Spoilers ahead for The Bear Season 2, Episode 4. The Bear’s first season earned ample praise and awards for its performances, writing, and directing, cementing it as one of the most exciting new shows to come out of 2022. Of course, the show’s brooding protagonist definitely helped with word of mouth — and while there’s no Emmy for Hunkiest TV Chef (yet), The Bear Season 2 would certainly earn a nod in that category.
In Episode 4 (which dropped alongside the rest of the season on June 22), Marcus travels to Denmark for an important assignment: He’ll train under a pastry chef to get inspiration for The Bear, which is opening in seven weeks. That chef’s name is Luca, and he’s played by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 alum Will Poulter.
Marcus is understandably nervous about his stage (culinary for “apprenticeship”) at first. As he tells Luca, he’s been a chef for about 18 months — but his mentor has been at it for 14 years. But the pair develops a good rapport while perfecting challenging desserts like shiso gelee, and Luca imparts some solid advice to the newer pastry chef. “Most of the incredible things that I’ve eaten, haven’t been because the skill level’s exceptionally high, or there’s loads of mad, fancy techniques, it’s because it’s been really inspired,” he says. “You can spend all the time in the world in here, but if you don’t spend enough time out there...”
Of course, Luca’s pastry savvy was fun to watch — but for many viewers, it was the muscly, tattooed arms and cool demeanor that really had them saying, “Yes, chef.”
Fortunately, Poulter likely had as much fun doing the cameo as fans had watching it. As it turns out, the Emmy-nominated actor recently told The Cut cooking is “one of [his] favorite activities.”
“Chefs are my rock stars,” he said. “I worship chefs more than I do actors or musicians; I just think they’re amazing.” He then clarified that he’d put nurses before chefs — but still, he’s a fan!
Lionel Boyce, who plays Marcus, told Screen Rant Poulter was “very prepared” for the role, and even practiced in real-life kitchens to hone his skills. “He's the best dude,” Boyce said. “He’s super cool and easy to hang out with. You just want to have conversations all day.” After watching Poulter’s memorable cameo, many fans of The Bear would clearly love that opportunity.
