Warning! This article contains spoilers for season two of The Bear.
The Bear star Ayo Edebiri has admitted she finds fans’ hopes that her character Sydney will get together with Carmy “frustrating”.
The actor plays sous chef Sydney Adamu in the Disney+ drama, which also sees Jeremy Allen White play Mr Beef’s boss and head chef Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto.
Over the course of the last two seasons, many fans have expressed their hopes of a romantic development between the pair, as they’ve grown closer while working to turn around the fortunes of the ailing Chicago restaurant.
However, it seems Ayo is much less keen on the idea, and doesn’t think show bosses will take that direction for their characters either.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter – conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike – she described the idea as “frustrating”, saying: “It’s really not our thought process when we’re making the show, and I understand it can be part of a show’s culture — but I don’t think they’re going to get what they want.”
Ayo added: “I think it’s incredibly cool to have this dynamic onscreen that isn’t romantic, but that feels charged and sexy.”
The Bear showrunner Joanna Calo previously admitted that she had, indeed, toyed with the idea of getting the two characters together, but was eventually persuaded otherwise.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, she said: “It really surprised me. And I will say, at one point, very early on, I was like, ‘Maybe they do hook up.’ And [creator Christopher Storer] was like, ‘No!’ (Laughs.)
“And he was totally right, but I think what I was getting at was that these relationships are complicated.”
In season two of The Bear, fans did get to see a romantic development for Carmy, as the show introduced his childhood friend, with whom he later fell in love.
However, the anxiety-inducing finale saw Carmy locked in a walk-in fridge before admitting on the phone that he wanted to prioritise work over a relationship, not realising Claire was listening on the other side of the door.
The finale also contained a heartbreaking moment that wasn’t originally in the script.
The Bear is available to stream on Disney+ now.