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“Beef” creator Lee Sung Jin has set up two new TV projects for development at Netflix under his newly launched production company.
Lee has established Lila Pictures under his recently-renewed overall deal with the streamer.
In addition, he has hired Hyunji Ward to serve as senior VP of Film & Television for Lila Pictures. Ward was previously at UTA and Dakota Johnson’s TeaTime Pictures.
The first new project is the limited drama “The Only Child,” which will star Ali Wong, who worked with Lee on the hit first season of “Beef.” Ava Wong Davies will write, with Wong also producing in addition to starring. Wong will star as the mother of a professional archer preparing to compete for her first gold medal.
The other project is the drama series “Citizen’s Arrest,” created by Gene Hong, who was a writer and producer on “Beef” Season 2. Per the logline, the series follows “two longtime friends and neighbors whose obsession with solving a local crime becomes an escape from the private crises neither is ready to face.”
“I’m excited to launch Lila Pictures with the support of my creative home at Netflix and the help of Hyunji Ward, our new SVP of Film and TV,” Lee said. “In Sanskrit, lila can be interpreted as ‘the divine play,’ and I’m grateful to reflect that through film and television, alongside close friends and collaborators like Ali Wong and Gene Hong. This is just the beginning. There will also be merch.”
“Beef” originally debuted in 2023 and proved to be one of the most celebrated shows of the year. Per Netflix, it was in the Global top 10 for five weeks and reached the Top 10 in 87 countries. The show received 13 Emmy nominations, including nods for best limited series, best actor and actress in a limited series for Wong and Steven Yeun, and best writing for a limited series. Across both seasons, it has received 29 Emmy nominations with 11 wins.
Lee earned nominations for writing and directing, becoming the first Asian creator to secure multiple Emmy nominations across writing, directing and producing categories for the same series. Lee most recently wrote the script for “X-Men” alongside Joanna Calo. His other credits include shows like “Dave,” “Tuca & Bertie,” “Silicon Valley,” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”
He is repped by WME and Hansen Jacobson.
