With Squid Game Season 2 premiering on December 26, 2024, creator Hwang Dong-hyuk is opening up about how hard it really is to film the show! The South Korean Netflix series, Squid Game earned massive success when it came out back in 2021 and became Netflix’s most-watched series of all time. However, all that success wasn’t as easy to come by. According to Hwang, who has returned as both the director and executive producer for Squid Game Season 2, the stress of filming Squid Game Season 1 made him lose his teeth!
In a recent interview with BBC, Hwang revealed that he faced significant physical and mental strain during the filming of the Squid Game Season 1. The director confessed that he lost “eight or nine” teeth in the process “I haven’t seen my dentist yet, but I’ll probably have to pull out a few more very soon,” he joked while talking about filming Season 2. The director admitted that he had sworn off making another season of the show because of his health concerns. However, he eventually changed his mind.
Squid Game Season 2 will pick up after the events of the first season after Gi-hun swears to bring the people responsible for the deadly games to justice. Lee Jung-jae is set to reprise his role as Player 456. But this time around, he enters the games to help other players escape and reveal the dark truth behind the entire operation.
Why Did Hwang Dong-hyuk Return For Season 2 Despite Health Concerns?
Image via Netflix
Game was an unexpected hit. The show’s influence even led to a Netflix reality competition called Squid Game: The Challenge, where 456 contestants compete in real-life games inspired by the show. According to CNBC, the South Korean series reportedly earned Netflix about $1 billion, But Hwang didn’t see much of that profit. The director of the show was paid a flat fee when he signed Squid Game over to Netflix. This means that he did not receive any bonus or royalty from the millions the show brought in, as reported by the LA Times. Additionally, his contract gave up his intellectual property rights, which made it difficult for him to benefit directly from the project.
According to Hwang, the decision to come back for Season 2 was because he barely got to enjoy all the love Season 1 had received from the fans. In the same interview, he claimed that he wishes for Squid Game Season 2 to compensate for the success of the first one as well. However, he also revealed that it took him some time to finish the story for the upcoming season.
As far as the story of Squid Game Season 2 is concerned, Hwang shared that the expectations from the audience are sky-high. This has led to him feeling a lot more pressure to do right by the characters of the show. However, after having killed off almost every character from Season 1, the director has had to start from scratch with a new cast and a new set of games. Speaking of the current global wealth gap in the world, Hwang noted “When making this series, I constantly asked myself ‘Do we humans have what it takes to steer the world off this downhill path?’”
Squid Game Season 1 is available to stream on Netflix. Season 2 comes out on December 26, 2024 on Netflix.
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Squid Game |
|---|---|
| Cast | Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo, Wi Ha-joon, Jung Ho-yeon, Heo Sung-tae |
| Release Date | September 17, 2021 |
| Stream On | Netflix |
| Directed by | Hwang Dong-hyuk |
| Produced by | Kim Ji-yeon, Hwang Dong-hyuk, Kim Tae-hyun, Kim Young-kyu |
| Based On | Original concept by Hwang Dong-hyuk |
| Plot Summary | A survival game series where 456 contestants risk their lives in deadly games to win a massive cash prize. |
| Musical Elements | Score by Jung Jae-il, adding tension and atmosphere to the intense survival story |
| Current Status | Season 2 premiering December 26, 2024, on Netflix |
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