The Bear fans might be wondering who Tom Skilling is in real life as the Chicago meteorologist makes a surprise appearance in the final season
Meet The Bear Season 5’s surprise guest star Tom Skilling
The latest guest star is Chicago royalty with an unexpected family connection.
**Warning – this article contains minor spoilers for The Bear Season 5.**
UK fans of The Bear tuning in may well be seeking some background on the fifth season’s thrilling new guest star.
Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Ayo Edebiri headline the smash-hit FX and Disney+ series centred on a chaotic Chicago restaurant whose lofty ambitions are more than matched by the mayhem unfolding in its kitchen.
Season 5 picks up immediately after the moment Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzatto (played by White) announced he was walking away from the restaurant business for good, breaking the news to Sydney (Edebiri), Richie (Moss-Bachrach) and his sister Natalie, known as ‘Sugar’ (Abby Elliott), reports Wales Online.
With their finances in dire straits, a fierce storm raging outside and a packed dining room to cater for, the Bear team face one final night to demonstrate they’ve got what it takes to land that much-coveted Michelin star.
Adding to the pressure, a local celebrity has secured a table for their most crucial evening yet, as meteorologist Tom Skilling has made a reservation. But just who is he?
Who is Tom Skilling?
Tom Skilling, 74, is a former weather presenter who served as WGN-TV Chicago’s chief meteorologist from 1978 until his retirement in 2024.
Though he was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Skilling grew up in Westfield, New Jersey before his family relocated to the Chicago suburb of Aurora, Illinois, where he completed his secondary education. At just 14 years old, he started working for WKKD and WKKD-FM where he spotted that their weather reports were incorrect as they relied on forecasts for Chicago instead of Aurora.
He struck a deal with the station to deliver his own reports which, if accurate, would earn him his own weather programme.
They proved correct and he started presenting Aurora forecasts three times weekly. He subsequently secured a position at Aurora’s WLXT-TV aged only 18.
Skilling went on to work at WKOW-TV and WTSO radio while studying at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, before securing his first major television role in 1975 for WITI-TV in Milwaukee, where his forecasts were accompanied by a sock puppet named Albert the Alley Cat.
Following a return to Chicago, he became WGN-TV’s chief meteorologist in 1978, where he stayed until his retirement in 2024. He is believed to have become the highest-paid weather broadcaster in the United States and also maintained a popular column in the Chicago Tribute, Ask Tom, until 2022.
Skilling has never married and remarkably little is known about his private life. However, he is the brother of disgraced Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling.
The energy giant, Enron Corporation, declared bankruptcy in 2001 after fraudulent practices were exposed. This resulted in the collapse of the company’s accounting firm, Arthur Andersen, which was amongst the five largest firms globally, and is regarded as one of the biggest bankruptcy reorganisations in American history.
Get Disney+ for £1.99 a month
Disney+ has brought back its popular deal that lets new and returning customers join its Standard with Ads plan for £1.99 per month for four months.
This means members can stream hit shows like Andor, The Bear and Alien: Earth, plus countless titles from Star Wars and Marvel, for a fraction of the usual price.
Jeffrey Skilling, who served as CEO at the time, faced 35 criminal charges linked to the scandal, encompassing conspiracy, insider trading and securities fraud.
He received a $45 million (£34 million) fine and a 24-year prison sentence. Following numerous appeals, he ultimately served 12 years behind bars before being released in 2019.
The Bear Season 5 is available to stream on Disney+.