There’s a few reasons everyone can’t stop talking about Netflix’s latest hit Beef, and its chaotic season finale is one of them.
If you weren’t sure how to interpret the happenings of the final episode, you’re probably not alone. According to the series’ creator, Lee Sung Jin, that’s exactly how you should feel.
“I leave it open to interpretation how people want to view that moment,” he told ELLE US, adding, “but I just knew I wanted to create a mood, and that mood was something that felt very nostalgic and familiar and like home in a lot of ways.”
Below, we unpack and interpret all the action of the Beef finale.
What happens in the final episode of Beef?
Starring Ali Wong as Amy and Steven Yeun as Danny, the series charts the (extreme) fallout of a road rage incident that essentially changes the course of the two characters’ lives.
In the tenth and final episode, Amy and Danny’s ongoing feud seems to reach life-threatening stakes, as the pair find themselves injured ad stranded in the middle of the wilderness.
But it’s this kind of vulnerability that ultimately enables communication between the rivals who, until this point in the series, have been effectively silenced by their rage.
With both characters injured, no phone reception, and dwindling supplies, Danny and Amy must work together to return to civilization. On the way, however, they forage for what they believe to be elderberries, which turn out to be an unknown poisonous variety that quickly causes them to hallucinate.
Does Danny die in the final episode of Beef?
The series ends with the ultimate cliff hanger.
After he is shot, we cut to Danny in a hospital bed, with Amy sitting at his side. The transformation of their relationship is perhaps most evident when Amy crawls into bed beside him. In response, Danny moves slightly (confirming he is, indeed, alive), and appears to reciprocate Amy’s affection, but before we can know for sure, the screen cuts to black and the credits roll.
As for the romantic implications of Amy’s gesture (and Danny’s presumed response), Lee told ELLE US, “I think any time two people have that deep of a connection, it’s easy to extrapolate [romance]. But I honestly don’t know.”
Cryptically, he continued, “I’m very curious what would happen to Danny and Amy once they leave that room. I have my own feelings on the romantic side of their relationship, but I certainly welcome all interpretations.”
Will there be another season of Beef?
Lee told ELLE US that he originally pitched the show as an anthology, meaning any further iterations would follow different characters and different stories. But, he added that, “given the opportunity” he’d “love” to explore Amy and Danny’s story further. Here’s hoping for a sequel!
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