The Bear Cast Teases a ‘Challenging’ Season 3 — and Firmly Shuts the Door on a Carmy-Sydney Romance

The Bear returns for its third season on Hulu this week — but just because Carmy’s restaurant is now open doesn’t mean all his problems are solved.

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“I do get out of the walk-in refrigerator, and that’s good,” Emmy winner Jeremy Allen White joked to reporters during a Season 3 press conference on Monday. But the fiercely driven chef Carmy isn’t satisfied after his dream restaurant’s opening night, he hints: “I think Carmy does what he does, which is he sort of buries himself back into his work and really tries to challenge himself. And in doing so, [he] really challenges everybody around him, and I think becomes quite challenging to be around as well.”

Season 3 — which premieres this Wednesday at 9/8c with all 10 episodes — picks up “not long after Season 2 ends,” co-star Ebon Moss-Bachrach (who plays Richie) added, and even though Richie turned himself into a top-notch restaurant employee in Season 2, he still has more growing to do: “He’s been exposed to maybe a more evolved way of being, and I think he kind of sees a path to head towards. But it’s one thing to see the path, and it’s another thing to walk it. So I think like any kind of personal growth, it’s forward and back.”

The trailer for Season 3 also reveals that Carmy presents his fellow chef Sydney with a partnership agreement for their restaurant, and White sees that as a step forward for Carmy and his ability to connect with people: “He’s got a lot going on in his mind all the time, and people aren’t always aware of exactly what’s going on… You’ll see, obviously, how that affects Carmy and Syd’s relationship. But I think Carmy is trying to welcome her in a little bit.”

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Their partnership, though, does not extend into the romantic arena, White is careful to say, although many fans want to see the two get together. When asked if there was any discussion in the writers’ room about Carmy and Sydney’s relationship ever getting romantic, White firmly shut that down: “No, there is no talk in the rooms about any romantic implication.”

What are you hoping to see in Season 3? And are you disappointed that Carmy and Sydney will remain strictly platonic? Share your thoughts in a comment below.

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