Carey Mulligan is shifting her perspective.

      "Everything will be alright," Carey Mulligan sings from her London apartment, her voice slightly raspy from a persistent winter cold and her blonde bob—now resting on her shoulders—styled casually to the side. She is getting me ready not for a painful root canal or some similar ordeal, but for a stable life with my partner, whom I married exactly five months ago. It’s a stark contrast to the usual exuberance you'd expect when discussing newlywed life, but her calming words resonate in the uniquely candid way that only Mulligan and her wide-eyed expression can deliver. After all, we’ve just spent the last 40 minutes discussing season 2 of Beef, an eight-episode dark comedy-drama that highlights a relationship that is anything but fine. Themes of resentment, blackmail, and an overwhelming sense of "How did I end up here?"—quite daunting for a newlywed.

      In Lee Sung Jin's latest series, which premieres on Netflix on April 16, Mulligan plays Lindsay Crane-Martín, an aspiring interior designer married to the general manager of an exclusive country club. As the devoted wife—at least publicly—she assists her husband Josh (Oscar Isaac) with various tasks, such as organizing fundraisers and selecting pillow fabrics. Yet, beyond that, Lindsay's sense of self is… vague. "I continuously grappled with the question of who she is alongside Sonny and Oscar while starting this role. I found it challenging to define her because she adjusts for different scenarios," Mulligan shares. "Ultimately, I realized she doesn't really know herself." This is a daunting truth for someone who has bound her whole identity to a marriage that is set to come apart at the seams. That’s where the titular beef arises.

      In the opening moments of the first episode, what begins as simmering marital tension culminates in an outburst of violence and a shocking revelation from Mulligan: "You've wasted my whole life." (Lee wrote the line on the day of filming.) The fear of having let time slip away is something she can understand, even in a smaller context. She shares a tale about one of her children learning the recorder, and in a moment of headache-induced frustration, she stashed the instrument away on top of a dresser. It was forgotten for two years. "I thought, 'Goodness, I could have gone another 15 years without realizing it was up there if I hadn’t dusted the top,'" she reflects. It’s unsettling how moments in life can quietly fade away like that. "I think that's where Lindsay is at in episode 1," Mulligan continues. "[It's] like, 'Crap, time has passed. What am I going to do? How do I reclaim it?' That drives her into a somewhat frenzied burst of energy in various directions." This initial burst attracts an audience: the recently engaged Austin Davis (Charles Melton) and Ashley Miller (Cailee Spaeny), who use this information to maneuver in their own lower-level positions at the club. Thus, more beef emerges.

      Fans of the miniseries will be thrilled to find that its next chapter is just as creatively chaotic as its Emmy-winning first season, featuring lavish visuals, cringe-worthy plot twists, and characters reminiscent of The White Lotus—characters you love to despise yet somehow support. Yes, this even includes the intolerable Lindsay. "God, she's really dreadful and annoying," Mulligan remarks on her first impression of the script. "I love the idea of taking on that role."

      I imagine it must be exhilarating to step into a character that is so different from yourself. Mulligan, donning a simple black sweater and sipping from an oversized mug during our Zoom chat, radiates a relaxed vibe that starkly contrasts Lindsay’s chaotic personality. Her delicate features—heart-shaped face, those expressive eyes—are complemented by a deeper English accent, slightly affected by her lingering cold. "I'm fine," she insists. "I've got my giant mug of tea." She reveals her dimples, ready to dive into the conversation.

      This isn't Mulligan's first outing playing an unlikable character, but Lindsay feels distinct—wild, liberated, and genuinely enjoyable. "I was at a crossroads with my career. I had just completed the run for Maestro and was waiting for the right project," she explains. After playing the flirtatious romantic interest in The Great Gatsby, the grief-stricken avenger in Promising Young Woman—an Oscar-nominated role—the troubled sister in Shame, the determined journalist in She Said, and the tragically lost socialite in Saltburn, Mulligan asserts, "I don’t want to be the overly serious character in every film or always playing the dying role. I want to avoid getting pigeonholed into any specific archetype." Then Lee proposed her character in episode 5 of Beef, which contains one of the wildest scenes in the season. "I thought, 'That's insane