Netflix's Beef Returns With Massive Viewership Drop For Season 2

Are water-cooler shows a thing of a past? Is three years too long between seasons of television? Is the monoculture dead? Are tomatoes really fruit? There are some things that we simply don't have any answers for (except the tomato thing, that's true), leaving us to put on our analytical hats and sift through the evidence as best we can. Take, for instance, the debut of "Beef" Season 1 back in 2023, which took a road rage incident between two hot-headed rivals and followed the aftermath to its most absurd endpoint. The critically-acclaimed hit went on become a ratings bonanza, an Emmy-winning darling, and the impetus for turning this limited series into an ongoing anthology show. Fast forward to the recent release of Season 2 (which some of us found equal to or even better than before) and it appears that this next iteration of the Netflix series isn't quite landing the same way.

That's the somewhat concerning news as reported by Variety. "Beef" Season 2 still landed in Netflix's Top 10 for this past week ... albeit in the 10 spot, coming in at 2.4 million total views and 14.1 million hours viewed. That's in stark contrast to Season 1, according to the outlet, which notes that the streamer didn't release "views" metrics at the time. However, a little back-of-the-napkin math takes the 34.1 million hours viewed for Season 1 in its first week of release, divides it by the total runtime (just shy of 6 hours), and comes to 5.8 million views — which, in either case, paints an unflattering picture for the second season.

Not great, Bob!

"Beef" Season 2 comes from creator Lee Sung Jin and boasts an all-star cast of Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Charles Melton, and Cailee Spaeny, but that apparently wasn't enough to beat the likes of "WWE Raw" (part of a $5 billion deal with Netflix in 2024), season 2 of "Temptation Island," "XO, Kitty" Season 3, and a handful of other programs that I've never heard of until now. That's the cold reality facing many a "prestige" series these days, as the vast majority of viewers coming home after a long day of work are mostly just content with watching, well, content. But is that enough to explain the significant drop-off between both seasons of "Beef"?

On the face of it, "Beef" Season 2 would seem to appeal to much of the same demographic that watches the other programs making up the Netflix Top 10 list. The new season doesn't shy away from some of its more lurid and reality TV-like interests, depicting the fallout of an intense and borderline violent argument between country club manager Josh Martín (Isaac) and Lindsay (Mulligan) caught on video by young couple Austin Davis (Melton) and Ashley Miller (Spaeny). Chaos and absurdity and pitch-black humor ensues.

Could this be a case of diminishing returns, where those who tuned in to Season 1 had that itch scratched and felt no need for another return visit to this similar premise? Has too much time passed since "Beef" first became a breakout hit, with more and more streaming shows competing for our attention at any given moment? Or did audiences simply not care for it as much this time around? Whether it's one or all of the above, "Beef" is now streaming in its entirety on Netflix.