Topline
The third season of FX’s Emmy Award-winning drama “The Bear” broke records to become the largest scripted series premiere of all time on Hulu and the third-largest premiere of any kind on one of streaming's oldest services, Disney told multiple news outlets, despite mixed reviews from critics.
Ayo Edebiri and Jeremy Allen White during the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Feb. 24, ... [+]
Key Facts
The third season of 'The Bear' was watched 5.4 million times on Hulu in its first four days, the best performance ever for an FX premiere on the streamer and 24% more views than Season 2 earned in the same amount of time, Disney told Variety.
Critics gave “The Bear” Season 3 a warm 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes despite several big publications like The New York Times, Guardian and Variety delivering harsh reviews that labeled the latest episodes “frustrating,” "less fulfilling” and “bogged down with repetition and stunt casting.”
Audience members on Rotten Tomatoes were much more harsh—Season 3 has received an average 59% score from more than 500 viewer ratings, down significantly from the 93% and 92% seasons 1 and 2 earned, respectively.
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Chief Critics
Reviewers have said the show is still good—it’s won 10 Emmys and four Golden Globes, after all—but fell flat in its more recent season. New York Times reviewer James Poniewozik said his thoughts on the show were "contradictory"—he called it "brilliant” and “innovative,” but also "confusing" and that it left him "disappointed." Guardian reviewer Rebecca Nicholson said "The Bear" can, at times, be called the "finest show on TV," but that the new season "feels half finished, wastes its best actors and ends maddeningly." The Independent’s Nick Hilton said the show “feels stuck in a loop of its own creation.”
Key Background
"The Bear" Season 1 released in 2022 and followed a young chef named Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) as he returned to Chicago to run his family's sandwich shop after his brother's unexpected suicide. The show revolves around Carmy, his brother's best friend Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), the Culinary Institute of America graduate he hires named Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) and the rest of the restaurant's staff. In the second season, Carmy focuses on his plan to open a new restaurant called The Bear with the same crew and the third season follows the early days of the new eatery. The first season of the show scored an almost-unheard-of 100% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and was hailed for everything from its breakout performances to its writing, direction and even soundtrack. The second season was received almost as well with a 99% critics score.
Tangent
“The Bear” launched several of its actors to mainstream success. White, the show’s main character, had a decade of indie film experience and was a regular for 10 years on Showtime's "Shameless," but it was "The Bear" that sent him to superstardom. He has since starred in a viral ad campaign for Calvin Klein and scored roles in "Fremont," "Fingernails" and "The Iron Claw." Edebiri, 28, went on to star in the year's highest-grossing film, "Inside Out 2," landed a guest spot on the hit sitcom "Abbott Elementary" and is slated to appear in Marvel's "Thunderbolts" later this year. Moss-Bachrach will play the Thing in the upcoming reboot of "Fantastic Four."
