Season 2 explores generational views on relationships and conflict, inspired by creator Lee Sung Jin
New cast features Gen Z couple entangled in Millennial marriage drama at a country club
Show continues to examine class, gender, race and emotional struggles in modern relationships
By Danielle Broadway
LOS ANGELES, April 14 (Reuters) - While the first season of the TV series "Beef" sprang from a road-rage incident experienced by show creator Lee Sung Jin, the second season was inspired by something more intimate - a heated debate between a romantic couple in their home, which he overheard.
When Lee told Netflix executives about the argument he had heard between the couple, he said, “Netflix was like, ‘There it is. We can sense that you’re passionate about this direction.’”
Lee told Reuters that when he described the domestic argument to his friends, he was struck by the differing reactions. Younger peers, he said, perceived the exchange as a potential case of domestic violence, while older ones viewed it as a familiar — and even routine — conflict between partners.
“I think what inspired me was not the actual incident, but hearing people’s reactions to it,” Lee said.
Those contrasting perspectives helped shape the new season of "Beef," a dark comedy known for examining the complexity of relationships. "There’s a show there about juxtaposing the different stages of love against each other,” Lee said.
The first season of "Beef," which won Golden Globe Awards in three categories, starred Steven Yeun and Ali Wong.
Season 2 of the Netflix NFLX.O series follows a Gen Z couple, Austin and Ashley, played by Charles Melton and Cailee Spaeny. They become entangled in the unraveling marriage of their boss Josh, a Millennial, and his wife, Lindsay. They are played by Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan, respectively.
Their worlds collide after Austin and Ashley witness a volatile altercation between Josh and Lindsay, setting off a spiral of manipulation and rivalry at the country club Josh manages.
“It (the couple’s altercation) needed to feel real — enough to be something that could be held over us,” Mulligan said of filming the scene with Isaac. “Not just how it looked, but how it sounded and what we said to each other.”
Generation Z typically refers to people born between 1997 and 2012, while people born between 1981 and 1996 are considered Millennials.
Like its debut season, “Beef” continues to explore class, gender and race inequities, along with emotional control and interpersonal conflict.
“You feel like you’re inside the characters’ minds,” Melton said. “You either relate, judge, or think, ‘I’ve been there too.’ That’s what makes it such a juicy experience to watch.”
For Isaac, the series captures the reckoning faced by couples when the life they imagined slips out of reach — a reality shared by every relationship in “Beef.”
“All these possibilities start to collapse,” he said. “It can feel claustrophobic, because we’re told anything is possible.” Ultimately, he added, “you have to let go.”
(Reporting by Danielle Broadway and Matt Silverstein in Los Angeles; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
((Danielle.Broadway@thomsonreuters.com))
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