Beef Season 2 Feels Like A Remake Of An Oscar-Winning Movie

This post contains spoilers for season 2 of Netflix's "Beef."

A cursory glance at "Beef" season 2 might give off the impression that Netflix has found its version of "White Lotus." Although this comparison is sound, the newest season of "Beef" evokes an Oscar-winning thriller about economic and class disparity: Bong Joon Ho's "Parasite."

It is worth noting that a "Parasite" series has been in the works at HBO since 2020, but we haven't heard any fresh developments since early 2025. "Beef" season 2 helps fill that void quite well. Josh (Oscar Isaac) and his wife, Lindsay (Carey Mulligan), oversee an exclusive country club in Montecito. They share a toxic dynamic despite things appearing to be pitch-perfect. There's also engaged couple Ashley (Cailee Spaeny) and Austin (Charles Melton), employees at the Monte Vista Port Country Club, who share rent to make ends meet. 

These disparate socioeconomic worlds clash when the younger couple accidentally witnesses a violent fight between Josh and Lindsay, and end up recording it. This kicks off a beef between both couples, who are already bogged down by problems of their own. "Beef" and "Parasite" have more in common than a clash between the haves and the have-nots, as season 2 illustrates the tiered nature of exploitation that late-stage capitalism encourages. 

Just like Bong Joon Ho's Best Picture winner, "Beef" lays out the codependent relationship between socioeconomic classes, and the ease with which the ultra-rich discard those they consider "beneath" them. Basic necessities like health insurance are bargained via blackmail, and allegiances change at the drop of a hat. While "Parasite" ends by shattering the myth of social mobility, "Beef" affirms that shameless social climbing is only possible if you're immoral. 

Ashley and Austin have blackmail material they can use to ruin Josh and Lindsay's lives, so they negotiate higher salaries/benefits at the country club. This is similar to the way the working-class family in "Parasite" infiltrates the wealthy Park family home. They forge documents, lie about their accomplishments, and sabotage another working-class family. Alas, none of this matters in the end.

Ashley and Austin carry out a similar charade, but the blackmail adds another layer of animosity. Amid this chaos, Josh and Lindsay's relationship is on its last legs, while Ashley and Austin realize that their idealistic perception of love is nothing but a sham. Despite their income disparity, both pairs covet bigger, better lives.

As "Beef" unravels its true nature, we realize that Josh/Lindsay aren't deserving of our ire. Josh is still a part of the managerial class, at the beck and call of ultra-rich clients who use and discard him on a whim. While Lindsay and Josh are extremely flawed, so are Austin and Ashley, who do objectively terrible things to climb up the social ladder. 

That said, the worst of the bunch is Chairwoman Park (Youn Yuh-jung), the billionaire who owns the country club. Turns out, her cosmetic surgeon husband, Kim (Song Kang-ho, who also starred in "Parasite"), accidentally killed a patient during surgery. Park goes to great lengths to cover up this scandal, and the climax proves that the one percenters will target anyone who doesn't sit at the same table as them. Park justifies her actions by stating that capitalism works due to our self-serving natures, and that it'll keep thriving as long as we're alive. This is also in line with "Parasite"'s bleak climax, where the affluent actively dehumanizes and remains apathetic toward the working class. 

By the end of "Beef," Josh voluntarily takes the fall for the scandal, while Austin hands over the proof of Park's wrongdoings to her. Every "beef" that the couples have had so far feels meaningless. While they were too busy hurting each other, billionaires like Park have been preserving a broken economic system. For Park, every relationship is a transaction, which is why she gets Kim killed without remorse. It is tempting to refute Park's claims about humanity's selfish nature, but every character in "Beef" is proof that they would've done the same if granted access to the same wealth and power.

As the recently released "No Other Choice" underlines, capitalism makes desperate fools out of us. Josh and Lindsay's story began with a dream of opening a bed and breakfast together, while Ashley and Austin start their blackmail as they urgently need health insurance. These are sympathetic motivations that morph into morally dubious ones over time. Austin and Ashley sell their morals to replace Josh and Lindsay at the country club in the end. While this provides them with stability, how long before this peace gets shattered? Bowing to the system might promise insulation from poverty and suffering, but how long before this bubble bursts?

Justice isn't served in "Beef." This evokes a similar sentiment to "Parasite," which ends with the false promise of fulfilling an impossible dream. Capitalism will never allow the working class to fulfill basic needs, which will prompt the desire to comply with a corrupt system. Only those willing to weed out the competition can prevail, but only for a moment before the system chews them up and throws them out.

"Beef" season 2 is streaming on Netflix.