‘The Bear’ Cast Raves About John Cena’s Surprise Cameo and On-Set Behavior

(Warning: Spoilers follow for The bear Season 3.)

The bear may have already broken its record for most guest stars of all time. After introducing John Mulaney, Olivia Colman, Bob Odenkirk, Jamie Lee Curtis and Will Poulter in its second season, the hit FX series has brought on some new cast members for Season 3. Wow, there’s Josh Hartnett from Oppenheimer! And, oh my God, wait, is that JOHN CENA?!

Cue that epic entrance theme, because yes, the WWE legend just made his debut on The bear. In this season’s fifth episode, “Children,” Cena appears as Sammy Fak, brother of Ted (Matty Matheson) and Neil (Ricky Staffieri). Although Cena walked naked on stage at the Oscars earlier this year, this could be his biggest achievement of 2024.

The bear The actors said they loved working with Cena, because who wouldn’t? Cena seems like a great guy, having set the record for Make-A-Wish visits and also starring as Mermaid Ken in barbie even if it was advised against it. It’s only natural that the team behind The bear I wanted to cast him for a guest role.

“He was a pro,” Matheson tells The Daily Beast’s Obsessed. “I showed up, I didn’t even look at the script, I was just fully prepared. Really inspiring, that’s how I want to show up on another set.”

Staffieri agrees, also complimenting Cena’s “big hands.”

“He’s very intelligent,” Staffieri says. “You can see that in his improvisation. He’s very caring, he’s a great person. He’s great to work with and he’s a lovely person.”

In the episode, Sammy visits Neil and Ted at the Bear to help them clean the floors. After scaring Ted, getting in trouble for smoking cigarettes in the restaurant, and mobilizing the manpower needed to clean the restaurant, Sammy leaves with a quest from Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) to buy duck at the farmers market. Farewell, Sammy Fak!

Matheson and Staffieri were honored to have Cena play their brother. “And obviously, we all look alike,” Matheson says, “so it works perfectly.”

Even Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who plays Richie on the show, had a wonderful – albeit strange – memory to share about his experience working with the professional wrestler on The bear.

“John Cena had like a medical book that he would read between takes,” Moss-Bachrach says. “This guy has a serious brain on him.