After Hwang Dong-hyuk's brutal survival drama Squid Game suddenly became Netflix's most popular show ever when it premiered in 2021, the hype has been non-stop. Naturally, Netflix is keen to cash in on the show's success. We've already had Squid Game: The Challenge, a reality show centered around the show's games. Plus, there's now a mobile game called Squid Game: Unleashed available. And of course, season 2 of the main show is just around the corner.
Back when Dong-hyuk was making Squid Game season 1, he never expected it to get another installment. “Honestly, when I was first working on the first season, I didn’t have any plans or thoughts about there ever being further seasons,” Hwang told Entertainment Weekly a few weeks back. “In Korea it’s not very common for series to have multiple seasons."
But alas, the immense success of season 1 forced his hand to write more. It certainly helped that he decided to leave season 1 on a cliffhanger, with Gi-Hun turning down the choice of returning home to his daughter in favor or remaining in Seoul, determined to put an end to the games once and for all. Dong-hyuk has taken the opportunity to expand the story for two more seasons; the second season premires next week and the third will conclude the series in 2025.
Amid all the Squid Game chaos, Hwang Dong-hyuk recently spoke candidly about his fatigue. At this point, it's been years of pressure, and he's become tired. “I’m so exhausted. I’m so tired. In a way, I have to say, I’m so sick of ‘Squid Game,’” he told Variety. “I’m so sick of my life making something, promoting something. So I’m not thinking about my next project right now."
Once Squid Game is over, he wants to escape the streaming world. "I’m just thinking about going to some remote island and having my own free time without any phone calls from Netflix," he said, adding: “Not the ‘Squid Game’ island.”
The good news for him is that the baton will be handed to David Fincher, who it's rumored is working on an English-language remake of the show. "t isn't something that's been shared with me officially, so it's tricky to comment," Dong-hyuk told Games Radar about the potential remake. "But having said that, as a big fan of David Fincher, you know, I hugely respect a lot of his work. If he actually were to do the spin-off of Squid Game, I personally, as a fan, I am very excited to see what happens. You know, I can't wait to see what he has in store."
Hwang Dong-hyuk may be sick of Squid Game, but the world is not. Hype is building for season 2, which premieres December 26 on Netflix. "I think I’ve created something that’s not going to bring shame on the first season,” Dong-hyuk told The Guardian of season 2, promising a “greater scale” and “a deeper story.”
The first season resonated with so many people because of its central metaphor about the brutality of income equality, a problem that Dong-hyuk has only worsened in the time since. “I look at the world and things have got much worse,” he said. “Not just in Korea but globally. The wealth gap is widening. There is war and conflict in many corners of the world. It’s painful to say that Squid Game has become even more relevant.”
Will Gi-Hun take down the perpetrators of the games? Only time will tell!
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