The games are back on! Netflix has just unveiled the first teaser trailer for Squid Game season 3, which releases in its entirety on June 27.
Things were looking pretty bleak for Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) and the rest of the Squid Game entrants when last we saw them in season 2. After barely surviving the first few games, Gi-hun led an ill-fated attempt to overthrow the overseers of the games. It failed, more people died, and when the dust settled, the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun) had retaken his place at the head of the enforcers keeping the Squid Games running smoothly. It was a hell of a cliffhanger, but fortunately we won't be waiting long to see what happens next.
Watch this first official teaser to get a glimpse of what's in store, then we'll hit on a few highlights:
The rich return in Squid Game season 3
One of the most dystopian elements of Squid Game season 1 was when we finally got a look behind the curtain at the people organizing the games, and discovered they were a bunch of ultra-wealthy elites who forced poor people into death matches for their own amusement. Squid Game's basic set up of coercing desperate people to play deadly children's games for enough money to change their circumstances was brutal enough, but this added element elevated the series. Squid Game season 2 didn't get far enough into the year's games for these sponsors to rear their golden-masked heads, but as we see in the trailer, they'll be making an appearance in season 3. I'm excited to see how they fit into Gi-hun's ultimate ambition to end the games for good.
Of course, he'll have to survive to get that far. The trailer shows him being carted back into the Squid Game dormitory in a coffin, only to be thrust into yet more games. A simple death is not an option for Gi-hun, whose entire mission has been to infiltrate the games and destroy them from within. He's caught the attention of the Front Man, and he'll be tested more before the end.
And Gi-hun won't be the only character in the thick of it. We also get glimpses of the rest of the surviving entrants who made it through season 2, along with some of the games themselves, like one which revolves around a candy dispenser that drops blue or red balls and another which seems to incorporate boxing. Investigator Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-jun) will seemingly make it to the island this season, after being led on a wild goose chase throughout season 2. And the teaser ends with the sound of a baby crying, so presumably pregnant contestant Jun-hee (Jo Yuri) is going to give birth mid-Squid Game. I'm already nervous for how that's going to play out.
I'm a fan of the oppressive, moody atmosphere of the footage in this trailer. Squid Game has always been a dark show, but now we're heading into its endgame so it needs to up the stakes, both literally and visually. I'm looking forward to watching!
Netflix has yet to confirm the episode count for season 3, but The Hollywood Reporter has heard rumbles that it will consist of six episodes. However many episodes there are in Squid Game season 3, they'll all drop together on June 27, 2025.
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