‘Beef’ creator Lee Sung Jin joins ‘X-Men’ reboot script team

Lee Sung Jin, the mind behind Netflix’s Beef, has revealed he is working on the script for the upcoming X-Men reboot, describing the opportunity as an honour. Speaking at the Season 2 premiere of Beef in Los Angeles, Lee reflected on his lifelong love of the franchise, recalling Saturday mornings spent watching the X-Men cartoon and reading the comics with his father.

The reboot is directed by Jake Schreier, who also collaborated with Lee on last year’s Thunderbolts. Schreier praised working with Lee and co-showrunner Joanna Calo, noting their shared shorthand and creative trust. “Anytime you can work with people that you care so deeply about and who are so talented, it always seems like a good thing to do,” Schreier said.

Lee and Calo were reportedly reviewing the latest draft of the X-Men script, with Lee emphasising that his participation is a testament to his admiration for the characters rather than any confirmed plot involvement. Among his favourite mutants are Gambit and Jubilee, with Lee noting a fondness for the supporting characters who often get overlooked in favour of Cyclops or Wolverine.

Season 2 of Beef is a significant undertaking, featuring an entirely new cast led by Carey Mulligan and Oscar Isaac as a couple navigating a crumbling marriage. Lee admitted the production demanded exponentially more effort than the first season, juggling multiple prospective characters and tighter deadlines. “Everyone was very mad at me,” he joked, referring to the pressures of finalising cuts.

Mulligan and Isaac shared that filming the intense arguments of their characters required unusual methods to decompress. Isaac joked about using a variety of edibles to relax, while Mulligan found catharsis in smashing a trophy cabinet, highlighting the extreme demands of their performances.

Beef Season 2 premiered on Netflix on April 16, while Lee’s work on the X-Men reboot represents a crossover into the MCU, blending his television experience with one of comic history’s most iconic franchises.