Hulu Renews ‘The Bear’ for Season 5—Will It Be the Final Season?

In an unsurprising move, Hulu and FX have announced that their smash hit series The Bear is coming back for a fifth season.

The high-intensity drama stars Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edibiri and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as staff members of a fine-dining restaurant called The Bear.

Thankfully, fans won’t have to wait long, as the fifth season will premiere next year.

“The Bear continues to be a fan favorite worldwide and their response to this season—as seen through incredibly high viewership—has been as spectacular as any of its previous seasons,” FX’s Chairman John Landgraf said in a statement. “Year-in and year-out, Chris Storer, the producers, cast and crew make The Bear one of the best shows on television, and we are excited that they will continue to tell this magnificent story.”

However, with the shocking events of the fourth season’s finale, there’s a strong possibility the fifth season will be its last.

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR SEASON FOUR OF THE BEAR FOLLOW.

Fans were surprised at the end of the fourth season when series protagonist Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) effectively quit the restaurant that he had worked so hard to build for the first four seasons.

After a tense argument between the three protagonists, Carmy revealed that he had written himself out of the restaurant’s ownership agreement, instead choosing Syd (Edibiri), Richie (Moss-Bachrach), and Sugar (Abby Elliott) to run his restaurant for good.

It’s a move that makes sense, given Jeremy Allen White’s rise to movie stardom—he is set to star in a Bruce Springsteen biopic soon, after all—yet it’s hard to imagine The Bear without Carmy.

Perhaps he’ll pop in for cameos here and there. Or perhaps series creator Christopher Storer will surprise us and bring Carmy back in ways unexpected. But it doesn’t seem like there’s much left to say in the world of The Bear now that Carmy’s arc is complete.

However the series continues, it’s safe to say plenty of people will be watching. All ten episodes of The Bear’s fourth season are streaming now on Hulu.