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This article was originally published on July 7, 2023.
Were serving it back up again ahead ofThe Bears third season.
It was literally just a video in his kitchen of him begging to be on the show.
We kept getting submissions like that.
Amateur chefs werent the only ones eager to show up onThe Bear.
It was just a new character onThe Bear.
I mean, agents and managers lost their minds.
I literally have never had that many phone calls and emails on a recurring role in my life.
when they worked together on the 2018 comedyLife of the Party.
Chris knows these characters; he knows what hes writing; he knows this world, says Bacharach.
He just felt really strongly that it was not necessary.
Their chemistry on screen is magical and you immediately buy into their history and complex relationship.
But once we knew it was a possibility, says Bacharach, we really didnt talk about anybody else.
They also had thought maybe he wasnt gonna do it for the money.
Jamie Lee Curtis As Donna Berzatto
Fishes is certainlyThe Bears second-season standout in terms ofguest casting.
Jamie Lee was on the list from the beginning, Bacharach says of theEverything Everywhere All at Oncestar.
We went back and forth and back and forth, and ultimately her schedule didnt allow for it.
There were also conversations with Melanie Griffith about the role, but she ultimately passed.
I dont think that she was quite ready to take that on, says Bacharach.
Like, why are we not?
And he was like, Do you really think?
Then I was like, What about Odenkirk?
And hes like, Holy bleep.
Thats more right than this person Ive been talking to.
Odenkirk certainly was able to do that.
No ones trying to make it about themselves.
Who is the little bit of a fish out of water?
The guy that Uncle Lee always forgets that he meets.
Other actors were approached to play Stevie, but the scheduling didnt quite work.
Its just fun to put people who are unexpected in these parts, says Bacharach.
As Chris likes to say, Whats going to make noise?
Chris thought that would be really fun, says Bacharach.
Once that was established, then it was just working out the details from there, says Bacharach.
And it was amazing.
Luckily, it turned out that a lot of them had natural acting talent, too.
Mickie was generously meeting with these people and negotiating some of the lines a little bit with them.
I was so impressed these people were pretty good.
We didnt have to audition him, says Paskal.
Not everyone was so eager to be featured on-camera, though.
She didnt want to audition, Paskal says.
I chased her down a staircase.
We were like, Claire, its a GM.
It has to be you.
She was like, Absolutely not.
Hours later, she was like, Okay.
The casting teams in both Chicago and L.A. always have that at the forefront of their minds.
But that balance, I feel, is totally right.
Jeanies work is the cannoli, right?
says Paskal, turning to a food analogy, as one inevitably does when discussingThe Bear.
Were looking for the pistachio crema, and if it doesnt work together, then were effed.
She has created this amazing dish and then weve got these little garnishes but theyre so important, right?
This story has been updated with additional information.
