Good news for fans: we hear there is more of The Bear on the way than previously thought. Multiple sources confirm to Deadline that the Emmy-winning FX on Hulu comedy, which was renewed for Season 3 in November, also has been picked up for a fourth season to film back to back in Chicago.
A Season 4 renewal has not been announced and a spokesperson for FX declined comment.
Chatter about The Bear filming additional episodes beyond Season 3 started percolating in Chicago local outlets over the past week.
The move raised speculation whether this might be the popular restaurant comedy’s final chapter — something that happened with another acclaimed FX comedy series, Atlanta, which ended after shooting Seasons 3 and 4 back to back.
That has not been determined, according to sources, and a Season 5 of The Bear remains a possibility. As to why Seasons 3 and 4 are filmed back to back, accommodating talent schedules is one explanation as Emmy winners Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri are said to be getting a ton of feature opportunities. White already established himself as a leading man with his work in The Iron Claw.
Like The Bear’s Emmy-winning stars White, Edebiri and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Storer’s star is also on the rise because of how the show captured the zeitgeist. Deadline reported exclusively Wednesday that Storer has signed on to do write and direct a feature take of Amor Towles’ The Lincoln Highway.
Season 3 of The Bear will premiere in June. The FX show, which runs exclusively on Hulu, will remain as a binge drop on the streamer.
Production on the third season of the single-camera comedy began last month. Internet sleuths in Chicago have posted provocative — and potentially spoiler-y — pictures from the show’s location shoots.
The first season of The Bear won 10 Emmys, including for Outstanding Comedy and Outstanding Writing. The show has already aired its second season but last year’s writers and actors strikes complicated what year was eligible to compete at the 75th Emmy Awards. Season 2 won Golden Globes for Best Television Series, Musical or Comedy and stars White and Edebiri.