When Netflix announced that a second season of Beef was in development, fans of the Emmy-winning series were understandably conflicted.
On one hand, there was excitement in seeing what the show’s creator Lee Sung Jin and the writers could come up with a second season by turning what was intended to be a limited series into an anthology. On the other hand, many questioned whether another season was needed given how perfect the show’s first season and how the plan was never for this to become an anthology series.
As work began on season 2, excitement began increasing as the creative team assembled an incredible cast for the second season led by Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Charles Melton, and Cailee Spaeny. Upon arriving on April 16, 2026, the show failed to capture the attention its first season did with Beef season 2 just barely cracking the Top 10 in its first week, coming in at No. 10 with roughly 2.4 million viewers. This was down 60% from the 5.8 million views season 1 pulled in within its first week back in 2023.
Not only was viewership down, but season 2’s reception was not quite as warm. While its season 2 Rotten Tomatoes scores were still quite solid at an 87% critic score and a 60% viewer score, those numbers were down from season 1’s 98% critic score and 87% audience score.
The show’s future looks more uncertain than ever, with Netflix having not yet announced Beef season 3, and it’s looking likely that a third season won’t be happening (at least not anytime soon).
As the show’s future hangs in limbo at Netflix, Sung Jin has made it clear that he’s perfectly fine with the show ending with just two seasons.
“For the series of Beef, I’d be perfectly happy if this were the last season. I think it’s really emotionally taxing, the making of it and the rollout of it. Jinny [Howell] always told me, ‘You should only do it if you really have something to say,’ and I feel like I’ve said it through two seasons of Beef,” Sung Jin told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview that dropped roughly two weeks after the season’s arrival.
While he’s not entirely opposed to a third season and remains open to the idea should inspiration strike in the future, it seems his focus has shifted to bringing the X-Men into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“I’ve been in the lab every day with Kevin Feige, Jake Schreier, and Joanna Calo. We’re working on X-Men tirelessly. That is a privilege of a lifetime, to handle the best IP in the business in X-Men, so I’m looking forward [to it]. I’m definitely just continually trying to tell interesting stories that hopefully will reach a lot of people. Maybe I’ll return to Beef in the future, but if not, I’m very proud of the work that we’ve done over two seasons,” Sung Jin noted.
Given how big of a part the X-Men will be to the next chapter of Marvel Studios’ shared universe, we imagine that Sung Jin will indeed be keeping quite busy working on the new X-Men film with Schreier and Calo, who both played a key role in Beef’s success. This seems to suggest that even if Netflix does want to do another season of Beef, season 3 is not likely to arrive for several years, and its return will be contingent upon Sung Jin being inspired to tell a new story.
It’s certainly disappointing to know that Beef has likely come to a close, but it’s a reminder that sometimes we need to let successful limited series be just that: a successful one-off limited series. It’s so easy for studios to see dollar signs after a limited series takes off in an unexpected way, leading to additional seasons of shows intended to be just one season. Sometimes continuing the story in a new way, be it via an anthology series approach or by expanding the original story, works, but more often than not these additional seasons only end up tarnishing the show’s reputation, ending its run on a low note instead of allowing it to be appreciated for the incredible limited series it was intended to be.
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