Shows Like
Shows Like The Bear That Will Hook You Instantly
By Jordan A. · · 3 min read
The Bear is a show about cooking the way Whiplash is a movie about drumming. The food is the excuse. What you're really watching is a bunch of people trying to not drown in their own lives while a clock ticks louder every episode. It's exhausting in the best way, and when it ends you want more of that specific heartbeat.
The trick with finding shows like The Bear is that "workplace drama" doesn't cover it. Most workplace dramas are slow. The Bear is fast. It's loud. It's made like a short story and edited like a fight. Here are the shows that get closest to that energy.
For the kitchen and the chaos
Boiling Point is a British four-episode follow-up to the one-take movie of the same name. Same cast, same pressure, same feeling that everyone is one bad order away from a meltdown.
Chef's Table isn't fiction, but if The Bear made you want to understand why anyone chooses this life, it's the best answer out there. Each episode is a short film about one chef.
For the family that can't stop fighting
Shameless (the US version) is messier, funnier, and runs way longer, but it's the same engine: a found family yelling at each other while trying to love each other. Watch the first five seasons and stop there.
Bloodline is quieter and darker. A Florida family with a lot of secrets. The first season is perfect.
Six Feet Under still holds up twenty years later. If you want to know what The Bear will look like when it's allowed to slow down, this is the show.
For the rhythm and the camera
Atlanta has the same willingness to change shape episode to episode. Donald Glover made a show that refuses to sit still, and it's all the better for it.
Ramy is the other show doing what Atlanta does, in a completely different key. Deeply specific, funny, and sometimes devastating.
Fleabag is shorter than a movie and hits harder than most features. If you love The Bear's confession-booth monologues, you'll love this.
For the pressure cooker
The Pitt is Max's real-time emergency room show and it's the closest thing on TV right now to The Bear's pulse. One shift per episode, no filler.
ER still works. Watch season four. Trust me.
Slow Horses is a spy show that moves like a kitchen rush. Gary Oldman is having more fun than anyone on TV.
For the feelings under the yelling
Mare of Easttown is a one-season crime show that's really a show about grief. Kate Winslet has never been better.
Sorry for Your Loss is the quiet show nobody watched, and it's one of the best things Facebook ever paid for. Two seasons, both worth it.
If you're sitting there trying to decide which of these to start with, that's where BingeNext comes in. Tell us you loved The Bear, drop in one more show you've liked lately, and we'll rank the shortlist based on what you're in the mood for and what you can actually stream tonight.
The Bear isn't the first show to do what it does, and it won't be the last. But right now, if you want something that lives in the same room, these are your best bets.
Topics covered: the-bear, drama, workplace, character-study
About the author
Jordan A., Founder, BingeNext
Jordan A. is the founder of BingeNext and writes every guide on this site. He built the recommendation engine after one too many nights lost to the streaming menu, and he still tests every pick the hard way: by watching it.