Hwang Dong-hyuk dejected with South Korean viewers' reaction to Squid Game 2 

On January 12, 2025, director Hwang Dong-hyuk shared in an exclusive interview with HeraldPop that he was dejected with South Korean viewers' reaction to Squid Game 2. He compared the domestic audience's response to the second installment using a proverb and added, as translated by Koreaboo:

"There's a saying that even a stray dog gets half a chance at home."

The creator of the dystopian and thriller series went on to describe that he felt that evaluations were the harshest in South Korea. He confessed that he felt less comfortable, even though he returned home, and hoped for a little more support from the nation.

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Hwang Dong-hyuk felt grateful for overwhelming response from international audience to Squid Game 2

During the interview, the director expressed his gratitude for the overwhelming support and response for Squid Game 2 from the global audience. He was lost for words and added that he could only utter "thank you." He stated that multiple evaluations were significant in measuring a show's popularity. However, viewing hours were of the utmost importance.

Squid Game 2 topped Netflix's Top 10 chart for two consecutive weeks. The show dominated in 93 countries. Subsequently, the latest milestone of the drama made Hwang Dong-hyuk realize that many people loved and waited for the second installment.

He went on to describe how the latest milestone achieved by the drama felt miraculous to him. He further considered it as a once-in-a-lifetime achievement. He added, as translated by Koreaboo:

"In today's era, where an overwhelming number of content options are available, local productions usually gain love within their country or region. But for a single country's content to be ranked #1 globally... it's miraculous. To think that a Korean-language production topped the charts in 93 countries feels like a once-in-a-lifetime achievement."

Netflix dropped all seven episodes of season 2 on December 26, 2024. The drama featured talented and versatile actors, including Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun, Yim Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul, Wi Ha-joon, Jo Yu-ri, Yang Dong-geun, Kang Ae-shim, Park Sung-hoon, Lee Jin-wook, Lee Seo-hwan, Park Gyu-young, T.O.P, and others.

The official synopsis for the dystopian series, per Netflix, reads:

"Three years after winning Squid Game, Player 456 gave up going to the States and comes back with a new resolution in his mind... Gi-hun once again dives into the mysterious survival game, starting another life-or-death game with new participants gathered to win the prize of 45.6 billion won.”

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The third installment of Squid Game is slated to premiere in 2025.