Netflix's Expensive Post-Production Dilemma on Beef Season Two
Netflix incurred significant additional costs during the post-production of Beef season two, due to a creative decision made by its lead actors on set. Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan, who star as a couple in the hit streaming series, chose to wear earphones while filming certain scenes to enhance their performances with music.
The On-Set Innovation That Led to Budget Blowout
According to creator Lee Sung Jin, the actors' use of earwigs—small in-ear devices—during filming meant that these had to be digitally painted out in the final edit. Sung Jin revealed on a podcast that this process "cost a fortune" for the streaming giant. The issue arose because the earphones were visible in shots, requiring extensive visual effects work to remove them seamlessly.
Isaac and Mulligan play a married couple whose relationship unravels after an encounter with another pair, portrayed by Cailee Spaney and Charles Melton. The eight-episode season features intense scenes of rage and passion, where the actors sought to heighten their emotional delivery through music.
How the Earphone Habit Began and Spread
Oscar Isaac initially used an earwig for a scene where his character plays a Moog synthesizer. Enjoying the experience, he proposed to Mulligan that they both listen to songs matching the emotional tone of their scenes. Mulligan agreed, and the pair adopted the practice for multiple sequences.
One notable example was a passionate kiss scene, where the timing of the music perfectly aligned with the action. "The beat would drop on the [kiss]. We were so delighted every time," Mulligan recalled. Isaac added that the rhythm synchronization was so effective they decided to continue using earphones in other scenes, despite the audio challenges it posed during filming.
Musical Choices and On-Set Experiments
For a tense blackmail scene, the actors listened to "really chaotic" music by Thom Yorke and Mark Pritchard, which Isaac said amplified the scene's tension. However, not all musical experiments were successful. Mulligan suggested using Meat Loaf's 1993 song "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" during the blackmail scene, but they abandoned it halfway through, finding it didn't fit the rhythm.
The actors' improvisation with music added a unique layer to their performances but created a substantial post-production burden. Netflix's visual effects team had to meticulously remove the earphones from each frame where they appeared, driving up the show's budget.
Beef season two is currently available for streaming on Netflix, showcasing the performances that came at this unexpected extra cost.
