Actor Oscar Isaac has played a role in almost every franchise. From Star Wars to Marvel, it seems he’s done almost everything. However, he faced some new challenges while filming Season 2 of the hit Netflix series, “Beef,” which could potentially earn him an Emmy, given the success of the show’s initial run. Find out what Isaac found “humiliating” about playing the unstable character ahead.
Oscar Isaac reveals what was ‘humiliating’ about filming ‘Beef’
Season 2 of “Beef” opens with a whole new set of characters. Isaac plays Josh, the struggling general manager of an exclusive country club. He plays opposite Carey Mulliganwho plays Lindsey, an interior designer from a privileged background who is also going through a mid-life crisis. Things take a turn for the worse when two young employees, Ashley and Austin, witness a violent argument between the couple.
Luckily, this isn’t the first time 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 they play a couple stuck in a failing marriage.
Oscar Isaac admits it’s ‘a humiliating thing to do this sort of thing’
Their long history of collaborations helped create a safe environment for some of the show’s most volatile scenes. For example, there was a scene where Josh threw his wine glass during an argument. However, Mulligan said that didn’t feel right to her because “statistically, a woman will stop everything and back off” if a man displays physical violence. “It felt like Lindsay had to throw the wine glass first,” she added.
Isaac noted that it was “a humiliating thing to do that sort of thing” during the scene and compared it to a “high-pressure act”. He went on to say, “Having someone you can trust so completely and without judgment…it’s incredibly valuable, it’s liberating and it allows for a lot of fun.”
Mulligan agrees the scene was “particularly humiliating”
Mulligan agreed with Isaac’s assessment and called parts of the scene “particularly humiliating.”
“There were so many elements of this that were risky and even more embarrassing, and I felt like we were taking swings here and there, and that’s hard to do with someone you don’t completely trust,” she said.
However, because of the trust they had in each other as actors, they were able to give their best on stage.
“We felt it was our responsibility to get it right,” Mulligan said. “And it was a tricky thing because you’re supposed 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 ‘Beef’ Season 2
This isn’t the first time Isaac has spoken out about his role on the Emmy Award-winning series. He previously told Entertainment Weekly that he was a big fan of “Beef” season 1. 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 being really intrigued by the first two episodes. But it was episode 3, when [Steven Yeun’s] The character goes to church, and the singing starts, and he starts sobbing,” he explained, adding, “It was 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 found really fascinating – between the acceptance of the grimace of the moment, but also the compassion for this character and the situation. That was everything.”
Lee Sung Jin worked with Isaac to create the character
Isaac then revealed that he had “these really long sessions” with the “Beef” creator to develop the character. “Sunny and I were like a two-man group, like a therapy session. We talked about all kinds of topics that were related, even sometimes very vaguely, to the storyline,” he explained.
“It was like, ‘Oh, this is a real investigation into something,'” he continued. “It’s not just about showing up to propose an idea.” It got really exciting.
“Beef” season 2 is available to stream on Netflix.
