Explicit sexual content on television shows is so common it’s not even shocking anymore. Instead, the more surprising move is to make a popular series with attractive young actors and then choose not to show them all hooking up with each other.
This isn’t necessarily what the creator of the Emmy-winning series “The Bear” set out to do. But in crafting a narrative that’s free from blatant sexual promiscuity, the showrunner proved that even if sex sells, a series doesn’t need sex to sell. It just needs to tell a good story.
“The Bear” is a comedy-drama television series created by Christopher Storer. The Hulu series debuted on June 23, 2022, with actor Jeremy Allen White starring as an award-winning chef who returns to his hometown of Chicago to manage his family restaurant after his older brother committed suicide. The restaurant is filled with colorful characters and family members, each with their own idiosyncrasies and unique personalities.
Matt Dinerstein – © 2022, FX Networks. Hulu. IMDB. All rights reserved.
A lot of drama went down in two seasons, but except for a very brief, extremely tame (comparatively speaking) moment in the second season, “The Bear” has no sexual content whatsoever.
Every episode is rated TV-MA for explicit language, of which there is plenty. This fits in well with the storyline, though, as it accurately represents what goes on in real restaurant kitchens across the nation. Many members of the restaurant industry complained that the show is so true to life that it’s impossible to watch.
But there’s no sex. That absence was enough to make mainstream media writers notice, with many outlets noting of the first season that “The Bear” was even sexier because it didn’t have any sex in it.
“The Hottest Show of the Summer Has No Sex,” one headline from 2022 declared.
“‘The Bear’ is largely devoid of romance in any sense of the word, and the only moments of real pleasure come from food: making it, eating it, selling it, having enough money to make more of it,” the writer from The Cut” explains. “The show’s most poignant and vulnerable scenes happen between family or friends, not romantic partners.”
The article goes on to mention how there’s obvious sexual tension between the show’s two main characters, Carmy (White) and Syd (Ayo Edebiri), but the two chefs never act on it or even seem to acknowledge it. The writer observes how this complete lack of follow-through is precisely what makes the show alluring.
Though no mainstream writer would admit it, what they’ve stumbled upon is the idea that subtlety is more attractive than explicit sexual imagery. A woman wearing a turtleneck sweater can – and does – look sexier than that same woman in a skimpy bikini top.
This isn’t to say that the restaurant employees aren’t having sex on the show. Maybe they are doing it, somewhere off-camera. But the point of “The Bear” is to tell the story of a close-knit group of friends and family who, despite their dysfunction, are coming together to build something exceptional. This storyline doesn’t need nudity and gratuitous sex to be told well. And because it doesn’t have those things, “The Bear” stands out from other shows in the same sphere.
Because it is 2024, there is one single intimate scene in the show’s second season. But once again, considering the show is rated TV-MA, the brief interlude is incredibly tame when compared to so many others. Carmy and his girlfriend are seen in bed but there’s no nudity or other indicators of sexual activity.
Matt Dinerstein – © 2022, FX Networks. Hulu. IMDB. All rights reserved.
This method of storytelling once again proves that explicit sex is far less sexy than subtlety and innuendo.
One reviewer called the absence of pornographic content “ingenious.” The Mamamia writer compared “The Bear” to HBO’s drama series “The Idol” starring The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp, the latter of which made headlines for having such graphic sex scenes.
“In an age where watching sex — or rather, porn — is available at the tap of a finger, it almost feels like a daring choice to exclude intimacy scenes from ‘The Bear,’” Shannen Findlay wrote.
“‘The Idol’ was intent on telling us something through lewd and violent intimacy. Unlike ‘The Bear,’ it uses raunchy, debaucherous sex instead of a good plot to tell the story,” she added. “But in a world where sex is so visible and easy to access, why do we have to keep enduring simulated intercourse between actors? Why is the inclusion of sex beginning to feel like a drawback when choosing or watching a show?”
It’s worth mentioning that “The Bear” was renewed for a third season after receiving widespread critical acclaim for its writing, directing, acting, and production values.
The first season received ten Emmy Awards including Outstanding Comedy Series and individual wins for White, Edebiri, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. It also won four Golden Globe Awards including the top prize for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy in 2024.
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“The Idol” was panned by critics, mocked by viewers, and canceled after just one season.
It’s because “The Bear” is telling a more vital story than one about empty sex. Season 2 episodes “Fishes” and “Forks” were two of the most moving, emotionally fraught episodes of television to come out in recent years. Neither one contains sex. But both have incredible depth.
There’s a very good chance that Hollywood show creators will learn nothing from this phenomenon. Despite “The Bear” proving definitively that entertainment doesn’t need sex, nudity, promiscuity, and other sexual content to win awards and attract fans, there’s a good chance that showrunners will continue jamming sex scenes into content even when it’s not needed.
There’s also a chance that “The Bear” will add more sex into their third season, following the trend of so many shows that came before.
Hopefully this refreshingly different drama series will hold out and continue being the sexiest sex-free show on television.