When filmed his first episode of , during the show’s first season, he did it on his lunch break. It was early 2022, and he was the lead of Showtime’s , a job that required him to be in Los Angeles — and on set — every day. But he got a call from his old friend Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Bernthal’s first professional gig was understudying for Moss-Bachrach in an off-Broadway play) about an enthralling opportunity.
“Ebon was like, I’m doing this thing and it’s really special, and there’s a role that’s really important we want you to do,” he says. “He’s the kind of guy who isn’t talking about, ‘Oh it’s going to be a massive hit or commercially successful.’ He told me it’s an incredible group of people doing this for the right reasons.
” Bernthal broke the news about his time constraints, and a few minutes later Moss-Bachrach called back to tell him that Christopher Storer’s was going to move the entire production to Los Angeles for the day and shoot the scene in one of the producer’s kitchens. “I was like, ‘What is this show? Is this a student film? This is going to be on TV?’ ” he says with a laugh. “But then they showed up and it was the happiest group of people I’ve ever seen.
” That brief guest spot, with Bernthal playing the late Mikey — Carmy’s brother and the previous chef of The Beef— became an integral part of the high-stakes Hulu show and a beloved experience for Bernthal. Now, on the heels of an Emmy nomination for .