Actor Oscar Isaac has had a role in just about every franchise. From Star Wars to Marvel, it seems like he has just about done it all. However, he faced a few new challenges while filming season 2 of the hit Netflix series, “Beef,” which could potentially earn him an Emmy, considering the success of the show’s first run. Ahead, learn what Isaac found “humiliating” about playing the volatile character.
Season 2 of “Beef” opens with a brand new set of characters. Isaac plays Josh, the struggling general manager of an exclusive country club. He stars opposite Carey Mulligan, who plays Lindsey, an interior designer from a privileged background who is also experiencing a midlife crisis. Things take a turn for the worse when two younger employees, Ashley and Austin, witness a violent argument between the couple.
Fortunately, this isn’t the first time that Isaac and Mulligan have worked together. They collaborated together on Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive” and the Coen Brothers’ “Inside Llewyn Davis,” but this is the first time that they’re playing a couple trapped inside a failing marriage.
Oscar Isaac Admits It’s ‘A Humiliating Thing To Do This Stuff’
Their long history of collaborations helped foster a safe environment for some of the show’s most volatile scenes. For example, there was one scene where Josh threw his wine glass during an argument. However, Mulligan said that it didn’t feel right because “statistically, a woman will just shut it all down and back off” if a man displays physical violence. “It felt like it had to be Lindsay who throws the wine glass first,” she added.
Isaac noted that it’s “a humiliating thing to do this stuff” during the scene and compared it to a “live wire act.” He went on to say, “To have someone you can trust so completely and there’s no judgement… it’s incredibly valuable and it’s freeing and it allows for a lot of fun.”
Mulligan Agrees That The Scene Was ‘Uniquely Humiliating’
Mulligan agreed with Isaac’s assessment and called parts of the scene “uniquely humiliating.”
“There were so many elements to this that were risky and more embarrassing, and I did feel like we were taking swings here and there, and this is hard to do with someone you don’t completely trust,” she said.
However, because of the trust they placed in each other as actors, they were able to give the scene their all.
“We felt this onus on us to get that bit right,” Mulligan said. “And it was a tricky thing because you are meant to meet them at that point where it could be like a fork in the road. It could have been the end.”
Why Oscar Isaac Joined Season 2 Of ‘Beef’
This isn’t the first time that Isaac has opened up about his role on the Emmy-winning series. He previously told Entertainment Weekly that he was a big fan of season 1 of “Beef.” There was a key moment in the show’s first season featuring Steven Yeun’s character, Danny, that convinced him to join the show.
“It was the first season. I remember I was really intrigued by the first couple of episodes. But it was episode 3, when [Steven Yeun’s] character goes to the church, and the singing starts happening, and he starts sobbing,” he explained, adding, “It was both so moving and so hilarious at the same time.”
He went on to praise “Beef” creator Lee Sung Jin and his ability to create a “razor-thin tone that I thought was really fascinating — between embracing the cringe of the moment, but also the compassion for that character and the situation. That was it.”
Lee Sung Jin Worked With Isaac To Craft The Character
Isaac went on to reveal that he had “these very long sessions” with the “Beef” creator in order to develop the character. “Sunny and I, it felt like a men’s group of two, like a therapy session. We would talk about all sorts of subjects that kind of related, even sometimes very loosely, to the script,” he explained.
“That felt like, ‘Oh, this is a real investigation of something,” he continued. “This is not just showing up to deliver some idea.’ That became really exciting.”
Season 2 of “Beef” is available to stream on Netflix.
