'Beef' Is Returning for a Second Season with Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan Leading the Cast
Isaac and Mulligan have already co-starred in 'Drive' and 'Inside Llewyn Davis' together — and now they're stepping into Netflix's feuding anthology series.
They played a couple in Drive opposite Ryan Gosling (The Fall Guy). They bickered their way through New York's 60s-era folk scene in Inside Llewyn Davis, too. Now, after teaming up for acclaimed filmmakers Nicolas Winding Refn and the Coen brothers, Oscar Isaac (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse) and Carey Mulligan (Spaceman) are reuniting on-screen again, this time to lead the cast in Netflix's feuding anthology series Beef.
A second season of the acclaimed show is officially on the way, so get ready for more grievances. This time, the new eight-episode run will focus on a young couple who sees a fight between their boss and his wife, and the aftermath, which takes the drama into a country club as well.
Everyone has petty feuds. That's one of the truths behind the the Golden Globe-, Emmy-, Gotham, Screen Actors Guild Award-, Independent Spirit Award and Producers Guild Award-winning series, which brought squabbling strangers into everyone's streaming queues in 2023 and became one of the best new shows of the year in the process. Beef was initially meant to be a once-off, but plenty more people could always disagree, argue and hold grudges on-screen — and, soon, some more will.
Earlier in 2024, Jake Gyllenhaal (Presumed Innocent) and Anne Hathaway (The Idea of You) were rumoured to be starring in Beef's second season, which would've been a reunion for them as well — see: Love & Other Drugs and Brokeback Mountain — but Isaac and Mulligan are doing the honours instead. Back then, it was also reported that Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla) and Charles Melton (May December) could be among the cast that's taking over from Steven Yeun (Nope) and Ali Wong (Paper Girls), with that part still happening.
If you missed season one of the Lee Sung Jin (Dave)-created Beef, it followed Danny Cho (Yeun) and Amy Lau (Wong) after they got in a fender bender, then neither handled it well. Cue a feud that they can't shake, infiltrating their lives and relationships. If their quest for revenge each other just fizzled out, there obviously wouldn't be a series.
Part of Beef's ongoing beef in season one stemmed from a comedy staple: putting opposites together and seeing what springs. Danny is struggling as a contractor and isn't happy about it, while Amy lives a seemingly idyllic life thanks to her success as an entrepreneur. They both share a need to get back at each other, though — and to see through their clash to the end.
Lee is back for season two as the show's creator, while Yeun and Wong are onboard as well as executive producers.
There's obviously no trailer yet for the second season, but check out a clip from Beef season one below:
Beef season two doesn't yet have a release date — we'll update you when more details are locked in.
Beef season streams via Netflix — read our review.
Top image: The Card Counter, courtesy of Focus Features / ©2021 Focus Features, LLC.