'Danny has aspects of all of us': How Steven Yeun relates to his Emmy-winning 'Beef' character

'Beef' star Steven Yeun and director Lee Sung-jin discuss the darker aspects of the human psyche that brought broad acclaim to the Emmy-winning series.

Director Lee Sung-jin, left, and actor Steven Yeun pose with their trophies for Netflix original series ″Beef″ at the 75th Emmy Awards Governors Gala Winners Circle held at the LA Convention Center in Los Angeles, California, on Jan. 15. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Fresh off their sweeping wins at the 81st Golden Globes and the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards in January for Netflix original series “Beef,” actor Steven Yeun and director Lee Sung-jin pinpointed “the darker parts of our psyche” that the show addresses as the factor that brought it popularity and acclaim among viewers worldwide.

“What resonated the most for probably a lot of viewers is just seeing parts of themselves in the characters,” said Lee during an online interview with Korean reporters on Friday. “Even from the very beginning, when we were developing this show, it was about making something that feels honest, that shows the darker parts of our psyche that we may be afraid to share.”

In “Beef,” struggling Korean American contractor Danny Cho, played by Yeun, crosses paths with affluent businessperson Amy Lau in what becomes the start of a prolonged and oftentimes violent altercation between them. As their revenge spree continues, Danny’s and Amy’s lives and their families intertwine in a comical yet dark story about isolation, class warfare and what it means to live in a cutthroat modern world.

“Beef” won a total of eight trophies at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards; Lee and Yeun took Best Director and Best Actor, respectively. Yeun also won the Golden Globe for Best Actor, and the show itself received Best Television Limited Series.

A scene from Netflix original series "Beef" starring Steven Yeun and directed by Lee Sung-jin [NETFLIX]

“We tried to create a narrative where both characters eventually see [the darker parts of our psyche] in one another, and that becomes the transformative thing,” said Lee. “What you thought was an ugliness only inside of you exists in someone else, and that you are both accepting of one another — at least, to me, that’s what I connect with when I watch ‘Beef.’”

“I feel the same as Sung-jin, and it feels very incredible to be in a much more globally connected world where we can reach across so many barriers and connect with each other with a deep humanity,” said Yeun. “Something that I’d like to say to myself in the past maybe is to just relax, that it’s going to be okay.”

The story and characters in “Beef” reflect reality for many Asian Americans, and the authenticity of that depiction was something that the cast and director worked hard to embed into the series, said Yeun.

“Immigrant reality is something that I know firsthand and then got to collaborate with Sung-jin about,” said Yeun. “It was narrowing down the specificities of that experience and honoring those aspects, but also getting past them to get to this universal human expression that we were trying to touch.”

“Themes of identity and what it means to be Korean American in the States — it’s not at the forefront of the show, but I think those themes are baked deep into the narrative,” added Lee. “I myself am not constantly, in my day-to-day, thinking about that question, but it is very important and deep underneath my existence.”

A scene from Netflix original series "Beef" starring Steven Yeun and directed by Lee Sung-jin [NETFLIX]

There may not be one concrete message that the makers of “Beef” wanted to get across, but different viewers have interpreted the message of the show in their own ways — which is, itself, the beauty of such collaborative projects as television, according to Lee.

“There isn’t necessarily a message, but we just wanted to portray honest characters, and we knew starting from a point of raw rage and the endpoint of two people connecting was authentic,” said Lee. “I think what messages people take away really depends on the person. Sometimes people will tell you about messages that you didn’t even realize were in it, and that’s pretty cool.”

Yeun related to his character Danny very much because of the lack of control that the character has over his own life.

“I think Danny has aspects of all of us. He felt very out of power and did not have control over his situation, and I related to that,” said Yeun. “I feel the most insecure when I don’t have control over a situation. I feel that I’ve come to know myself better, and I’m learning to accept myself a bit more. What we were trying to say through Danny was: All aspects of us are to be understood and to be loved and accepted.”

When asked if he compares himself to actor Song Kang-ho, Yeun vehemently shook his head and denied the comparison, saying that Song is a “common hero” for both himself and Lee.

“I don’t know if I can have such a self-assessment that sounds so horrifying,” said Yeun. “Our common hero among the many Korean heroes is Song. So that’s a crazy comparison, and I’ll refute that for now, but I appreciate the gesture.”

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]