Observe: This story comprises spoilers from “Squid Recreation” Season 3.
It doesn’t matter what you might have seen on social media, “Squid Recreation” Season 3 is the particular finish of the collection. However collection creator, author and director Hwang Dong-hyuk is open to telling extra tales on this universe.
“The explanation I had Cate Blanchett in that scene on the finish, it got here from a spot the place I simply wished an impactful ending. It wasn’t something to trace at a Season 4 or something like that,” Hwang informed TheWrap.
Blanchett seems briefly within the closing moments of the final episode of “Squid Recreation.” After the ultimate recreation, the Entrance Man (Lee Byung-hun) travels to Los Angeles to offer Gi-hun’s (Lee Jung-jae) daughter her late father’s belongings and winnings. As he drives away, he spots a girl in a go well with, portrayed by Blanchett, enjoying a recreation of ddakji with a matted man. As soon as the 2 lock eyes, Blanchett’s character nods on the Entrance Man, the implication being she’s presently recruiting for a brand new Squid Recreation in America.
Hwang famous that there’s a line in Season 1 the place one of many VIPs say the Korean model of the sport is the “most entertaining. “It has at all times been the premise that these video games are occurring in different elements of the world as a result of ‘Squid Recreation’ symbolizes the acute aggressive system inside late capitalism. So it’s not solely about Korea,” he mentioned.
Although the unique “Squid Recreation” has formally come to an finish, Hwang is open to extra tales set on this universe. The creator is particularly excited by tales in regards to the masked guards — a job that was explored extra in Seasons 2 and three with No-eul (Park Gyu-young) — or the recruiters.
“What sort of individuals are they behind the masks? What sort of private relationships have they got with one another? I’ve these imprecise concepts that I’m tossing round,” Hwang mentioned. “If there have been to be a derivative, that may be in regards to the Entrance Man or the Korean recruiter or what occurs behind the masked guards.”
The ending of this Netflix mega-hit definitely leaves room for a derivative about Lee’s Entrance Man, aka In-ho. The ultimate problem forces Gi-hun to make a devastating alternative: both he kills the new child child he’s spent a number of rounds defending or he sacrifices himself. Finally, he chooses to do the latter. However that wasn’t the primary ending Hwang had in thoughts.
“Within the very starting, once I had a imprecise concept of what this storyline was going to be, I did take into consideration having Gi-hun dwell. I considered an ending the place Gi-hun would make it out of the sport in a method or one other, and he would go to America to see his daughter,” Hwang defined. “However within the technique of writing it, I had a change of coronary heart. I assumed what story do I wish to inform via the present? Additionally, I checked out what was occurring world wide on the time and the way there was much less hope for humanity. I considered Gi-hun sacrificing himself for this child, simply as all of us ought to for our future era. That was a better-fitting ending for each the present and the character.”
This sacrifice additionally suits into the themes of one other main character this season, No-eul. A North Korean defector, No-eul initially joined the sport as a masked guard within the hopes of incomes sufficient cash to carry her husband and daughter to South Korea. However whereas doing her job, she acknowledges Gyeong-seok (Lee Jin-wook) as one of many recreation’s contestants, the daddy of a sick daughter who joins the sport to pay for pay for her therapy. No-eul spends most of Seasons 2 and three silently defending Gyeong-seok and even smuggling him off of the island.
It’s no coincidence that that is the second beloved North Korean defector who has appeared in “Squid Recreation.” Season 1 featured Sae-byeok (Jung Ho-yeon), a girl who makes it to the ultimate three rivals.
“Sae-byeok means ‘daybreak’ in English. She was a personality that symbolized hope. She was somebody who had tried, on her personal, all the pieces she may so she may to handle her brother, and he or she had this hope and dream of bringing their mom again from North Korea to the south,” Hwang mentioned. “Then you definitely meet No-eul, which in English her identify represents ‘nightfall.’ She’s somebody who’s dropping hope. She has given up. She’s virtually suicidal. She lives with this deep unhappiness and guilt that she wasn’t in a position to save her child, however she redeems herself via saving Gyeong-seok for his personal daughter.”
After No-eul saves Gyeong-seok, she returns again to the island to destroy any recordsdata this group has on both of them. As soon as there’s no proof left, she sits within the Entrance Man’s chair and is about to kill herself till she witnesses Gi-hun’s sacrifice. That second convinces her to maintain going.
“I wished her to be somebody who goes past what occurs at nightfall and as soon as once more begins to dream of a brand new day,” Hwang mentioned. Her new resolve is confirmed later within the finale when a dealer tells her there’s an opportunity her husband and daughter are nonetheless alive. Despite the fact that the organizers of Squid Recreation listed her family members as lifeless and although it’s an extended shot, No-eul nonetheless boards a aircraft to China within the hopes of being reunited together with her household.
“The symbolism behind kids [in the show], it’s not simply in regards to the organic baby of 1 character, however I wished that to represent any form of hope we might have for the longer term in addition to our will to dwell,” Hwang mentioned. “As what Gi-hun did with the child of Participant 222, additionally No-eul units off to seek out her personal child. I wished to painting this message the place all of those characters and whoever is watching are dreaming of what’s to come back sooner or later.”
Gi-hun’s sacrifice didn’t solely affect No-eul. It additionally had a deep affect on the character who appears almost certainly to have his personal spinoff, the Entrance Man. Hwang defined that when In-ho first met Gi-hun, their relationship was like a “conflict of delight” that examined every man’s perception in humanity. Whereas Gi-hun believed there may be hope for humanity, In-ho didn’t, not less than not initially.
“By sacrificing himself, Gi-hun’s actions have positively touched one thing in In-ho’s coronary heart, perhaps a really small sliver of hope that he had hidden deep down in his coronary heart. I additionally suppose it could have triggered some disgrace in him, as a result of that [sacrifice] was one thing he wasn’t in a position to do for himself,” Hwang mentioned. “With the gaming enviornment in Korea being fully ruined and seeing this child who made it out of the sport, there was an enormous change throughout the Entrance Man, and I believe that was triggered and caused by Gi-hun’s actions. I wished that to be what the viewers feels as nicely.”
“Squid Recreation” is now streaming on Netflix.
