Netflix's Squid Game swept the globe since its premiere on September 17, 2021, becoming the streamer's biggest-ever show. The hit K-drama also made history in terms of acting accolades, with cast members Lee Jung-jae and HoYeon Jung becoming the first winners for a non-English series at the 2022 SAG Awards.
The engrossing series depicts a deadly, Battle Royale-style Game, where 456 people, all facing massive debts, gamble their lives on a $38 million dollar payout. While the wild premise of the must-watch TV show drew in millions of viewers, the expertly written characters and what-would-you-do dilemmas left fans rampantly trading theories and checking out similar shows to Squid Game long after season 1 ended.
Thankfully, the success of the thriller K-drama means that more is on the way, as the show was renewed for a second installment in June 2022. Below, find out everything we know about Squid Game season 2.
Lee Jung-jae will reprise his role as Seong Gi-hun in Squid Game season 2.
When will 'Squid Game' season 2 be released?
Netflix has confirmed that Squid Game season 2 will debut on December 26, 2024. The streaming giant paired the news with a cryptic teaser showing the Squid Game players in their signature green tracksuits outrunning athletes on a track in a nod to the 2024 Paris Olympics. As the players run past the Front Man and his guards, he says, "It's been three years. Do you want to play again?"
Netflix first teased Squid Game season 2's 2024 release in February. The streaming giant included a first look at the new episodes in a sizzle reel for the streamer's yearly slate.
The short clip seems to take place immediately after Gi-hun ends the game, rather than getting on the plane to visit his daughter. As Gi-hun walks back through Incheon Airpot, the Front Man calls him back, telling him, "You're going to regret the choice you made." Gi-hun replies, "I will find you. No matter what it takes."
Netflix also released four new images from the season, including the returns of familiar faces (Lee Jung-jae as Gi-hun, Lee Byung-hun as The Front Man, and Gong Yoo as The Recruiter) as well as the debut of Sweet Home actress Park Gyu-young as a new character who is given the choice to enter the next Game. The press release for season 2 offers another hint about the season's plot, reading, “Gi-hun abandons his U.S. plans after a mysterious call and embarks on a chase with a motive."
Gi-hun (played by Lee Jung-jae) snakes up on a Square Mask worker.
Front Man (played by Lee Byung-hun) prepares for a new Game.
Recruiter (Gong Yoo) and Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) have a tense meeting.
A new character (played by Park Gyu-young) faces a difficult choice.
Is there a trailer for 'Squid Game' season 2?
The official trailer for Squid Game season 2 arrived on November 26, 2024, giving fans the first look at the next batch of children's games turned into death matches. The clip starts with Gi-hun joining the new set of competitors, as he asks to be put back in the competition to destroy it from the inside. However, the former victor has his work cut out for him, between the sadistic and desperate players, and new rounds based on tic-tac-toe and a fair carousel.
During Netflix's Geeked Week 2024 presentation on September 20, the streaming giant dropped a special teaser for Squid Game season 2. The clip includes a couple more hints of the K-drama's continuing plot. It begins with Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) being woken up by a visitor to his home: the Front Man, who doesn't flinch as Gi-hun greets him with a gun to his face.
The teaser then shows the masked assistants preparing for the latest round, before Gi-hun wakes up in the dormitory, wearing the Player 456 tracksuit again.
The official teaser trailer for Squid Game season 2 follows Gi-hun as he enters the game for the second time, and attempts to save as many of the new players from certain death as possible. It won't be easy to convince the new faces to rebel against the Front Man; as the trailer says, "There's no stopping this game."
The new clip's release came alongside a new description of season 2's plot, from creator Hwang Dong-hyuk himself. “If Season 1 was about the story of Gi-hun, or player no. 456, entering Squid Game for the first time and about how he survives and leaves the game as a winner, Season 2 is going to be about Gi-hun [being] faced with his memories of the first game—the experiences of going through a new realization and awakening and returning once again to the game in order to stop this unjust game," the Emmy winner said, per Variety.
Who is in the 'Squid Game' season 2 cast?
A clip from the streamer's annual fan event Tudum in June 2023 confirmed that four actors from Season 1 will return: Lee Jung-jae (Gi-hun), Lee Byung-hun (The Front Man), Wi Ha-jun (policeman Jun-ho), and Gong Yoo (the Recruiter). They also revealed four male actors joining the series in yet-to-be-disclosed roles, most of whom are familiar faces to fans of Netflix's K-dramas and Korean movies.
Yim Si-wan is an actor and idol best known for two very different projects: the 2020 rom-com drama Run On and this year's horror thriller Unlocked. Kang Ha-Neul is best known for starring as Yong-shik in the small-town drama When the Camellia Blooms. Park Sung-hoon made his Netflix debut earlier this year, playing bully Jae-jun in the hit melodrama The Glory. Yang Dong-geun (also known as YDG) is an actor and rapper who had supporting roles in the Netflix film Yaksha: Ruthless Operations, as well as the dramas Connect, Cheer Up, and The Forbidden Marriage.
Following the initial cast announcement, Netflix released the full cast with a series of pics from season 2's first table read. Among the new actors joining the show are several Netflix K-drama alums, some rising actors, and well-known K-pop idols: Park Gyu-young (Sweet Home, Celebrity), Jo Yu-ri (Iz*One), Kang Ae-sim (Move to Heaven), Lee David (The Fortress), Lee Jin-uk (Sweet Home), Choi Seung-hyun (a.k.a. Big Bang's T.O.P.), Roh Jae-won (Ditto), and Won Ji-an (D.P.).
First row left to right: Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun, Yim Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul
Second row left to right: Park Gyu-young, Park Sung-hoon, Jo Yu-ri, Wi Ha-jun
Third row left to right: Yang Dong-geun, Kang Ae-sim, Lee David, Lee Jin-uk
Who are the new characters in 'Squid Game' season 2?
After Netflix had been tight-lipped for months about who the new cast members joining Squid Game season 2 would be playing, it finally offered a tease. The streamer shared a "Meet the Cast" video on December 4 with information about Yang Dong-geun, Kang Ha-neul, Jo Yu-ri, Lee Jin-uk, Yim Si-wan, Kang Ae-sim, Park Sung-Hoon, Park Gyu-young, Chae Kook-hee, and more's roles.
According to the video, Yim will play Myung-gi (333), a former YouTuber who lost a lot of money and his following through a crypto scam. He also has a connection to Jo's character Jun-hee (222). Jo reveals in the clip that the two used to date before Myung-gi gave her "bad investment advice." Upon entering the game, they unexpectedly reunite, but she's described as an "independent and persistent individual" while playing.
They won't be the other pair who unknowingly reconnect in the games. Yang's character Yong-sik (007) is "an immature, shameless gambler buried in debt," the actor says, and he is surprised to see his mother Jang Geum-ja (149, played by Kang Ae-sim) there, trying to pay off his debts. "The idea of mother and son entering the game together is fascinating," Yang says, noting how the two become a "safety net" for each other.
Park's character Huyn-ju (120), meanwhile, is a transgender woman trying to earn money for her gender confirmation surgery. "Even though she faces prejudice and tough situations, she shows incredible strength, decisiveness, and natural leadership," the star says.
Other characters include Kang's Dae-ho (388), an ex-marine with "over-the-top masculinity" who is actually "fragile" deep down; Lee's Gyeong-seok (246), a father who's trying to earn money to pay for his daughter's blood cancer treatments; Gyu-young's No-eul, a North Korean defector who left her child behind in the North and is determined to be reunited; and Chae's Seon-nyeo, who tends to flip a switch on her emotionality.
There's also a group of younger, 20something characters: Lee David's more timid, compliant Min-su (125); Choi Seung-hyun's "retired rapper" character Thanos (230, played by retried rapper T.O.P.) who was a fan of Myung-gi's YouTube channel and fell for his crypto scam; and Roh Jae-won's bully-like role Nam-gyu (124). You can also expect Won Ji-an's character Se-mi (380) to build an alliance with Min-su. Of their pairing, Won says, "...She tends to be strong with strong people and gentle with those who are more vulnerable."
The show's creator Hwang Dong-Hyuk also shared a bit of insight into the new characters in the clip. "Most of the characters in season 1 are already gone, so I thought about it and I felt that having characters with backstories would be much more interesting," he says. "Those backstories allow for more dramatic stories to unfold within the game. I wanted that, but I think the Front Man and the VIPs probably wanted it too. Casting people with those kinds of stories and putting them in the game would make it much more entertaining to watch. After all, it's a story for the spectators."
What will 'Squid Game' season 2 be about?
Squid Game season 1 spanned a full Game, with Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) emerging with the 456 billion won prize. One year later, Gi-hun discovers that the Game is about to begin again when he runs into the Salesman (Gong Yoo) recruiting another player. Right before he's supposed to leave for America, Gi-hun decides to stay in Korea to shut down the Game once and for all.
The official season 2 synopsis 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, 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.”
Two new characters (played by Yang Dong-geun and Kang Ae-sim) ask for mercy during the Game.
In a November 12 cover interview with The Hollywood Reporter, director Hwang and star Lee Jung-jae teased that season 2 will be an even darker Game than the first, with themes that will hit closer to home for U.S. viewers following recent political events. In the biggest change from season 1 so far, THR revealed that in season 2, the 456 players will have to vote whether or not to end the Game every round. Each side—O and X, or continue the Game and end the Game—will wear placards designating their vote, with the main dormitory now sporting "a giant blue 'O' and red 'X' illuminated on the floor, with corresponding blue and red lines bisecting the room."
Speaking with the outlet, Hwang explained that season 2 is inspired by sectarianism growing across the world, from generational divides in South Korea to the recent U.S. presidential election. "I was inspired by the sheer fact that everywhere you turn, people are drawing lines, whether it’s by generation, class, religion, ethnicity or race," he said. "I wanted to tell a story about how the different choices we make create conflicts among us and to open up a conversation about whether there is a way to move toward a direction where we can overcome these divisions."
He added of the new mandatory vote after each round, "We live in a democratic society, and everyone has their own right to vote, but the dominant side rules. So I also wanted to pose the question: Is the majority always right?"
Squid Game season 2 new additions Jo Yu-ri and Yim Si-wan will play exes who run into each other within the death match.
The THR article also includes the first hints toward the identities of Squid Game season 2's new characters. Hwang revealed that several of the new tracksuited players will discover that they have pre-existing relationships with other participants in the Game, similar to childhood friends Gi-hun and Sang-woo (Park Hae-soo) meeting each other in the Game in season 1. Per the outlet, one of these pairs will be a young woman (played by Jo Yu-ri) who discovers that her crypto-bro ex-boyfriend (played by Yim Si-wan) has also entered the game.
Hwang said of Jo and Yim's characters, "Those that created the games intentionally put them there to give more entertainment factor to those that are watching." He added, “We didn’t have that many young people in the game in season 1 because when I was first working on the script, there weren’t reasons for the younger generation to be so hugely indebted. However, during the pandemic, there was this huge cryptocurrency craze that led to so many young people getting neck deep in debt and driven into poverty.”
Season 2 will find Player 456 having to reenter the game in order to end it.
Over the past three years, director Hwang has dropped hints that season 2 could focus more on the Front Man, who led season 1's Game. At the end of the season, his identity was revealed as Hwang In-ho (Lee Byung-hun), policeman Jun-ho's (Wi Ha-joon) older brother. The masked man is ruthless throughout the Game, and when he discovers that his younger brother has infiltrated the Game, he shoots him. It has also been confirmed that the Front Man was previously a winner of the Game himself.
In an October 2021 interview with The Times, Hwang suggested that the Front Man, a former cop himself, could become one of the show's leads.
"While I was writing season 1, I thought about the stories that could be in season two if I get to do one—one would be the story of the Frontman," he told the outlet.
Three years later, THR reports that the ultimate fight between Gi-hun and the Front Man will "drive the remainder of the series, [as] a conflict that raises questions about what motivates people to dehumanize others, whether for sport or profit, and if this inclination can be overcome." Lee told the outlet, “One word that was top of mind for me while shooting season two was 'conscience.' It’s not something that’s absolute, but to call ourselves human, we have to be true to our conscience, and when we are not, we have to be able to feel shame."
What has the 'Squid Game' cast said about season 2?
Lee Jung-jae, who plays Seong Gi-hun, also said that he's ready for a second season. He told the New York Times that there are many possibilities for where his character could do next. "That’s a very difficult question because the story could go in any direction, and some of Gi-hun’s emotions are very complicated. He’s a very intriguing character. I guess he could go and try and punish the creators of the game. Or he could try to stop new contestants from playing it. Or he could try to join the game again. I have no idea at this point."
When asked about a popular fan theory, that Gi-hun could be offered the chance to replace the Front Man and run the game, Lee said, "Well, for one, I’m never going to let anyone die! If the story does go in that direction, Gi-hun would end up in a position like Oh Il-nam, the old guy [played by Oh Yeong-su]. But you know, in “The Deer Hunter,” the character that Christopher Walken plays never makes it out of the game, right? That could be what happens."
The cast also has their ideas of how fallen players can return for season 2. During a Variety interview at the SAG Awards, Lee shared that the season 1 cast got together to brainstorm near the end of filming.
"After we filmed Squid Game Season 1, we all got together brainstorming ideas for how to bring everybody back alive,” Lee said. “My idea is the masked men carry all of them out as quickly as possible and do a surgery on them to keep them alive."
Will there be a 'Squid Game' season 3?
On July 31, 2024, Netflix confirmed that Squid Game will end with a third and final season, which will be released in 2025. The streaming giant posted a letter written by Emmy-winning director Hwang Dong-hyuk, sharing his excitement that two new seasons of Squid Game are coming.
“Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), who vowed revenge at the end of season one, returns and joins the game again,” Hwang continues. “Will he succeed in getting his revenge? Front Man doesn’t seem to be an easy opponent this time either. The fierce clash between their two worlds will continue into the series finale in season three, which will be brought to you next year.”
“I am thrilled to see the seed that was planted in creating a new Squid Game grow and bear fruit through the end of this story,” he added. “We’ll do our best to make sure we bring you yet another thrill ride. I hope you’re excited for what’s to come."
While the streamer has not announced an official premiere date for season 3, the new release schedule is similar to another Netflix K-drama, which returned after a three-year hiatus. After its first season came out in December 2020, the monster thriller Sweet Home premiered its second season in December 2023, followed by its third and final season in July 2024. If Squid Game follows a similar schedule, it's possible that we could get season 3 as early as summer 2025.
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