Inside ‘The Bear’ episode that fills in a misunderstood character’s backstory
Welcome to Screen Gab, the newsletter for everyone who loves Tina and Sydney’s bond in “The Bear.”
Tina Marrero and Sydney Adamu, that is, the kitchen colleagues whose relationship has blossomed over three seasons of the FX series — culminating in “Napkins,” in which Ayo Edebiri, who plays Sydney, directs Liza Colón-Zayas, who plays Tina, in an episode chronicling the latter’s life before she joined the lovably chaotic Original Beef of Chicagoland.
In this week’s Screen Gab, Edebiri and Colón-Zayas join senior TV writer Yvonne Villarreal to break down the episode. We also check in with the directors of the new Serena Williams docuseries “In the Arena” and recommend what to stream this weekend, including two TV classics from the late Shelley Duvall.
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Recommendations from the film and TV experts at The Times
“Shelley Duvall’s Faerie Tale Theatre” (YouTube) and “Shelley Duvall’s Tall Tales & Legends” (Prime Video)
Shelley Duvall, who died Thursday, is best known for her big-screen work as Robert Altman’s lanky muse and the object of Jack Nicholson’s destruction in Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining.” But the TV series she conceived, produced, introduced and appeared in in the 1980s are equally invaluable. “Prestige television” has become an empty cliche, but there is the sort of real prestige that attracts artists to a project no matter how small the venue, modest the budget or however many people are liable to notice. Duvall’s storytime anthologies were the best reason to subscribe to Showtime, when cable was still the Wild West, and one of the best reasons ever to own a TV. Wittily scripted, imaginatively cast, with each episode a gem of production design, Duvall’s series offered such unpredictable delights as “Rip Van Winkle,” directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Harry Dean Stanton and … Tim Conway. Or Martin Short as Johnny Appleseed, directed by Christopher Guest. Or Danny Glover as John Henry, with Lou Rawls and Thelma Houston co-starring. Or “Casey at the Bat,” with Elliott Gould and Carol Kane, narrated by Howard Cosell. Paul Reubens as Pinocchio! “Cinderella” with Jennifer Beals and Matthew Broderick! “Tall Tales” is available streaming from Prime; “Faerie Tale Theatre” has no official venue currently, but the internet has stepped up to fill that gap. — Robert Lloyd
“Escape to the Country” (BritBox)
Have you ever watched “House Hunters” and thought, “I wish they made a version of this show set in rural Britain that was so authentic to the home-buying process and thoroughly untouched by producers that no one actually ends up buying any of the properties they look at?” If so, then it’s time to add “Escape to the County” to your watch list. This long-running series, which began airing on the BBC in 2002, follows city dwellers longing for more space and a lower cost of living as they visit properties in bucolic corners of the United Kingdom. Each episode spotlights three homes that fall within the buyer’s budget and satisfy at least some of their criteria. One of the properties is designated as a “mystery house,” because it has a surprising and either charmingly quaint or intensely off-putting feature (think: a converted church). The show features a rotating list of hosts, who chat with locals about the region’s distinct flavor and partake in activities like cold-water swimming in Wales or cheese-making in Lancashire. Unlike in the semi-rigged “House Hunters,” the prospective buyers in “Escape to the Country” rarely purchase one of the homes in the show — or even make an offer. But what the series lacks in vicarious real-estate thrills, it makes up for with soothing portraits of village life that will have you dreaming of living like Cameron Diaz in “The Holiday” (Jude Law as Mr. Napkinhead not included.) — Meredith Blake
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A weekly chat with actors, writers, directors and more about what they’re working on — and what they’re watching
With no American women advancing past the singles quarterfinals at Wimbledon, which concludes this weekend, those of us with a patriotic streak in our sports fandom are once again missing Serena Williams, whose trophy collection includes seven Venus Rosewater dishes for dominance on that hallowed grass. For which I prescribe ESPN+ docuseries “In the Arena: Serena Williams,” which premiered Wednesday, as replacement therapy: Though laced with intimate glimpses of Williams’ life off the court, it’s appeal, for me, is as a stirring reflection on one of the greatest careers in the history of tennis, men’s or women’s. (It also makes a fine companion to one of my all-time favorite “30 for 30” docs, “Venus Vs.,” about sister and five-time Wimbledon champ Venus Williams’ fight for equal pay in women’s tennis.) “In the Arena” co-directors Gotham Chopra and Lauren Fisher stopped by Screen Gab recently to discuss Serena’s “shady” side, her rivalry with Venus and what they’re watching. — Matt Brennan
What have you watched recently that you are recommending to everyone you know?
Fisher: I recently saw “Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story” at SXSW [the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas]. It’s gorgeous documentary feature about a Black transgender soul singer named Jackie Shane who performed in the 1960s. Jackie stayed true to herself in a time when that was anything but accepted and at great personal cost. Definitely a tearjerker. She only appeared on television once, and so the filmmakers got really innovative in how to bring Jackie to life onscreen with her music, audio interviews, archival [material], re-creations and animation. I hope everyone gets the opportunity to see it.
Chopra: A Bollywood film called “Gully Boy” [VOD]. It’s a few years old and stars a great Indian actor named Ranveer Singh who I have become friendly with. It reminds me of “8 Mile,” with Eminem, which I always loved. I love the convergence of cultures, cinematic traditions, music, ancient heritage and modernity of contemporary India — my ancestral homeland. We’re living in such a unique time — so much creativity in so many places and all accessible. I don’t see as much as I probably should, so when I find something different and cool, I’m all in and try to get everyone around me to get on the ride with me.
What’s your go-to “comfort watch,” the film or TV show you return to again and again?
Chopra: Tough question. I have a few. But I guess I’ll say the documentary “Senna” [Netflix}. It’s about Brazilian F1 driver Ayrton Senna. I’m not even a big F1 fan, but that’s sort of the point. It’s just such a great piece of cinema, bold in its storytelling, dynamic in how it uses archival material [and] interviews, defies a lot of the conventions that generally populate docs. It’s an epic Icarus-like story of someone who dared to be great.
Fisher: Pretty much every time I’m on a plane or sick in bed, I watch “Moonstruck” [Tubi, Pluto, MGM+]. It’s got everything you’d ever need: love, death, Italian food, unhinged Nic Cage monologues and Cher’s hair.
What’s one detail about Serena Williams that you learned during the course of making “In the Arena” that surprised you?
Chopra: She’s kind of shady. Her words, not mine. I think most of what I’d seen through the years was her intensity on the court. Like, she’s a calculated killer out there and never seemed to take it easy on anyone. But away from the court, she’s got a great sense of humor, loves to spill some tea here and there, and also had a nerdiness to her — I mean, she’s obsessed with superheroes and fairy tales. It’s not exactly what I expected from the GOAT of GOATs, but it’s quite charming. Have I shared too much?
Fisher: I think the most surprising thing to me, what was really striking, was just how gut-wrenching it was for her to play her sister Venus in those Grand Slam finals. I have two big sisters that mean the world to me. Over the years, when I watched Serena and Venus play each other, I wondered how hard that must have been. How do you compartmentalize such huge emotions, wanting to win and wanting your sister to win, at the same time? I think the thing I learned from her is that you can only compartmentalize it so much. I was surprised it wasn’t something she learned to let go of or move past, necessarily; she just accepted it was her fate and did what she had to do even though it was so painful. What ended up on the screen for those moments is really poignant and bittersweet.
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Times staffers chew on the pop culture of the moment — love it, hate it or somewhere in between
Whether the newly released third season of “The Bear” (Hulu) maintains its momentum as one of TV’s most compelling series may be up for debate — but there’s certainly been consensus that the sixth episode, which focuses on the backstory of no-nonsense cook Tina Marrero (Liza Colón-Zayas), is the standout of the season.
Written by Catherine Schetina, “Napkins” is set five years in the past, before the petite, headstrong working mom was holding her own in a professional kitchen. After being hit with a rent increase, Tina loses her job managing payroll at a confectionery company. Her husband, played by Colón-Zayas’ real-life spouse, David Zayas (“Dexter”), is a doorman waiting for a promotion that will never come. A determined Tina sets out to find a new job, but the search is soul-crushing.
When I spoke with Colón-Zayas late last month, she said she recognized the masked fear in Tina.
“From the time I turned 18, I was always out hustling, looking for a job, but I had a lot more idealism and hope with this business. I won’t say I got cynical, but I certainly tempered my expectations as I got older. I understand how Tina engaged in Season 1, and I also realized that this is not all her fault. She’s fighting for her life. What’s gonna happen to her if she loses this job after what she had to endure?”
The actor spent a lot of time with Edebiri discussing Tina’s home life: how the home was kept, what was on the walls, what the working mom would be making in the crock pot.
“For me, it was important having the whole pride of being Puerto Rican. So a vejigante, the flag, Roberto Clemente. And cleanliness. It doesn’t have to be OCD, but it couldn’t be chaos. That was important to me. I feel like so often in stories that are not told by us, there’s crosses everywhere. And with the crock pot, one day it’d be pollo guisado, another day it was carne guisada — stews; some yellow rice. It’s like: What can you throw together when you only have 10 minutes to spare so your family can have a hot meal while you’re out working. Through all the episodes, we see the importance of the ticking clock. That is how she lives. That clock is ticking.”
That costar Ayo Edebiri directed the episode adds a layer of warmth and charm. Edebiri’s Sydney Adamu, who partners with Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) to transform a sandwich shop into a fine dining restaurant, was initially met with resistance by Tina; they have since developed a dynamic of mutual respect as the skeptical cook realizes Sydney is sincerely invested in nurturing her talents.
“As a director, I got to see [Colón-Zayas’ craft] from an outside perspective a little bit. I was so blown away,” Edebiri says. “Like, crying, for example. As an actor, I hate whenever the script is like, ‘And then she cries.’ Cause it’s like, ‘OK, well, hell. Let me try. Here I go.’ But she literally was like, ‘OK, how much, how little?’ And it wasn’t robotic in any way. It was soft and beautiful to watch.”
The tearful moment comes at the episode’s climax, when Tina first experiences the Original Beef and its frenetic staff. After another fruitless day on the job hunt, Tina wanders into the sandwich shop and is awestruck by the systemized chaos of workers hurling orders and trying to keep pace with the customer demand. Against the temptation to show emotion upon entering, Edebiri encouraged Colón-Zayas to save it. So seeking respite in a quiet area, Tina sits with a sandwich and, in time, the tears she’s kept locked in are released.
“I had been re-watching a lot of things and just thinking about moments of not seeing, and how that builds to such a reward, and how the audience really can fill in those gaps. They don’t need their hand held. I really love that moment in ‘Past Lives’ — the initial breakup scene is completely shot from the back of Greta Lee’s head,” Edebiri says. “Mikey [Jon Bernthal], Richie [Ebon Moss-Bachrach] and Fak [Matty Matheson] are out of focus, but you know who they are and their dialog is funny. The texture of that is something I wanted to play with and really serves Liza and brings this magic of the Beef and of food that is at the heart of the show in so many ways.”
“They’re all in the same boat,” Colón-Zayas says. “And [Mikey] is generous enough to make room for one more person on that boat. Walking into that madhouse, that very loving madhouse, it all came together for me. Tina was embraced, she was welcomed, she was thrown a lifeline. So that’s why I see how Tina’s grief [over Mikey’s subsequent death], her loss, is so profound.”
“It gives me a deeper understanding of her commitment to not let her people down,” she continues. “Knowing that history and all that we’ve come through. This is why she’s fiercely protective of new people coming in. And now, they’re not new people, they’re fam. She’s 1,000% gonna fight alongside them to make this work. Because they could go look for other jobs. But I think seeing that love, that devotion, especially for Mikey, shows why we’re so willing to stay and try to bring our best. I don’t think it’s for a Michelin star.” — Yvonne Villarreal
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