After a year of anticipation, The Bear is back. And though its chefs spend Season 4 struggling to bounce back from a negative Chicago Tribune restaurant review, there’s no reason to fear! Why? Because Albert Schnur is here!
The Bear Season 4 spoilers ahead.
As is tradition for Christopher Storer’s Emmy-winning FX series, Season 4 introduces a number of new characters, which means more jaw-dropping celebrity guest star reveals. While some fresh but familiar faces (yes, we mean Francie Fak!) took us out of the series entirely, others, like Rob Reiner, who plays Ebra’s (Edwin Lee Gibson) mentor Albert Schnur, were perfectly cast.
After culinary school knocked Ebra’s confidence in Season 3, the Tribune’s praise for the beef window motivates him to “create opportunity,” so he enlists Schnur’s assistance, and the two meet up in Episode 403.
In an effort to convince Ebra he’s not some “fly-by-night crackpot,” Schnur explains he’s consulted for everything from Fortune 500 companies to strip-mall laundromats. The plan is for Ebra to shadow him and absorb his wisdom every day for three weeks, and by the end of those three weeks, Ebra should know the secrets to success. But rather than listen to Schnur’s five basic business essentials, Ebra comes in hot and dazzles his mentor with Italian Beef sandwich window stats, financial estimates, color-coded spreadsheets, and clear questions.
After Schnur gets a kitchen tour and meets the beef team in Episode 5, he has his epiphany: expansion through replication, aka, a mini franchise. If the team goes slow, keeps the family feel, and ensures quality control, Schnur thinks they can “be bigger than Arby’s!” And in Season 4’s penultimate episode, the sandwich window squad agrees to pitch three new spaces to Carmy and cut Schnur in on the action as “a consigliere like Robert Duvall in The Godfather.” The guy even hits it off with and holds his own against “The Computer” (Brian Koppelman), teasing what could be a beautiful, thoroughly entertaining partnership down the line.
Though the accomplished director, Emmy-winning actor, and comedian with nearly 90 IMDb roles since 1961 — including All in the Family, Sleepless in Seattle, The Wolf of Wall Street, and New Girl — has serious star power, like Jamie Lee Curtis and Bob Odenkirk before him, Reiner swiftly embraces and embodies his character so specifically that his off-screen identity doesn’t distract from the on-screen narrative. The Bear absolutely ate with this one. 10/10, no notes!
Considering The Bear loves chaos, there’s always a chance that Schnur could break our hearts by doing Ebra and team dirty. But so far, Reiner’s charm, upbeat energy, and comforting personality reads as incredibly earnest. (Schnur is wearing a wholesome baseball cap with a typewriter on it when we meet him! How can we not trust this man?!) The Season 4 newbie may feel like a bit of a big talker, but there’s no denying he’s knowledgable about business. Plus, it’s encouraging that he supports Ebra’s desire to get Carm’s blessing.
Since the potential franchise plan is one of several unresolved storylines at the end of Season 4, fingers crossed that The Bear Season 5 serves up more Reiner — and that Schnur (and Ebra) help save the restaurant.
The Bear Season 4 is now streaming on Hulu.