paramount Pictures The Winter of Frankie Machine, an adaptation of the 2006 Don Winslow novel. The film will be produced by Shane Salerno and The Story Factory, and Storer will use the Brian Koppelman & David Levien draft those writers did when Martin Scorsese was going to direct Robert De Niro in the lead role.

FX's has returned with season 2, continuing its story about a chef forced to take over his family's Chicago-area sandwich shop. Created by Christopher Storer, the acclaimed dramedy stars Jeremy Allen White as Carmen «Carmy» Berzatto, the culinary star who returns home after his brother's untimely death while he works through his personal and professional drama at The Original Beef. Season 1 saw Carmy bringing on sous chef Sydney Adamu (Ayo Edebiri) while also clashing with longtime staffers, Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas), Ebraheim (Edwin Lee Gibson), Neil (Matty Matheson) and Marcus (Lionel Boyce), as he made dramatic changes to the establishment.

, FX's acclaimed dramedy about a fine-dining chef who takes over his late brother's failing Chicago sandwich shop, has returned with a stellar — and even more delicious — season 2. Adding to all the excitement and drama in the new episodes are a number of previously unannounced guest stars, from Jamie Lee Curtis to John Mulaney to Oliva Colman, who all make unexpected — but very notable — appearances throughout. Created by Christopher Storer, stars Jeremy Allen White as Carmy, the put-upon chef who returned home in the wake of his brother, Michael's (Jon Bernthal), suicide.

Yes, chef. Things are heating up for Season 2 of FX’s The Bear on Hulu.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Fans spent a lot of the time out of the kitchen and in front of the TV over the weekend, saying “Yes, chef,” to the second season of FX’s “The Bear.” On Tuesday, FX and Hulu announced “The Bear” Season 2 had seen a 70% increase in total hours streamed in the first four days following its June 22 launch — when compared to the FX comedy’s first season stats over that same post-premiere time period. While FX and Hulu did not reveal the actual streaming figures behind that data point, the Disney-owned brands did confirm “The Bear’s” second season debut was the most-watched premiere of any FX series on Hulu.

Hulu’s series The Bear proved there’s no such thing as too many chefs in the kitchen after two seasons of star-studded cameos.

Daniel D'Addario Chief TV Critic On the second season of “The Bear,” FX’s breakout restaurant drama, each character gets a moment to shine. But few seize it with quite such abandon as Richie. As played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Richie spent much of the first season at top volume and vein-popping intensity, perennially there to remind Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) of the chaos in the restaurant’s kitchen, and to add to it. Which makes him an unlikely candidate to train, for a period, at a true fine-dining restaurant, but so he does. Much as Marcus (Lionel Boyce) flies to Copenhagen to apprentice as a high-level pastry chef, so too does Richie “stage” in an upscale Chicago this show hadn’t yet shown us, so that he may learn the essentials of service.

Sophia Scorziello editor Chris Zucchero, owner of Chicago’s beloved Italian sandwich shop Mr. Beef, is on the “L” trying to get a word in on the phone. He just wrapped up a long two days of catering parties for FX’s “The Bear” Season 2, providing hot Italian beef sandwiches with sweet peppers and spicy giardiniera for Hollywood’s finest. “The Bear” creator Christopher Storer — who Zucchero has been friends with since kindergarten — based “The Bear” on the classic establishment and shot about 90% of the pilot in Mr. Beef. Storer even cast Zucchero in the pilot as the guy in the parking lot who deals meat to Jeremy Allen White’s character Carmy.

The cast of The Last of Us might have looked very different.

Warning: This story contains spoilers about the plot of The Bear season 2.

Paramount+ crime drama Last King of the Cross, about legendary Australian underworld figure John Ibrahim, is getting a second season.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “The Twelve,” an award-winning Australian crime drama series, has been greenlighted for a second season. It is backed by the Foxtel group and its streaming brand Binge. The show follows a controversial murder trial seen through the lens of the jurors, twelve ordinary Australians who are facing their own realities and struggles. The first season received ten nominations, and won three AACTA Awards in 2022 including best miniseries. In recent days, it became the most nominated drama series at the 63rd TV Week Logie Awards. Season two of “The Twelve” will be eight 1-hour episodes written by Sarah Walker, Anchuli Felicia King, Anya Beyersdorf and Anna Barnes. Local authorities in Western Australia described it as the state’s “biggest-ever screen production,” but divulged no specifics on budget. Filming will take place in the Wheatbelt and Metropolitan regions and create over 100 local jobs, the state government said.

The Bear returns for its second season this month.Created by Christopher Storer, the show’s first season followed award-winning chef Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) who returns to run his family’s Italian beef sandwich shop following the suicide of his older brother.The second season picks up after Carmy’s decision to close the shop in order to open a new restaurant, alongside Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) and Richie (Ebon Mass-Bachrach).A synopsis reads: “Carmy, Sydney and Richie work to transform their grimy sandwich joint into a next-level spot. As they strip the restaurant down to its bones, the crew undertakes transformational journeys of their own, each forced to confront the past and reckon with who they want to be in the future.