Squid Game season 2 gets the 'green light' from creator Hwang Dong-hyuk

It’s official: Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has confirmed that a second season of the hit Netflix show is currently in development. 

The South Korean director told The Associated Press in a recent interview: "There's been so much pressure, so much demand and so much love for a second season. I almost feel like you leave us no choice! But I will say there will indeed be a second season. It's in my head right now. I'm in the planning process currently.” 

Netflix, the show’s financier and production studio, is yet to officially confirm the return of Squid Game for a second season, though the company had seemingly been waiting on Hwang’s approval and willingness to continue the show’s story. 

In a recent interview with Vulture, Netflix's Head of Global Productions, Bela Bajaria, said Hwang “has a film and other things he’s working on” right now, but that the streamer was “trying to figure out the right structure for him” with regard to Squid Game season 2. Now, Bajaria and company have received that elusive green light, so an official commission announcement from Netflix is only a matter of time.

In his admission to The Associated Press, Hwang didn’t speculate too much as to what a second season of Squid Game might entail, though he did confirm the return of a main character. 

“I do think it's too early to say when and how [a second season is] going to happen,” he said, “but I will promise you this: Gi-hun will come back, he will do something for the world."

Analysis: Where might Squid Game go next? 

It’s difficult to talk about the potential future of Squid Game without straying into spoiler territory, but for our in-depth season 2 predictions, head over to our Squid Game ending explainer. 

As for what Hwang himself has already revealed about the possible future of the series, he told The Hollywood Reporter that he’d be interested in exploring Gi-hun’s quest for revenge against the game’s organizers, which echoes his recent comments to AP.

"[We could] explore more about how he’s going to navigate through his reckoning with the people who are designing the games," the creator told THR, adding that he’d also be interested in further developing the story of the two brothers (we won’t say any more in fear of spoilers). 

Interestingly, Hwang has also hinted at the possibility of following the mysterious recruiter in more detail. "I could also go into the story of that recruiter in the suit who plays the game of ddakji with Gi-hun and gives him the card in the first episode," he told THR in the same interview.

It’s clear, then, that although Gi-hun will likely appear the central focus of Squid Game season 2 – “he will do something for the world," as Hwang puts it – there are still plenty of plot threads to explore elsewhere, too.

As for when a second season of Squid Game might arrive, we’re not anticipating a date any sooner than 2023. After all, it took Hwang more than a decade to write season 1…

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