Loyal viewers of “The Bear” are used to unexpected celebrity guest stars and cameos, but a surprise pseudo-appearance from actor Bradley Cooper confused many.

Season 3 was released in full Wednesday on Hulu. It’s finale takes place at a funeral dinner memorializing the restaurant Ever. In one scene, protagonist Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) view collages of newspaper clippings and photos of real-life chefs and restaurant owners. The photos include one of Cooper from his 2015 film “Burnt.” 

MORE: Picnic, a new East Kensington restaurant, offers a wine shop, oyster bar and rotisserie chicken

It’s a blink-and-you-miss-it moment in a quick montage set to Weezer’s song “In the Garage.” Coopers photo appears after a shot of chef Rosio Sanchez and before photos of pastry chef Malcolm Livingston II and restaurateur Will Guidara. With no additional context, fans of “The Bear” are left with several questions.

It’s easy to forget about “Burnt,” an ill-received film starring Cooper as a fictional two-star Michelin chef named Adam Jones. In the movie, Jones attempts a comeback after his temperamental behavior and substance abuse placed his career on hold. 

Though “Burnt” has a similar setting as “The Bear” and their themes overlap, the movie has fallen into obscurity.

So what does this visual reference to the film mean for “The Bear?” Perhaps “Burnt” is in the same fictional universe as the show, and Adam Jones was a chef who worked at Ever.

Celebrities including Olivia Colman, John Mulaney and Jamie Lee Curtis have made high-profile guest appearances in “The Bear.” The photo cameo could be setting up a future appearance from Cooper as a new character.

Maybe the fictional staff of Ever really enjoyed “Burnt,” or maybe the photo is just an inside joke among the writers and producers of “The Bear.” Who knows? Representatives for FX, which produces the show, did not respond to a request for comment.

Whatever the case, this brief appearance in the highly acclaimed show is par the course for Cooper, who made sudden cameos in last year’s “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” and on “Abbott Elementary.” And in December, Cooper made an appearance in New York City as a line cook on a food truck, making and selling cheesesteaks.