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OnThe Bear, Ebon Moss-Bachrachs Richie is the kind of guy you love to hate.
He would definitely take a bullet for the restaurant, Moss-Bachrach says.
I think he would do anything.
Richie is immediately fully formed.
His whole world has melted away.
He is a survivor who feels that people are trying to erase him, or erase a certain neighborhood.
Hes got his back against the wall, and hes aggressive.
He says something about how Sydney is trying to change the restaurant and force the old customers out.
They become oppositional, but theres probably a world where these two things can work in tandem.
Maybe thats something that could get explored at some point.
He cares very deeply about that restaurant.
Thats his connection to Mikey, who was everything to him.
He probably lives, maybe still, in his grandmas basement.
He was married; that didnt work out.
I think hes a really good dad when hes there and out of his own way.
Hes so thrown since Michael died.
When the show starts, its only been four months.
The character walks a line between tragedy and comedy.
Did you approach him as someone who provides comic relief?I have different experiences.
A lot of the time, I find them patronizing or condescending when I see them on TV.
But I never went about trying to be super funny.
I did think this guy needed to have no indoor voice.
He needed to be on a certain volume and intensity.
I didnt see a world where it would work as a subtle, nuanced performance.
Was there ever a point where you felt you were being too over the top?
How did you calibrate that?Thats just trust.
I felt, every second of every day, like it was too much.
That accent was so loud in my head, rattling around in my skull.
I felt like I was just way over the top and it could be, for all I know.
Im too close to it.
But thats just trusting Chris andJoanna.
It was complete chaos.
So I got there, and I found out everyone had been in substantial training with different chefs.
Lionel went to Copenhagen to work with Richard Hart, who is a baking hero of mine.
Jeremy and Ayo worked like crazy.
They were all very, very proficient.
I have the fun job of not really having to do anything.
I just have to be in the way and take up space, and that drives the scene.
Its nice to be an obstacle in a scene.
Can you talk about filming that?That was a thrilling day.
That was just an incredible, great day.
We did get a few takes; I think we ultimately did maybe four or five that day.
There was a camera issue about eight minutes in, so we stopped and started again.
Things change a lot.
That stab moment changed a lot.
I definitely dont think its the first time hes been stabbed.
They have a protocol in place.
He immediately calls Ebraheim, they go straight up to the front, they know where to go.
Ebraheim has experience with triage.
Its like any other day for him.
The thumbs up comes straight out of his heart.
Maybe Im just sentimental or something, but that encapsulated so much of this season for me.
You dont really know when the camera is rolling, and youre just sitting there being with everybody.
Thats my favorite stuff.
That was sort of a leap of faith.
I dont really understand thecousinthing, still.
Its obviously family, but theyre not literally cousins?
I guess its kind of likebro, but without the bro.
Few actors could have done it as well as him.
Hes so magnetic and charismatic and loose and trusting, and is someone who can really show up.
Thats a really hard job.
I wouldnt want to have to do that.
He and I have a pretty good history and are friends.
It felt not so dark, in a way.
He likes to go deep.
Snyder Cut stuff feels …
I really love that line.
I dont think hes into Marvel stuff.
He likes the deep stuff, the world-building.
Is Richie reading Kim Stanley Robinson?Definitely.
Any of the stuff that would be on a stoop for free, thats his education.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
