Squid Game spoilers follow.
Squid Game season two is on its way. That’s a fact.
The return of thrilling K-Drama was officially confirmed in June 2022 – unsurprising, given its popularity and viewing success.
Towards the latter half of 2021, you had to be hiding under a rock to miss out on the absolute phenomenon that was Netflix’s Korean series, Squid Game.
The to-the-death battle of wits captured the imagination of the entire world – and finally brought to some people’s attention the stream of amazing Korean content that’s available to subscribers worldwide.
The K-Drama was so enthralling that Netflix couldn’t help but capitalise on our appetite for more, and so from it spawned the intriguing reality show Squid Game: The Challenge – currently releasing, in episode batches, on the streaming platform.
But for now, back to Squid Game The Drama – as we imagine that’s what has brought you here.
It’s been over two years since Gi-hun’s fate was revealed in the season one finale, so fans have been wondering for quite some time how long we still have to wait for more.
Here’s everything you need to know about Squid Game season two.
Squid Game season 2 potential release date: When can we expect Squid Game season 2?
In February 2023, breakout star Lee Jung-jae revealed that season two of Squid Game was scheduled to begin filming in the summer and that it was expected to last about 10 months because “[it] will be bigger in scale”.
Netflix confirmed this when, in July, it announced that filming had started that same month and was expected to last the 10-month duration Lee Jung-jae had stated (via What’s New on Netflix).
That means that fans can expect to be reunited with their favourite blood-thristy K-drama in the later half of 2024.
Don’t anticipate a summer release though, with post-production we wouldn’t expect anything until the winter season.
If this seems like a lengthy wait, console yourself with the fact that there might even be a third season of Squid Game in the works.
In December 2021, Hwang told Korean broadcaster KBS (via Korea Times): “I’m in talks with Netflix over season two as well as season three. We will come to a conclusion any time soon.”
For now, though, you’ll have to get stuck into Squid Game: The Challenge.
Squid Game season 2 cast: Who’s coming back for Squid Game season 2?
Considering the nature of the Squid Game itself, don’t expect too many familiar faces in the upcoming season two. Out of the first season’s 456 competitors, all of them but one died.
But the one person we know we can count on to come back is Seong Gi-hun who, after making it out of the game alive, found himself tempted back in after seeing someone else recruited for the mega-millions life-and-death game.
Wi Ha-jun will also reprise the role of police detective Jun-ho.
Some new players have also been announced, including It’s Okay Not to Be Okay’s Park Gyu-young, singer Jo Yu-ri, Kang Ae-sim, Itaewon Class’ Lee David, Sweet Home’s Lee Jin-uk, rapper Choi Seung-hyun (aka TOP), Roh Jae-won, and DP’s Won Ji-an.
So a solid mixture of male and female players, which will hopefully stem the fan backlash after the first cast update, which featured an all-male line-up of Yim Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul, Park Sung-hoon, and Yang Dong-geun.
It’s a relief to know women will have a chance to be ritually slaughtered, as well as men, in the deadly games of the second season!
Previous players – including actors Park Hae-soo, Oh Yeong-su and Jung Hoyeon – could potentially make a comeback, but perhaps only in flashbacks as Gi-hun takes on the games once again, remembering his fallen friends.
“So many characters died, especially beloved ones died. I’m sorry I killed them so easily; I didn’t know this was coming,” Hwang previously told Reuters, adding how he wants to “revive Ji-young, but her best friend Sae-byeok also died” so he’s “thinking what to do”.
Squid Game season 2 plot: What will happen in Squid Game season 2?
At the end of Squid Game’s first season, Gi-hun managed to beat the game against all odds. But the game’s not over yet. Following the death of the Squid Game creator, Gi-hun discovers that the competition is still going on with new recruits.
Given all this, it would be easy to continue the story with Gi-hun centre stage again, doing all he can to stop the game, just as he vows to do in those last moments. And it looks like that’s the route season two is going down.
“I have no idea what will happen or the scale of it, but the only thing [director Hwang] did tell me was that Seong Gi-hun is going to be in the show again, and he’s going to be playing in the arena again,” Lee Jung-jae told People.
“It’s probably safe to assume that, as we all saw at the end of season one, the main plot of season two will be revenge,” he added (via allkpop).
“The key figure who controlled the workings of the games in season one was Lee Byung-hun, so it seems that the two of us will be the central figures of this next story.”
However, it’s hard to imagine how Gi-hun could possibly defeat the game’s creators, even with his newfound wealth. At least not without getting his hands dirty.
In season one he managed to escape the burden of guilt that many felt after taking a life, simply because he didn’t, at least not directly.
We can’t imagine he’d be that fortunate second time around. This would definitely add new layers to the emotional arc he’s about to embark on.
Another complication Gi-hun will have to face is the impossibility of ever sneaking into anywhere undetected with that mop of flame-red hair. Gi-hun dyed his naturally black hair bright red in the final episode for unspecified reasons.
While you might think it’s not that important, Hwang Dong-hyuk disagrees. “[It] represents that he will never be able to go back to his old self. It is also a sign of his rage,” he told Radio Times.
However, in a chat with the AP, Hwang Dong-hyuk has now confirmed that “Gi-Hun will come back, and he will do something for the world”.
He later compared it to a conflict worthy of Star Wars, and said: “I would think that in the second season, what he has learned from the games and his experience in the first season, they will all be put to use in a more active manner.
“And at the same time, as for the Front Man who was also a past winner but became a Front Man, it’s like Darth Vader. Some end up Jedi and some become Darth Vader, right?”
Additionally, Wi Ha-Jun’s police officer Hwang Jun-ho was a great means of opening up the “back end” of the games to the audience, so hopefully Hwang Dong-hyuk will find a way to keep the other Hwang alive and investigate the origin of the games – or at least his brother’s part in it.
Not least the big plot hole that the Front Man’s involvement seemed to generate: if his brother was a former winner of the Squid Game tournament, how did no one in his family notice that he’d suddenly become very rich?
And why did Jun-ho find his disappearance mysterious this time around if he didn’t a few years back, when his brother was busy winning the games?
Of course, the pressure will be on the cast to deliver a second season that thrills as much as the first so at the very least we can expect something much, much more elaborate.
Squid Game season 2 trailer: Any Squid Game season 2 footage yet?
Unfortunately, as far as we’re aware, filming hasn’t even finished yet on the new season, so a release date is a long way off. As a result, there’s no trailer either.
However, as Squid Game has put us off gambling for life, we’re not willing to bet money on when new footage will arrive just yet.
Do keep checking in, though – and we’ll let you know as soon as we know more.
Squid Game is now available to watch on Netflix.
Source: digitalspy.com