Chances are, in April 2023, at least one of your friends texted you to gush over how you should watch the Netflix hit Beef (and if not, you were that friend!). The Netflix/A24 dramedy created by Lee Sung Jin centered on a road rage incident that escalated into a fierce mutual obsession between contractor Danny Cho (Steven Yeun) and entrepreneur Amy Lau (Ali Wong). Despite how simple that premise sounds, this must-watch show barreled through a surprising plot, as Danny and Amy's feud (a.k.a. the titular "beef") affected every corner of their lives with dire emotional, financial, and familial consequences.
The heartbreaking and hilarious series received widespread acclaim from critics and viewers and went on to win eight Emmys, including Wong becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win an Emmy for a lead role. Fans have speculated on a possible second season since its release, and we finally have the first official word on Beef's future. Read on for everything we know about Beef season 2.
Has 'Beef' been renewed for season 2?
Yes! After a year and a half of rumors (and a Hollywood strike), Netflix finally confirmed Beef season 2 on October 22, 2024. As speculated, the former limited series has gotten the White Lotus treatment and is now an anthology series with an entirely new cast. However, Lee Sung Jin will return as creator, showrunner, and executive producer.
Who is in the cast of 'Beef' season 2?
Netflix has confirmed that four Hollywood superstars will lead the cast of season 2, with Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Charles Melton, and Cailee Spaeny joining the series. The streamer hasn't given any details of the foursome's characters yet, but they did provide a brief logline for the season:
"A young couple witnesses an alarming fight between their boss and his wife, triggering a chess-like sequence of favors and coercion, within the elitist world of a country club owned by a Korean billionaire."
Netflix has also rounded out the supporting cast. In December 2024, the streamer revealed that it recruited a pair of international superstars from South Korea in major roles. Oscar winner Youn Yuh-jung will appear in the new season in an undisclosed role, in her first collaboration with A24 since Minari. Also joining the show in a guest-star role is Parasite star Song Kang-ho, the first South Korean male actor to win Best Actor at Cannes for his performance in Broker. Though it's yet to be confirmed who they'll be playing, we'd guess they have ties to the country club owned by a Korean billionaire, as mentioned by the official season logline.
When will 'Beef' season 2 come out?
It's yet to be announced when Beef season 2 will be released, but now we have the confirmed main cast, it's easier to guess a timeline for Beef's return. Per IMDb, season 1 of the Netflix/A24 series was filmed between January and May 2022, before eventually arriving on the platform in April 2023. If season 2 follows a similar timeline, we could expect new episodes around (or hopefully before) April 2026.
What could 'Beef' season 2 be about?
Beef season 1 stands on its own as an excellent limited series. Amy and Danny's feud concludes in the final episode, with the two coming to an understanding while they're stranded in the desert. Thanks to a hallucinogenic-berry-fueled trip, they finally look past their differences and share their respective lifelong feelings of self-loathing and misery. When they make it back to civilization the next morning, having become extremely close, Amy's husband George (Joseph Lee) finds them and shoots Danny, thinking that he's hurting Amy. The finale ends with Amy waiting by Danny's hospital bed to see if he pulls through.
Though season 1 is a close-ended story, creator and showrunner Lee Sung-jin revealed in a red-carpet interview with The Hollywood Reporter that he initially conceived the show as a "limited anthology series" following different beef, so it's possible he always had a clear vision where season 2 would go.
Lee elaborated in a 2023 ELLE interview, explaining that his initial pitch for the show included "multiple other beefs and other character types to explore." He also confirmed that the show wouldn't be circling back to Danny and Amy's story in any way, saying, "Cards on the table, we did pitch this show as a limited anthology, so there is sort of a close-ended-ness to the story... By design, though, this a close-ended narrative."
Thankfully, Netflix has since released its season 2 logline, so we can start speculating where the show might go.
