The Netflix limited series Beef was a runaway hit when it was released earlier this year. Starring Steven Yeun and Ali Wong, the series was praised for its writing, performances, and experimentation with tone and genre. Both Yeun and Wong have been nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards for their performance and the show is also nominated for Outstanding Limited Series.
Series creator Lee Sung Jin mentioned in an interview that he had a wide variety of references to make sure that the executives at Netflix would greenlight the experimental series. Sung Jin mentioned that he had a formula that included legendary shows such as The Sopranos, The White Lotus, and other experimental filmmakers’ works.
Lee Sung Jin Gave References Of The Sopranos To Greenlight Beef
Lee Sung Jin’s Beef is an experimental and original show in a lot of ways. In an era where franchise films and series based on existing IPs are what are mostly commissioned, studio executives need a good and successful point of reference to convince them to invest millions into an idea.
Sung Jin mentioned that he had a formula that would give a frame of reference to Netflix to greenlight Beef. He said,
“I said the tone of ‘Beef’ is 35 percent Paul Thomas Anderson-slash-‘Sopranos’ comedy, where you’re laughing at the broken psychology of people, plus 35 percent ‘White Lotus’ propulsion -slash-Netflix watercooler moments, plus 30 percent Ingmar Bergman-slash-Hirokazu Koreeda warm, melancholic pathos.”
Sung Jin said that though he emailed every potential producer with this formula for Beef, such references rarely came in handy while actually making it. He said that the frame of reference for creative decisions where the characters at the end of the day. He said,
“It was kind of a joke. You say things like that, you pull references, but once you’re on the ground, there’s no time to really think about references. At that point, we’re always just going back to character.”
The creator mentioned that he made sure to keep the pilot episode, directed by the Japanese filmmaker Hikari, general enough to pull the audience into the character before going deeply into the experimental tonal shifts.
What Is Netflix’s Beef About?
The Netflix series Beef started streaming in April 2023 and immediately gained traction. It became one of the most popular shows on the streaming platform for a time and won universal acclaim for its writing and performances. The Walking Dead’s Steven Yeun and stand-up comic Ali Wong starred in the series, which was created by Lee Sung Jin.
The show follows the story of Danny and Amy, played by Yeun and Wong, who meet each other during a road rage incident. The story escalates from there to a genre-hopping medley that stands on the prolonged feud between the two protagonists. Creator Sung Jin mentioned that the story came about from a real-life incident that occurred to him.
He told IndieWire that he was once honked and yelled at by a middle-aged man before a pandemic which made him want to chase the guy down and outrage at him. He said,
“In the moment I was like, ‘I am going to follow this car.’ And then we were stuck in traffic going the same way for about an hour. I think in his mind, he thought I was a lunatic following him through all of Los Angeles, and in my mind, the anger had dissipated and I was just commuting home and listening to happy music.”
Sung Jin reportedly spoke about the incident to A24’s TV head Ravi Nandan, who encouraged him to develop it into an idea. Jin pitched the idea to Yeun who was reportedly on board immediately.
