“The Bear ”Star Matty Matheson Confirms Paul Rudd's Secret Cameo: 'I Thought Everyone Did Know' (Exclusive)

Kirsten AcunaFri, June 26, 2026 at 12:00 PM UTC

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Matty Matheson (left) tells PEOPLE about the origin of Paul "Rubb" on 'The Bear.'Credit: FX -

Paul Rudd has appeared in a series of Easter eggs on The Bear, including a voice cameo in season 1

“I thought everyone did know,” Matty Matheson says of Rudd’s uncredited role

Matheson adds that Rudd is close friends with the show’s creator, Christopher Storer

Paul Rudd has a secret uncredited voice cameo in The Bearthat fans may have missed.

Back in season 1, episode 8, Neil Fak (Matty Matheson) hallucinates a conversation with The Bear’s Ballbreaker arcade game character.

While fans have long theorized that the Marvel star is the voice behind the character, Matheson confirms the actor’s cameo to PEOPLE.

“I thought everyone did know,” Matheson, 44, tells PEOPLE of Rudd voicing the video game character on the show’s first season, noting that the Anaconda star is good friends with The Bear creator Christopher Storer.

“Paul and Chris are very good buddies,” he adds. “So I think it was a way to get his homie in there, and it was a funny, easy thing. So, yeah, I'm pretty sure Paul's the voice.”

The hit FX show, which debuted in 2022, follows talented chef Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) and his family as they transform his late brother's Chicago-based eatery into a fine dining establishment.

Since season 1, Rudd has made numerous blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearances in the show’s background.

His photo, curiously signed “Paul Rubb,” appears on the show’s second-season opener among a wall of celebrities who have dined at The Bear, while a life-sized cardboard cutout of Rudd joined the restaurant in season 3.

A photo of Paul "Rubb" appears briefly on the season 2 premiere of 'The Bear.'Credit: FX

A Paul Rudd cutout can be seen in the background of 'The Bear' season 3.Credit: FX

Matheson says the “Paul Rubb” signature is an inside joke from a name flub he made years ago.

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“Rubb was the joke,” says Matheson. “I met Paul Rudd once — well, I didn't really meet him, but he was walking away from me — and I said, 'Hi, Paul Rubb.' And Chris heard me. He was like, ‘Did you just call him Paul Rubb?’”

“I was like, ‘No,’” Matheson said sheepishly.

The Rudd cardboard cutout returns for one last hurrah in the season 5 premiere during an explosive moment involving the Fak brothers in the episode’s final minute.

Ted (left) and Neil Fak confront the cardboard cutout on the season 5 premiere.Credit: FX

Neil and Ted (Ricky Staffieri) assess a clogged pipe on the verge of bursting, which is conveniently located next to Rudd's cutout. As Neil asks why "Paul Rubb" is making noises, Ted warns the cutout: “Don't f--- with me, Rubb.”

Mess with him, “Rubb” does. As the clogged pipe grows louder, the camera begins uncomfortably zooming in on Rudd’s face until the pipe explodes in Ted's, closing out the episode.

Of the final season, Matheson says he has loved "making people happy."

"I'm proud of these characters," he adds. “It's nice to make a show that's interesting, fun [and] has intensity.”

All eight episodes of The Bear are streaming now on Hulu. Episodes also air Thursdays at 9 p.m. on FX through Aug. 6.

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”