FX’s The Bear may be about the chaotic world of restaurants, but creator, writer, and director Christopher Storer has also made the series a love letter to movies. The show has featured movie scores from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Risky Business, while posters for films including Groundhog Day, Say Anything, Marked for Death, and White Squall can be spotted throughout The Beef and Richie’s home. Richie even repeatedly cites Ridley Scott as one of his biggest inspirations.
But some of The Bear‘s best movie references are much easier to miss. The series has quietly worked everything from Michael Mann’s Miami Vice to Bloodsport and The Princess Bride into its dialogue and scenes, sometimes recreating specific moments almost word for word.
So, with The Bear now having come to a close, we’re looking back at five of our favorite movie Easter eggs from the series. Spoiler warning: There are a couple of very light spoilers for Season 5, so proceed only if you’re ready to go in less fresh than packaged meat.
This one is incredibly obscure unless you’re a huge fan of Michael Mann’s Miami Vice movie from 2006, which stars Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx as Crockett and Tubbs. In the film, Crockett goes undercover and seduces the financial adviser of the main villain, who is portrayed by Gong Li. There’s a scene when she takes Crockett to get some mojitos, and they use a go-fast boat as a means of transportation.
In The Bear‘s season 2 premiere, “Beef,” the restaurant has been having technical difficulties with their security alarm, as it keeps tripping. In one scene, Richie is seen being on the phone with the alarm people as they need access to the Beef’s wifi and he tells them, “The password is ‘go-fast boats mojito,’ all one word. Yeah, go-fast boats and then mojito. All one word.”
The philosophy of John Kreese’s karate dojo in The Karate Kid is a pop culture staple. Thanks to Netflix’s continuation with Cobra Kai, the philosophy will never die. As a very nervous Daniel Larusso and a headstrong Mr. Miyagi confront Johnny Lawrence and Sensei Kreese at Cobra Kai, they listen in on a class where Kreese tells his students things like, “The enemy deserves no mercy” and “Fear does not exist in this dojo.”
In season 3, episode 2 of The Bear, “Next,” Richie and Carmy take their squabble from the finale of season 2 and extend it to this season. In this episode, Carmy is determined to keep things in order (as he sees it) and one of the things he and Richie argue about is Richie’s decoration settings out in the dining area. When Carmy rearranges things himself, Richie confronts him about it in front of Sydney and explains to them, “Out there…that’s my dojo. Shit gets rearranged without my approval or consent, it creates an environment of fear and fear does not exist in that dojo!”
The Last Boy Scout felt like a perfect marriage of action elements. You have Shane Black writing a buddy-comedy action movie. Tony Scott directed with his sleek visual style. Damon Wayans, hot off of In Living Color, was the funny sidekick. And Bruce Willis stars as a very John McClane-esque character with a good dosage of Martin Riggs self-loathing. In Willis’ first scene in the movie, he looks at his car’s rearview mirror, back at himself. He gives himself the morning “affirmation,” “Nobody likes you. Everybody hates you. You’re gonna lose. Smile, you fuck.”
In the premiere of season 5 of The Bear, “Soda,” everybody prepares for a day at The Bear in a montage. You see Richie dress up in his suit and he looks into the bathroom mirror, giving himself the exact same words of “encouragement.”
In Bloodsport, the movie that made Jean-Claude Van Damme a pop culture phenomenon, an underground fighting tournament called the Kumite is shown to be steeped in tradition and uncuffed by regulations, which makes it completely no-holds-barred and thus the name — bloodsport. A fighter can win their match by knocking out their opponent or making them say the word “matae,” which basically means to yield. All throughout the movie, fighters are knocked out left and right, but Van Damme would defeat his ultimate opponent by making him say “matae.”
In episode 5 of the first season, “Sheridan,” the restaurant is in dire need of some quick money. Earlier in the episode, Richie and Neil Geoff Fak get into an argument, which turns into an all-out wrestling match. Richie prompts Fak to say “matae” before they get broken up. Later in the episode, Carmy and Fak ask for Richie’s help and his only stipulation is for Fak to say, “matae.”
I absolutely LOVE this reference and it would’ve been number one if it weren’t for an incredibly sweet tribute that was made in the final season.
The Princess Bride is an ultimate fairy tale for the modern age as Rob Reiner directs this 80s classic. Robin Wright stars at the titular princess, Princess Buttercup and Cary Elwes plays the dashing, swashbuckling Wesley, who courts her. In the movie, Wesley would constantly show his devotion to the princess by responding, “As you wish,” to her requests of him.
In season four, Rob Reiner would make a few guest appearances as a business consultant, Albert Schnurr. Albert would talk to The Beef’s Ebraheim about expanding that part of the restaurant into a franchise. It seems that Reiner was likely set up to come back in the next season, but the heartbreaking death of Reiner would render that impossible.
So, while he couldn’t make an appearance, Ebra is seen talking on the phone to Albert. We only hear Ebra’s side of the conversation, but as he speaks with Albert, he asks him, “Anything else I can do?” After a pause, Ebra concludes the call with the line, “As you wish.”
The Bear is centered on the restaurant business, but these references show just how deeply movies are woven into Christopher Storer’s series. Some are obvious, while others are hidden in a single line of dialogue or a fleeting moment. For movie fans, discovering those little connections is just another reason The Bear has been such a rewarding show to watch.