Squid Game could have easily ended after one season. In fact, that’s what the show’s creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, wanted. “I had no intention of doing a second season, because the overall process of writing, producing and directing the series was so challenging. I didn’t think to do another one,” he told Variety. (He even reportedly lost several teeth from stress.) And yet, because the Hollywood IP machine never rests, Netflix squeezed not only one but two more seasons out of him.
Hwang won’t sugarcoat it; the compensation played a role in his decision. “Even though the first series was such a huge global success, honestly I didn’t make much,” he told the BBC in November. “So doing the second series will help compensate me for the success of the first one too.” He added, “And I didn’t fully finish the story.”
He’s not just saying that. He first had the idea for Squid Game 15 years ago, for a two-hour film that never saw the light of day, according to the Associated Press. He later brought the idea for a series to Netflix, where it really took off. After all this time, it must be satisfying to bring the story to a proper close. “I learned that I shouldn’t give up. If you love something and if you want to create something, it might not work now, but the time might come later. Or that idea could be the source of inspiration for something else,” Hwang told AP.
These final two seasons will give Hwang a chance to bring the Squid Game saga to a close at last (and give him some much-needed rest). With season 2 now streaming, its final episodes set up what’s sure to be a grand conclusion to the bloody battle royale series. Here’s what we know so far.
When will Squid Game season 3 premiere?
The final season will debut in 2025, but Netflix hasn’t announced an official release date yet. The second and third seasons were filmed back-to-back, according to Variety, meaning the wait for the third season won’t be as long as the last one.
Hwang told Variety in another interview on December 26 that “after season 2 launches, I believe we will be announcing the launch date for Season 3 soon. I probably expect that to launch around summer or fall next year.”
What will season 3 be about?
Season 2’s bloodbath of a finale leaves some questions to be answered in the final chapter. First, there’s Gi-hun’s failed mutiny and Jung-bae’s death. How will these losses affect Gi-hun next season? Will he be motivated to avenge his fallen friend or give up? He and the Front Man must also be bound to see each other again—which means Gi-hun might finally learn his enemy is the man who disguised himself as the player Young-il.
Speaking to Variety, Hwang said the question going into season 3 “[is] now, what is he going to be like? What state is Gi-hun going to be in? And what will he choose to do? Will he continue on with the mission? Is he going to give up or persist? And so you’re going to meet our character Gi-hun at a very critical crossroads as we begin the third season. Gi-hun will not be the man he was in season 2.”
A few other questions: Will Hyun-ju, who went back to the player barracks to find magazines, confront the Pink Guards by herself? And will she survive? Will Jun-ho’s crew ever find the Squid Game island to save Gi-hun and the other players? And what will they do about their captain? Oh, and what’s the mysterious smuggling operation going on among the Pink Guards?
Hwang won’t give anything away for now. When asked about season 3, he replied simply to Associate Press: “It’s better than season 2.”
How will Squid Game end?
“The ending is something you really cannot expect,” Lee Jung-jae, who plays Gi-hun, told Variety. “I am looking forward to what kind of interpretations viewers have.”
When Hwang first announced Squid Game’s renewal for a third season, he promised to deliver another “thrill ride” and teased, “The fierce clash between [Gi-hun and the Front Man’s] two worlds will continue into the series finale.”
How will Squid Game end?
“The ending is something you really cannot expect,” Lee Jung-jae, who plays Gi-hun, told Variety. “I am looking forward to what kind of interpretations viewers have.”
When Hwang first announced Squid Game’s renewal for a third season, he promised to deliver another “thrill ride” and teased, “The fierce clash between [Gi-hun and the Front Man’s] two worlds will continue into the series finale.”
Who will be in the cast?
Based on the surviving major characters at the end of season 2, here’s who we’re expecting to see again in season 3:
Lee Jung-jae as Gi-hun, Player 456
Lee Byung-hun as the Front Man
Wi Ha-joon as Hwang Jun-ho
Yang Dong-geun as Yong-sik, Player 007
Kang Ae-shim as Jang Geum-ja, Player 149
Kang Ha-neul as Dae-ho, Player 388
Jo Yu-ri as Jun-hee, Player 222
Yim Si-wan as Lee Myung-gi, Player 333
Park Sung-hoon as Hyun-ju, Player 120
Park Gyu-young as No Eul (one of the Pink Guards)
