‘The Main Plot Will Be Revenge’: Everything We Know So Far About Squid Game Season 2

3 months ago

Coming to a screen near you this Christmas

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It’s official: the much-anticipated second instalment of Netflix‘s hit Korean series Squid Game is coming before the year is up. Here’s everything we know so far about Squid Game season 2.

Squid Game Season 2: Plot, Cast, Release Date & More

The Cast

Netflix has confirmed that Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-Hun, Wi Ha-jun and Gong Yoo will all be returning to Squid Game for season 2. Plus, we will see newcomers Yim Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul, Park Gyu-young, Park Sung-hoon, Jo Yu-ri, Yang Dong-geun, Kang Ae-sim, Lee David, Lee Jin-uk, Choi Seung-hyun, Roh Jae-won and Won Ji-an.

However, we shouldn’t totally rule out any returns from the dead. In 2022, director-writer Hwang Dong-hyuk told Reuters: ‘I want to revive Ji-young [played by Lee Yoo-mi], but her best friend Sae-byeok [played by HoYeon Jung] also died, so I’m thinking what to do. So many characters died, especially beloved ones died. I’m sorry I killed them so easily; I didn’t know this [season 2] was coming.’

What Will Happen In Squid Game Season 2?

To quote Lee Jung-jae, ‘the main plot of season 2 will be revenge’. Squid Game season 2 will begin three years after the action of season 1, with Player 456 (aka Gi-hun) still determined to find the twisted people behind the competition. Dipping into his fortune to fund his search, he begins by looking for the sharp-suited man playing ddakji in the subway. But, when his efforts finally yield results, one dark truth becomes clear: to take down the organisation behind the games, he first needs to re-enter it.

Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun in season 1 of Squid Game

The first season of Squid Game left Seong Gi-hun (Jung-jae’s character) in a somewhat sticky situation. The divorced father and indebted gambler remains traumatised by his experiences in the secret contest, which he was the sole survivor of after his childhood friend, Cho Sang-woo, kills himself in the final eponymous Squid Game rather than having Gi-hun kill him. He is so traumatised, in fact, that he hasn’t touched his prize winnings. When he is contacted by Oh Il-nam (O Yeong-su) and directed to his hospital bedside, we discover that the old man Gi-hun befriended and betrayed in the game was in fact one of the creators behind the whole thing. The two converse, and the old man dies of his brain tumour, leading Gi-hun, in his grief and continued trauma, to dye his hair a shockingly bright red.

While Gi-hun continues to tie up the loose ends and honour the dying requests of his fellow competitors, we discover that his ex-wife emigrated to the USA while he was held captive in the game – along with his daughter. On his way to the airport to visit his daughter – and potentially repair their strained relationship – Gi-hun spots a game of ddakji, the same game that tied him up in the blood-soaked competition. Intercepting the same contact card he was given (and telling the desperate ddakji player never to call the number written on it), Gi-hun calls the number, but is swiftly told by the speaker on the other end of the call to board his plane and leave South Korea. But Gi-hun is having none of it. In fact, he does the opposite, and the series ends with Gi-hun turning on his heel and leaving the airport.

All of this is to say that the season finale answered a few questions – but it raised quite a few more. And we’re hoping season 2 will come with fresh information along with those fresh faces. With even the director having no plans for a second season when the first was released, Squid Game season 2 theories are wide-reaching. Netflix’s official Squid Game season 2 synopsis has provided some insight, but the rest is anyone’s guess.