‘Squid Game’ Director Reveals Which Game He’d Excel At

Inside a month of its launch, “Squid Game”grew to become Netflix’s most-watched collection, breaking data as the primary Korean and foreign-language present to earn a Display screen Actors Guild (SAG) nomination.

Driving the wave of its unprecedented success, Netflix expanded the franchise by launching a actuality competitors collection impressed by the drama, which premiered in November 2023.

Now, the “Squid Sport” franchise is gearing up for the extremely anticipated launch of its second season.

Season two teasers have confirmed that Gi-hun will re-enter the lethal competitors, and the most recent trailer hints at his new function. This time, he appears centered on guiding contestants to outlive and presumably stand up in opposition to the sport’s organizers. Nonetheless, his success will rely upon his capacity to assist them overcome their inherent greed.

Gi-hun’s return marks the beginning of a bigger battle, as his struggle in opposition to these controlling the competitors is anticipated to proceed into the third and remaining season.

As he promotes the extremely anticipated second season, director Hwang spoke to PEOPLE Magazine concerning the success of the present. He even revealed that he would probably excel on the honeycomb problem. Reflecting on his childhood, he recalled utilizing the identical lifesaving trick as Seong in Season 1—licking the honeycomb to weaken the define of the form, making it simpler to take away.

The Honeycomb Problem (or Dalgona Problem) is among the most memorable and intense moments from “Squid Sport” Season 1, showing in Episode 3: “The Man with the Umbrella.”

Primarily based on a preferred South Korean childhood recreation referred to as ppopgi or dalgona sweet, the problem duties contestants with rigorously carving out a form—reminiscent of a circle, triangle, star, or umbrella—from a flat honeycomb sweet utilizing a small needle. The aim is to take away the form with out cracking or breaking the brittle sweet, as failure ends in elimination, which within the present means dying.

The problem of the duty is dependent upon the chosen form, with easier designs just like the triangle being simpler to carve in comparison with the intricate umbrella, which poses an nearly unattainable problem. In one of many present’s standout moments, Seong Gi-hun (Participant 456) cleverly realizes that licking the again of the sweet softens it, making it simpler to carve out the form with out breaking it, a quick-thinking technique that saves his life.

Rooted in South Korea’s avenue snack tradition, dalgona sweet was a nostalgic deal with for a lot of kids, who would win one other snack or free sweet in the event that they efficiently eliminated the form. This cultural reference resonated deeply with Korean audiences, whereas the tension-filled recreation captivated worldwide viewers.

Following the present’s launch, the honeycomb problem went viral on social media platforms like TikTok, with followers worldwide trying to recreate the sport utilizing selfmade dalgona sweet.

Hwang revealed to the outlet that the “strain” to write a second season was “certainly immense,” particularly since he by no means thought of doing something previous the primary.

“I used to be pondering to myself: will I actually have the ability to pull this off? Will I have the ability to create or write one thing that may exceed Season 1?” he instructed IndieWire. “However as soon as I obtained to writing, and as soon as I obtained into the story of Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) returning to the video games together with his personal motives, it truly went lots higher than I assumed it might.”

He added, “I used to be capable of create a narrative that I felt was extra intriguing, provide you with extra fascinating characters and provide you with extra unique and intriguing video games as nicely.”

Netflix renewed “Squid Sport” in June 2022 and later introduced that the collection would proceed with a 3rd season, solidifying its place as one of many platform’s flagship franchises.

“Alongside the way in which, I believe that sense of burden or strain truly became a supply of pleasure, and I regularly gained the arrogance that we had been creating one thing that the followers of the primary season wouldn’t be dissatisfied with,” Hwang instructed the outlet. “Having stated that, it was clearly no straightforward feat. Nonetheless, I believe with that confidence, I used to be ready to enter it with a greater method.”

“Squid Sport 2” premieres December 26 on Netflix.