Major spoilers ahead for Bears Season 1 . Christopher Stoller's "The Bear" is undoubtedly one of the most acclaimed works of the year. The show received a rare 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and was renewed for a second season less than a month after its June 2022 premiere. The story follows James Beard Award-winning chef Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, who returns to Chicago to take over the dilapidated Original Beef of Chicagoland restaurant after her brother Michael dies by suicide.
Throughout the first season, Cami faced countless problems. The restaurant owed Uncle Jimmy $300,000, and health inspectors gave it a C grade for poor sanitary conditions. The menu is also outdated, the kitchen is dysfunctional, and the restaurant is no stranger to gang violence. Cami also discovered that his brother's best friend, Richie, had been selling substances out the back of the restaurant to stay in business during the COVID-19 pandemic. This all comes as Cami grieves for his brother and grapples with his own mental health issues.
While there's a lot to cover, the ending of "Bear" leaves Cammie and his staff in a more hopeful place, with several plot threads left to explore in season two. Cami apologizes for his abusive leadership behavior, leading to the return of sous chef Sidney and baker Marcus to the restaurant. Ritchie was arrested after assaulting a guest. The most shocking thing is that in the end, Cami received Michael's suicide note and discovered that he had hidden a large amount of cash in a small jar of ketchup. At the end of the season, Cami put up a sign announcing the opening of a new restaurant—called “The Bear,” of course.
Where does the money come from for the Bear Season finale?
In an interview with Indiewire, Stoller explained that the money Cami found was actually $300,000 borrowed from Jimmy's uncle. "Michael was telling the truth when he told Uncle Jimmy that he wanted to franchise, and in this case it meant opening a restaurant with Cami," Storer said, adding, "Michael thought he Breaking the family cycle and starting something fresh may be a way to "deal with your own addiction."
As for how the cash gets in there, Stoller said the restaurant has an easy-to-use semi-automatic electric can sealing machine. "In [Michael's] dispersed state, working on the tomato cans really felt like he was starting to build something, more like a real plan of action for him. The safe felt too safe, too obvious," he said. He admits the twist felt "ridiculous," but while doing research for "The Bear," he stumbled across countless stories of money or drugs found in tomato cans.
Will Cami use the money in Bears Season 2?
Storer also said it was very purposeful for Cami to find the money at the end of the season, rather than when he first inherited the restaurant. "If Cami had made spaghetti in the pilot episode, he would have figured it out right away, which is a wonderful idea, but maybe he would have burned out like Michael did," Stoller said. Instead, Cami had to remain conscious. to him trying to fix the restaurant "for all the wrong reasons." He must find Sydney and learn how to work with his team of chefs.
One thing Stoller has kept open is what Cami will do with future funding. We don't know how Cami will transform the restaurant into "The Bear," especially since the money is almost entirely owed to Uncle Jimmy. "This is something we want to wrap up and hopefully explore in season two," Stoller said. "Kami has some closure with his brother, but how does he deal with that going forward? How can he create something new and start from a more positive place?"
