Christopher Meloni Leads Paramount Digital’s Courtroom Spoof, ‘Beef’

For the third time, Paramount‘s digital studio is looking to strike gold with a reality TV parody. The first two attempts were both excellent; now, it’s Beef‘s turn. Christopher Meloni (Law and Order: SVU‘s Elliot Stabler, among many other roles) is the star of a courtroom comedy that will combine heated arguments, guest stars, and cold cuts.

If Burning Love is Paramount Digital’s spoof of The Bachelor, and The Hotwives of Orlando is its take on The Real Housewives, then Beef is the studio’s attempt to skewer Judge Judy. Meloni stars as Lou, a butcher who doles out justice from behind his deli counter. Want to air your grievances in front of him? Take a number. Once you reach the stand, be careful not to lose your head, or Lou will order you to cool down in the meat locker.

Burning Love, The Hotwives of Orlando, and Beef also share the same production company–Abominable Pictures–as well as executive producer Jonathan Stern.

As with Paramount Digital’s other reality TV parodies, Beef will be full of celebrity cameos. Burning Love guests like Michael Ian Black and Joe Lo Truglio will have roles, as will notable comedy actors like Michael Cera and Lizzy Caplan. Several of these guests can be seen in the series’ trailer.

Beef looks like it will live up to the quality of its predecessors, but if you want to watch it, you won’t be able to find it on Hulu or Yahoo–at least not initially. Instead, the easiest way to view the series is to download it from VOD services like iTunes, where it will be available on November 11th.