The first season of "Squid Game" came out of nowhere in 2021 to become the most-watched series in Netflix history; will "Squid Game" season 2 break that record when it arrives this week?
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Although Korean shows have been consistently popular on Netflix, "Squid Game" achieved international success on a whole other level, surpassing the viewership of some of the best Netflix shows such as "Stranger Things" and "Bridgerton." A show that popular warrants another season, even if creator Hwang Dong-hyuk never envisioned the show lasting beyond its initial nine episodes.
With Hwang onboard once again as writer and director, Netflix officially announced the second season of "Squid Game" in June 2022. Two years later, viewers got to see real-world contestants face the fiendish games in the Netflix reality show, "Squid Game: The Challenge," and now the original phenomenon is back on our screens this December; have you crammed in your "Squid Game" rewatch yet?
As the premiere draws closer and closer, here's everything we know so far about "Squid Game" season 2.
'Squid Game' season 2 release date
On August 1, Netflix revealed that "Squid Game" season 2 would drop on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
That December release date wasn't too surprising, though; lead star Lee Jung-jae had told Business Insider that the series would debut in December 2024 earlier in the year.
❌⭕️❌⭕️Squid Game Season 2 December 26 Squid Game Final Season 2025 pic.twitter.com/pLtp0mkZLAAugust 1, 2024
'Squid Game' season 2 cast
The cast for "Squid Game" season 2 is set to feature a mix of new and returning characters, as another round of violent versions of children's games gets underway. Breakout star Lee Jung-jae, who's also starring in the new Star Wars series "The Acolyte," is set to return as Seong Gi-hun, the protagonist of the first season and ultimate winner of the deadly competition.
Other cast members set to return include Lee Byung-hun as the sinister leader of the Game, known as the Front Man, and Gong Yoo as "The Recruiter", the mystery salesman who finds players to join the Game. Wi Ha-joon will also return as undercover police officer Hwang Jun-ho.
A new set of games also needs a new set of competitors. We've known who those new stars are for some time, but a Deadline interview just revealed fresh details about some of the new additions to the "Squid Game" season 2 cast:
- Yim Si-wan (member of South Korean boy band ZE:A) as Myung-gi, an ex crypto influencer who lost himself and his fans tons of cash
- Jo Yu-ri (singer/actor, former member of South Korean-Japanese girl group Iz*One) as Jun-hee, a 'strong-willed woman' who fell foul of bad investments courtesy of advice from Myung-gi
- Yang Dong-geun ("Moving") as Yong-sik, a compulsive gambler who is neck-deep in serious debt whose mother is also participating in the tournament
- Kang Ae-sim ("Be Melodramatic," "Move to Heaven") as Yong-sik's mother, Geum-ja
- Kang Ha-neul ("the Heirs)
- Park Sung-hoon ("The Glory")
- Park Gyu-young ("Sweet Home")
- Lee David ("The Fortress")
- Lee Jin-uk ("Sweet Home," "Miss Granny")
- Choi Seung-hyun (singer/actor, "Tazza: The Hidden Card," "Commitment")
- Roh Jae-won ("Missing Yoon," "Ditto")
- Won Ji-an ("D.P.," "Heartbeat")
In addition, we'll also be seeing Lee Seo-Hwan ("The Devil Judge") as Jung-bae, a longtime friend and former coworker of Gi-hun's who could be spotted gambling on horse racing in "Squid Game" season 1.
'Squid Game' season 2 plot
Netflix finally released a proper plot synopsis for "Squid Game" season 2 alongside the confirmed release date. As suspected, the next installment sees Seong Gi-hun continuing to try and bring an end to the deadly games.
It 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."
While speaking to RadioTimes.com Lee Jung-jae claimed the script for season 2 is 'even more interesting' than the first. He also said he believes this next chapter has 'an even deeper emotion that's discovered within', and notes that the new season is full of twists and turns. Cryptic, but it suggests this new season will be just as gripping as the first.
Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, who has written and directed every episode, told The Playlist that there are 'even better games' on the way. He's also referenced the possibility of bringing back characters who died in the first season, so it's possible that season 2 will incorporate flashbacks or surprise twists on the events of the first season. One thing that Hwang won't do is rehash the same plot with a new set of characters.
Dong-hyuk has also teased that writing the show's second season changed the ending of the entire show. Speaking to IndieWire, he said: "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".
“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", he added.
Is there a 'Squid Game' season 2 trailer?
Yep, plenty. One month out from the show's release, we finally got the official "Squid Game" season 2 trailer, and it's a doozy. It makes the show look bigger than ever, packing in action, more devious games, and Gi-hun's mission: to end the games for good.
On Halloween, we got the season 2 teaser, which showed Gi-hun doing his best to try and help his fellow contestants survive with their lives. Unfortunately, those other competitors are too distracted by the promise of a big cash prize.
Before that, we were "invited" to a new teaser that saw the game's dapper recruiter getting dressed for a hard day of finding some new players.
During Netflix Geeked Week 2024, we saw the "Special Teaser" for "Squid Game" season 2. In it, a paranoid Gi-hun wakes up and answers his door, gun in hand. Open it brings him face-to-face with the lead gamemaker!
Then, we were treated to a montage of the other drones preparing the games for the next batch of contestants. Check it out here:
On August 11, Netflix dropped another short teaser, one which teases our new competitors, each of whom have been assigned their numbers and donned their tracksuits. And in a suitably dramatic moment, Gi-hun (#456) spin around and stares down the lens. Now that he knows what he's up against in the games, it certainly looks like he's returning as a fiercer character than before.
Our first real look at the show form of a "Squid Game" season 2 release date announcement trailer. The teaser shows us a track meet gone wrong: runners sporting the iconic green tracksuits are running down a track, though more and more of them start to tumble to the ground before we're passed over to the Front Man and his team of game-makers, who ask if we're ready to play again.
What's more, the teaser also confirmed that "Squid Game" season 2 won't be the end of the story, as it confirms "Squid Game" season 3 will be coming our way in 2025.
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