"Squid Game" season 2 has even dropped yet — the hit Netflix series returns to the streamer on Thursday, Dec. 26. — and we're already thinking about the third, and final, installment of the super-popular South Korean thriller.
The second and third seasons of the Lee Jung-jae-led drama were filmed back-to-back, and creator Hwang Dong-hyuk recently revealed that writing the show's second season changed the ending of the whole show.
“I wrote seasons 2 and 3 at the same time … and along the storyline, there is a turning point that takes place, and that leads to a series of different events, and also leads to a significant change in the character,” Hwang told IndieWire.
“Relatively speaking, the ending for season 2 came to me quite early on. However, the ending to season 3, actually ended up [in] a different direction than what I had initially conceived of. While I was working on the story and working on the script, I saw this new path that I wanted to go down, and so the ending of season 3 actually changed in the process of creating season 2."
It's ironic, then, that future seasons weren't even initially in the cards for "Squid Game," as Hwang originally saw the show as a single-season standalone. And while that happily gives viewers even more time with Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) and the rest of the competitors, and an even deeper dive into those deadly games, more episodes did mean more pressure for the showrunner.
"When it was decided that we would do Season 2, the pressure was indeed immense. I was thinking to myself: will I really be able to pull this off? Will I be able to create or write something that would exceed Season 1?" Hwang told the outlet.
"But once I got to writing, and once I got into the story of Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) returning to the games with his own motives, it actually went a lot better than I thought it would. I was able to create a story that I felt was more intriguing, come up with more interesting characters and come up with more original and intriguing games as well.”
Fans have some time to wait for season 3 of "Squid Game" — which will reportedly come to the streamer sometime in 2025 — but until then, we can see just how Hwang is setting up the finale of the series when the seven episodes of season 2 drop on Dec. 26.
For a refresher, the official synopsis for the second season reads: "Three years after winning Squid Game, Player 456 remains determined to find the people behind the game and put an end to their vicious sport. Using this fortune to fund his search, Seong Gi-hun starts with the most obvious of places: look for the man in a sharp suit playing ddakji in the subway. But when his efforts finally yield results, the path toward taking down the organization proves to be deadlier than he imagined: to end the game, he needs to re-enter it."
Tom's Guide will keep you posted on all new information surrounding "Squid Game" season 2, including fresh plot points, character details, behind-the-scenes info, and any insights and intel from Hwang.
