'Squid Game 2' to be 'more intriguing', the show's creator promises

Revenge will be in the air in the hotly anticipated second season of "Squid Game," the TV show's creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, says, promising a more extensive cast of characters and more absorbing challenges than the original.

Attending the first global promotional event for the new season in the Tuscan city of Lucca, Hwang told Reuters that a third edition of the Korean drama was already in post-production and hinted that an English-language version might also be in the offing.

When it was released in 2021, the first season of "Squid Game" became Netflix's most-watched series.

Hwang went on to win an Emmy for outstanding directing in a drama series, while Lee Jae scored a Best Actor in a Drama Emmy Award. Both were the first Asians to take home those titles and the first for a non-English-language series.

Given the considerable viewing figures, the dystopian show was inevitably renewed and will hit the streaming service on December 26. The third and final installment is set for rollout in 2025.

"In Season 2, Gi-hun (played by Lee), who survived Season 1, returns to the games, not to win this time, but to end these games," said Hwang, the show's writer, director, and producer.

"There is going to be a larger number of characters this time and more intriguing games that are all worthy of a lot of the viewers' love and support," he said.

The thriller series follows cash-strapped contestants who take part in deadly survival challenges featuring childhood games for a chance to win a fortune. The new season takes place three years after the first events, and Lee’s character, Seong Gi-hun, returns to the life-or-death game with new participants.

Lee, who was also attending the Lucca Comics & Games event, told Reuters there was pressure to improve on the original. He added that his character, a former gambling addict, is a changed man.

Squid Game Season 2 PosterInstagram

"Gi-hun is a very different person in Season 2. This time around, he wants revenge. He wants to catch the people behind the games and bring them to justice," he said.

This week, the Hollywood news site Deadline reported that U.S. director David Fincher, who made the 1999 hit "Fight Club," was working on an English-language version of "Squid Game" for Netflix.

"I don't think it's official yet, so I cannot tell much about it. But, you know, I respect him as a filmmaker and creator," Hwang said when asked about the report.

"So if he does it, I'm looking forward to seeing it."