In the world of OTT, ‘Squid Game’ was like a revolution. Three years after the success of the first season, the second season is set to take the stage, with Lee Jung-jae‘s character Gi-hun returning to the game. In the second season, after giving up on the chance of going to the States after winning, Player 456 will be seen back in the arena with a new mission and a new group of participants.
Emmy Award winner Hwang Dong-hyuk, who created the series was present at the For Your Consideration awards event for the new season, where he candidly spoke about how he worked on the new installment after the success of season 1. He also spilled the beans on the character’s journey as well as his decision to end ‘Squid Game’ with season 3.
He expressed the pressure and the feeling of joy as he worked on the new installments. “Of course I felt a certain amount of pressure because I knew that there was a huge amount of anticipation out there, and honestly when I was creating season one I didn’t plan in any detail that there would be a second season,” Hwang told The Hollywood Reporter.
Talking about the plot of the upcoming season, he said it is going to be about the journey of the gamer. He will be exploring things both physically and emotionally. “I did have something in mind that if there were to ever be a second season, I had this idea of what story I would tell; I thought it would be the story of Gi-hun turning away from where he was at the end of season one and going back into the games in order to put a stop to the game,” noting that “throughout seasons two and three, it’s going to be about that very journey by Gi-hun that you’re going to be following, both physically and emotionally,” he added.
He further during the panel discussion mentioned that Lee’s character has something broken. He said, “Gi-hun has experienced too many things, witnessed too many deaths, for him to return to the way it was before, no matter how hard he tries.”
Lee was also present at the event and he mentioned that he was shocked to see how quickly Hwang worked on the script. “I didn’t think that he would write it that fast, I really doubted he could do that. And when I actually read [them] I thought, ‘This is immaculate, there’s absolutely nothing that needs to be changed.’ It was so well-written and I was just in awe of this talent thinking, ‘This man’s a genius.’”
Further, working with the new cast came with its own perks and challenges. Talking about it, Lee mentioned, “For season one, so many colleagues and castmates poured our hearts and souls into it, and then with each round of the games, we had to say goodbye to so many people. So all of those memories came back very vividly and also within the story — because so many characters had died on that set, it was almost like I was being pulled back to hell. And I think I could truly feel what the director had intended for me and my character, where, the moment I stepped onto the set, I felt like I really wish more people would make it out alive this time.”
‘Squid Game’ will end with season 3 and explaining the same, Hwang said, “When I was thinking about the idea for the ending of season three, I think it sort of naturally came to me that this was the finale,” the creator said. “I believed that with that story, I was able to tell everything that I wanted to tell through the story of Squid Game and also in the perspective of Gi-hun as a character, and I thought that we don’t need any further stories from here.”
So to sum it up, Hwang mentioned that ‘Squid Game Season 2’ will be crazy. Fans can enjoy it as it will start streaming from December this year.
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